Creamy Tomato Connecticut Clam Chowder {Gluten Free Clam Chowder}
The delicious quahog chowder (clam chowder) is a mashup of the best parts of the tomato-based Manhattan Chowder and the creamy New England Chowder.
Ingredients
- 3 cups Hard-Shell Clam Broth (see below)
- 7 pounds to 8 pounds large Cherrystones or small Quahog Clams (NOTE: Smaller littlenecks are in these images. Those are OK too, but not Craig's original recipe.)
- 4 ounces Fatty slab bacon (about 4 large strips) or salt pork, roughly diced into 1/2-inch pieces
- 2 tablespoons to 3 tablespoons Unsalted butter, if needed
- 1 large Yellow onion, (or 2 medium onions) roughly diced into 1/2-inch pieces
- 2 Celery stalks, roughly diced into 1/2-inch pieces
- 4 fresh Thyme sprigs, leaves removed and stems discarded
- 1 Bay leaf
- 2 teaspoons Dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon Red pepper flakes
- 2 Garlic cloves, roughly diced
- One 14-ounce can diced Tomatoes in juices
- 2 tablespoons Tomato paste
- 1 pound Potatoes, roughly chopped into 1/2-inch cubes
- 1 cup to 2 cups Heavy cream or half-and-half
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
Optional Seasonings, to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Salt pork cracklings or bacon bits
- Fresh parsley, chopped
- Fresh chives, chopped
- Hot sauce of your choice
Instructions
- Make the clam broth (Simply submerge the clams under 3 cups of water. Use a wide stockpot so clams are not overly stacked on one another. Boil until clams open. Sieve the broth into another pot. It should be grey, cloudy, and brine-y. Craig says it should make your mouth pucker!)
- Heat the bacon in a medium stockpot over low heat until a few tablespoons of fat render out. Rain the heat to medium and brown the meatier pieces, being careful not to burn them. Remove and reserve the browned pieces but leave the fat in the pot. Before serving the chowder, you can reheat the crispy browned cracklings from the salt port or the bits from the bacon and add them as a topping.
- Add the butter, if needed, for additional cooking fat. Add the onion, celery, thyme, bay leaf, oregano, and red pepper flakes. Sauté 5 to 7 minutes over medium heat, until the vegetables are softened. Add the garlic last minute.
- Add 3 cups of the clam broth, tomatoes, and tomato paste and bring to a boil.
- Add the potatoes, cover the pot, and simmer for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the potatoes are cooked through.
- Add 1 cup of the heavy cream and taste. Add up to 1 more cup of heavy cream to desired taste. Remove the pot from the heat.
- Chop the clams roughly into quarters or halves and stir into the chowder. Leave a few of the smaller clams whole, if desired.
- Ladle into individual bowls and add optional seasonings to taste.
Notes
Make sure to listen to Craig Fear on The Storied Recipe Podcast: "The US has 90,000 Miles of Shoreline. So Why Does It Import the Majority of Its Seafood?" while you make his Gluten Free Tomato and Cream Clam Chowder recipe!
Nutrition
Calories: 399kcalCarbohydrates: 23gProtein: 17gFat: 27gSaturated Fat: 14gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 91mgSodium: 703mgPotassium: 545mgFiber: 3gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 1.378IUVitamin C: 20mgCalcium: 92mgIron: 3mg
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