Smokey New England Clam Chowder

[marshall]

hey my birthday is coming up , just sayin!!
looks great, thanks for the recipe

[texastweeter]

good job!

[Red Man]

This sounds really great!

[CaptainMike]

Man, I can't wait for it to snow so I can pour myself a scotch, turn on some smoky jazz, and do this recipe. Thanks for sharing!

[tbob4]

I'm really glad you did this. When you asked the question I thought grilling the ingredients over wood was fine but I was skeptical about smoking for soup. I would have been scared to smoke the veggies. Smoking the clam shells was a really good idea! I think the cream is the equalizer for the soup. A water based broth may not have been able to take the smoked onions. I am going to remember this post and will try it. Thanks again!

[ofelles]

This I will have to try. Thank you.

[HouseHomey]

Sounds fantastic. Love Smokey cream and seafood.

is this your recipe? Are the clamshells are for plating purposes? Why do you chop the onion after the smoke?

Man, I’m getting hungry.

Thank you for the post.

[Steve B]

That looks outstanding. Thanks for this recipe. I am following this one so I can reference it easily.

[Skip]

This sounds wonderful Charley Langer . Can't find Clam Chowder like this in the midwest.

[ScottyC13]

Sounds delicious! Thanks for posting.

[Charley Langer]

As a follow up to my recent post on smokey chowder recipes, I came up with this. It was delicious. My wife said it was the most flavorful clam chowder she’d ever had. I made it for my youngest daughter’s 14th birthday (her request), and she loved it.


Smokey New England Clam Chowder

Prep Time. 15 mins
Cook Time. 1 hour
Total Time. 1 hour, 15 mins

Course: Main Course Soup
Cuisine: American
Servings: 6 servings

Ingredients

* 1/4 pound bacon, cut crosswise into 1/4” pieces
* 2 tablespoons butter
* 1 large yellow onion, cut into 1/2 inch thick slices
* 2 stalks celery, chopped
* 2 cloves garlic, minced
* 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
* 1 34-ounce carton (4 cups) Aneto Fish Broth
* 1/4 cup dry white wine (e.g., sauvignon blanc, pinot grigio, chardonnay)
* 5 cups starchy potatoes (e.g. russets), peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
* 1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt or table salt
* 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* 1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
* 2 bay leaves
* 30 or so quahogs (e.g. cherrystone or littleneck) clams OR three 6 1/2 ounce canned clams, drained
* 1 cup heavy cream
* 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parlsey
* Oyster crackers for serving
* Chopped fresh parsley for serving

Shucking fresh clams (I used about 40 littlenecks):

Scrub the exterior of the shells well with cold running water and a brush to remove sand. Discard clams that rattle or are unusually heavy or light.

Let them soak submerged in cold fresh water for about an hour and change the water once so they will spit out any sand. Dump the water, rinse the clams again, and smell each one. Discard any funny smelling clams. Make sure they are alive by squeezing on the shell. If the shell slides easily left to right, it is probably dead and you should discard it. If it is slightly open, when you squeeze it or tap it on the counter, it should slowly close itself. When in doubt, throw it out.

To open clams, put them in some hot water, not boiling, (140°F is ideal) for about 5-10 minutes. The heat plumps them slightly without cooking them, and the clams should start to open. You should be able to easily pry them all the way open and scrape out the meat with a kitchen knife.

Method

* Prepare the smoker for 200°F, using the wood of your choice. Place the clams on a grill topper. Place the onions and clam shells on the grate and smoke for 30 to 40 minutes (this should give you time to pre-measure and chop the rest of the ingredients).
* Remove the clams, shells, and onions. Coarsely chop the onions.
* Fry the bacon in a medium stock pot until crispy then remove with a slotted spoon, leaving about a tablespoon of the grease in the pot.
* Add the butter to the pot along with the onions, celery and garlic. Cook over medium-high heat for 6-8 minutes until softened but not browned. Add the flour, stir to combine and cook for a minute.
* Add the broth and white wine, stirring to prevent the flour from clumping, and bring to a simmer, stirring constantly. Add the potatoes, thyme, bay leaves, salt, pepper half the bacon, and the smoked clam shells (you don’t have to add all the shells). Simmer the chowder for 25-30 minutes until the potatoes are extremely tender. The consistency is right when the potatoes are so soft that some have begun to fall apart. I smash down on the chowder occasionally to check the tenderness of the potatoes.
* Add the clams, cream and parsley and heat through for 5 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste, and serve immediately sprinkled with the remaining bacon, fresh parsley and oyster crackers.