Summer meals give a great and lively touch to your entire day and the New England Chowder is not exempted. This meal provides you with a yummy, creamy and original taste that gives the right spice to your day.
Apart from that, New England Clam Chowder is packed with various ingredients with tremendous health benefits. These ingredients put your body system in the right shape and form providing you with the nutrients needed for the proper functioning of your body. Clams are essential nutrient-filled sea foods that help put your body in good health.
What Is New England Clam Chowder?
This is the most popular and earliest variety of Clam Chowder. It originated from New England and it is a milk-based Clam Chowder that was introduced by British settlers. This dish is also known as Boston Clam Chowder. This meal became common in the 18th century especially because of its ingredients and peculiar taste. Chowder recipes vary among different people and environments; however, this is the most widely acclaimed.
This cream-based Clam Chowder has a thicker consistency than other Clam Chowder recipes. The popular ingredients include potatoes, onions, clams, heavy cream, bacon and butter. Oyster crackers are also popularly used to garnish the New England Clam Chowder. However, New England Clam Chowder has many recipes that include other ingredients apart from the popular ones.
People have started making this dish using different recipes based on their personal preferences, convenience, and their different regions. New England Clam Chowder is one that soothes the soul and satisfies the cravings of the belly.
How Do You Make Clam Chowder From The Scratch?
The best ingredients for your Clam Chowder or any dish at all are the ones that are fresh. Although you can get canned clams for your Clam Chowder, it is best to use the fresh ones which you could easily get at a supermarket.
Ingredients
- 4 slices of bacon
- 2 cups of onions
- 1 Pound of potatoes
- 1 cup of celery
- ⅓ cup of all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon of black pepper
- 1 teaspoon of thyme
- 2 cups of heavy cream
- 1 cup of chicken stock or clam juice
- Bay leaf (optional)
- Carrot (optional)
- Corn (optional)
- 4 cans of canned clams or cherry stone clam
If you truly want to prepare New England clam chowder from the scratch there are a few decisions you would like to make. You would need to choose between using canned products or completely fresh ingredients. The cherry stone is even more nutritious and cheaper in the market. Also, you can easily make your clam juice from this sea food. If you would like to bring your New England Chowder to the next level try using our award winning spice blend *link to product page*
Easy Steps To Making New England Clam Chowder
If you are using the cherry stone clams, you need to put the clams in cold water for 30 minutes, scrub them and then put it back in clean water. This dish is easy to make at home especially when using trusted clams chowder recipes. This particular recipe would help you make this traditional dish in a way that makes room for your own added preferences.
Step 1: Make Your Clam Juice
Put water in your stock pot, allow it to boil. After that you add your water to the boiling pot, make sure that all the cherry stones are tightly closed. Leave it for 7-10 minutes until the stones open up by themselves. Remove the clams from the water and then use a sieve to sift the water of particles. That water is your clam juice. However, if you have decided to go for canned products, this step is not needed. Although fresh clam juice allows the entire chowder recipe to be sweet and even more nutritious to health.
Step 2: Prepare Your Items
Part of your preparation includes getting your potatoes peeled. With your potatoes peeled, you then make your bowls and kitchen utensils ready. Adequate preparation would help you prepare your meals smoothly. You get ingredients like your bacon, onions and celery ready for the first stage.
Step 3: Dice Your Ingredients
The major aesthetic feature and beauty behind the making of the New England Clam Chowder is in its dicing. Dice 1 large white onion then set it aside in a bowl. Dice your celery stock into little cubes then you can put them on the onions. Also, dice your potatoes, after which you store them in cold water to prevent them from getting brown. Do the same for your bacon also.
Step 4: Preheat Your Pot
You want your meal to look fresh especially with the vegetables inside it. Preheat your pot between a range of low-medium heat so that your vegetables can cook but they won't burn or start to look brownish. This would regulate the amount of fire that you need for the recipe to succeed.
Step 5: Add Your First Four Ingredients
The bacon is the first ingredient that you put in the pot to simmer. With the bacon, you do not have to add oil to this because bacon makes its own grease while cooking. After your bacon has come out nice and crisp, you then add your two cups of onions and 1 cup of celery. Then, add your potatoes and let them all cook for about 20 minutes.
