Julies Clam Crab Chowder White Recipes

CREAMY CRAB CHOWDER

Steps:

• Heat bacon grease and butter in a large pot over medium-high heat. Saute onion, celery, and parsley until onion is browned, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium and pour in stock. Slowly stir in cream, salt, seasoned salt, pepper, chili powder, dill, sugar, and cayenne pepper. Add crab and simmer until flavors combine, about 15 minutes.
• Mix flour with water in a small bowl and pour into the soup. Stir to thicken slightly. Add sherry just before serving.

THE BEST CLAM CHOWDER

Steps:

• Put the clams in a large, heavy Dutch oven, add about 4 cups water, then set over medium-high heat. Cover, and cook until clams have opened, approximately 10 to 15 minutes. (Clams that fail to open after 15 to 20 minutes should be discarded.) Strain clam broth through a sieve lined with cheesecloth or doubled-up paper towels, and set aside. Remove clams from shells, and set aside as well.
• Rinse out the pot, and return it to the stove. Add butter, and turn heat to medium-low. Add bacon or salt pork, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the fat has rendered and the pork has started to brown, approximately 5 to 7 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to remove pork from fat, and set aside.
• Add the leeks to the fat, and cook, stirring frequently, until they are soft but not brown, about 10 minutes. Stir in potatoes and wine, and continue cooking until wine has evaporated and the potatoes have just started to soften, approximately 5 minutes. Add enough clam broth to just cover the potatoes, approximately 3 cups, reserving the rest for another use. Add the thyme and the bay leaf.
• Partly cover the pot, and simmer gently until potatoes are tender, approximately 10 to 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, chop the clams into bits about the size of the bacon dice.
• When potatoes are tender, add cream and stir in chopped clams and reserved bacon. Add black pepper to taste. Let come to a simmer, and remove from heat. (Do not let chowder come to a full boil.) Fish out the thyme and the bay leaf, and discard.
• The chowder should be allowed to sit for a while to cure. Reheat it to a bare simmer before serving, then garnish with chopped parsley. Serve with oyster crackers.

CRAB CHOWDER

Steps:

• Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat. Cook and stir onion, celery, thyme, salt, and pepper in hot butter until onion and celery start to soften, about 5 minutes. Stir potatoes, milk, broth, cream, and clam juice into onion mixture. Bring to a simmer; cook until potatoes are soft, about 10 minutes.
• Pour broth mixture into a blender no more than half full. Cover and hold lid down; pulse a few times before leaving on to blend. Puree in batches until smooth. Return pureed soup to pot and stir in crabmeat. Cook until soup is hot and crab is heated through, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

CLAM CHOWDER TWO WAYS

Steps:

• Working in batches if necessary, place clams in a medium saucepan with 1 3/4 cups water. Cover and bring to a boil. Uncover, stir, and continue to cook, removing clams as soon as they open (this way, none of them will overcook and turn too chewy).
• Once they've all been removed, strain liquid through a sieve lined with a dampened cheesecloth to get rid of residual grit. You should have 3 cups broth; if you have less, add water or bottled clam broth. Gently separate clams from shells; discard shells and coarsely chop clams (halve if small).
• Wash and dry saucepan; place over medium-high heat. Melt butter in pan, then add pancetta and cook, stirring, until browned on edges, about 2 minutes. Add onion, thyme, and bay leaf. Cook until onion is translucent, about 3 minutes. Add wine and simmer, stirring, until almost evaporated, about 3 minutes.
• Sprinkle mixture with flour and keep stirring, 30 seconds. Add potato and broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, until potato is tender, about 10 minutes; stir in clams and cream. Gently heat through, about 30 seconds-but without boiling, which would cause the clams to become tough. Remove and discard bay leaf. Season with salt and pepper, and serve with crackers.