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Paul Young is a townie who graduated from the University of Illinois twice: once with a bachelors in graphic design and then again with a masters in education. Paul has been a foodie all his life (even though he didn't know what a foodie was until recently). He has eaten his way through New York City (eight years) and Milwaukee (two years), but has finally settled down here in Champaign-Urbana (since 1994). When he's not eating, he is either doing graphic design or teaching at Parkland College in order to earn money to buy food. In a former life, Paul was the founder and publisher of The Octopus, a weekly newspaper where he wrote about food every now and then.
On a recent trip to Boston, I made the mistake of trying the clam chowder at a so-called "seafood" restaurant. The flavor was bland and the consistency milky. Maybe that's what they like, but I prefer my chowder hearty. So upon my return, I decided to do my own version.
Traditional chowder recipes call for roux, the French version of a thickener made with butter and flour. I prefer to let the potatoes do the thickening for me. By cooking some of the potatoes a little longer than others, they begin to melt and act as the thickener.
Sure, I could use fresh clams, but why?
This is a chowder, which means all the ingredients are basically cooked to death — so I recommend the canned variety. But the essence of any good soup is the broth and this is where I cheat the most. Having worked in restaurant kitchens, I also know that this is what even the best chefs do — they buy the soup base instead of making their own. It's just cheaper and more efficient. For clam chowder, I highly recommend Bear Creek Clam Base, available at Meijer (about $4).
And here's my final touch: throw in a whole bulb of garlic. You hear me say this over and over again, "There's no such thing as too much garlic."
Ingredients:
* 4 tbs butter
* 1½ cup onion, chopped
* 1 leek, chopped
* 1 bulb garlic, crushed
* 2 cups water
* 1 cup carrots diced
* 3 potatoes diced
* 2 tbs clam base
* 2 cans chopped clams (about 13 oz total)
* 1 can whole baby clams (10 oz)
* 1½ cup corn (frozen)
* 3 tbs bacon, crumbled
* 1 cup milk
* salt and pepper to taste
* chopped parsley to garnish
To make the chowder:
1. In a large soup pot, sautee the onions, leeks and garlic in butter.
2. Add the water, carrots and 1/3 of the potatoes.
3. Bring the chowder to a boil, then cook for 20 minutes over medium flame.
4. Add the clam base, clams, corn, bacon and the rest of the potatoes.
5. Bring to a boil, then simmer another 15 minutes.
6. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
7. Turn fire off, stir in the milk.
8. Garnish with chopped parsley.