Step 6: Add the thickening ingredients
At this point, you would have to increase the heat of your cooking gas so that the butter you add would melt completely. After adding the butter, you add the clam juice or broth to the mixture. Then you add a cup of all-purpose flour to give it the consistency that you desire. Add your two cups of heavy cream to help give your Clam Chowder the creamy taste that it is noted for. The New England Clam Chowder would start to thicken at this point.
Step 7: Put Salt And Pepper To Taste
Although the broth and bacon already have salt, you need to add extra salt to your New England Clam Chowder so that you can get its unique taste. Also, you add the pepper to taste. After this, you allow your clam chowder to simmer for about 15 minutes. You can add the bay leaf at this stage also. Again, if you want to WOW your friends and family skip this step and toss in our award-winning Seafood Chowder spice packet that includes a heavenly blend of spices that was our secret ingredient during the days of our restaurant *insert product page link*
Step 8: Put In The Clams
Minced Chowder Clams always come pre-cooked so overcooking them would not be necessary. Even the fresh clam from the cherry stones does not need too much cooking because it would eventually toughen. This is why clams are the last ingredients that you put in your New England Clam Chowder. Reduce the gas to medium heat, after it has simmered a bit, your Clam Chowder is ready to serve.
After you dish this meal, you can add the regular oyster crackers to beautify the New England dish and give the chowder recipe further aesthetic features.
5 Benefits Of New England Clam Chowder
Great Source Of Vitamin B12
Normally, people assume that beef has a higher level of vitamin B12, however, clams are a better source of the vitamin. The benefits of this vitamin are enormous; it slows down aging, helps in producing red blood cells, boosts your mood and energy. Apart from the clam, bacon also provides a level of Vitamin B12. All these ingredients are found in the chowder clam recipe that is highly nutritious for you and it is a perfect choice for old people.
Keeps Your Blood Pressure Properly Regulated
Blood pressure is a matter of concern among people across the globe. Those who have high blood pressure can have it reduced with this Clam Chowder recipe. The recipe would add potassium to your body system as opposed to sodium and this would regulate your blood pressure levels. This also goes further to avoid the possibility of stroke or heart failure.
Repairs Body Cells
Clams are notable for the level of protein that are found in them. These recipes have protein that help in repairing the body cells and helps children to grow well among their peers. It also assists the body in producing new body cells when it is needed. It is a great find for kids, teenagers and pregnant women. With a 100g of clam you can get as high as 12.8g of protein. This is higher than most foods and a wise quantity that should be eaten.
They Fill Your Body With A High Level Of Iron
Iron is one of the nutrients that a large number of the world is deficient in. People can easily get fat or carbohydrate filled foods but globally, the iron level of individuals is reducing which causes anemia. A clam supplies 23.8 mg of iron per 170-gram. This level would help your body get the sufficient iron that it needs.
Clam Chowder Recipe Provides Chlorine
Clam on its own has a high level of chlorine which helps in keeping the liver healthy and protects it from liver disease. Eating clam chowder would help you take care of your vital body parts. Although the New England Clam Chowder has fatty and creamy properties, the clam in it still performs its function. Chlorine is also a good vitamin-like compound that enhances your brain function and memory.
Side Effects
The dish recipe can be made in diverse ways especially for those who want to reduce the calories and fatty nutrients. You can always substitute the cream with low-fat milk and just half a cup of cream. By using these ingredients, you can reduce the fatty contents.
People with these allergies should not eat New England Clam Chowder.
- Seafood allergy
- Milk allergy
- Lactose allergy
- Those allergic to celery
It has allergens which could cause complications for allergic people. However, all these ingredients are naturally nutritional.
Who Makes The Best New England Clam Chowder?
You can get the best New England Clam Chowder at the Newport Chowder Company. To contact them visit their contact page *insert contact page link* or order their secret spice packets today *insert product page link*. They have a 5-star rating and customers sing the praises of this award-winning recipe. They are a great choice for weddings, showers and any corporate event you might have.