Best Clam Chowder Wolfgang Puck Ii Recipes

CLAM CHOWDER

Steps:

• Make a bouquet garni by placing the 3 sprigs thyme, parsley, garlic cloves, and peppercorns in cheesecloth and tying with kitchen twine. Add wine, water, and bouquet garni to a large saucepan and bring to a simmer. Add the clams, cover with a lid, and cook until clams open. Strain the clams into a bowl, reserving both the juice and clams.
• Return the pan to the heat, add olive oil, and heat over medium-high heat. Add bacon and cook until crispy. Add onion and cook for 1 minute. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add celery and carrot and cook until tender. Sprinkle flour into pan, stir to make a roux, and cook until flour is incorporated; do not let roux brown. Add more oil if mixture seems dry.
• Add 1 more fresh thyme sprig, and return the strained clam cooking liquid to the pan and bring to a simmer for 30 minutes, or until vegetables are tender. Add potato, milk, lemon juice, and cayenne and simmer until potato is tender. Meanwhile, remove clams from their shells and roughly chop clams. When potato is tender, add clams back into the pan, add cream, and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Stir to combine, and as soon as clams are heated through, remove from the heat.
• Ladle soup into serving bowls. Garnish each with croutons and a sprig of fresh thyme. Serve immediately.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Place bread cubes in a large bowl. Drizzle with garlic and chili oil and sprinkle with parsley. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and toss well. Pour onto a sheet pan in 1 even layer and bake until crispy and golden brown, about 10 minutes. Serve on top of chowder.
• In a small saucepan, combine the garlic cloves and olive oil and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat and simmer until the garlic begins to turn brown, 10 to 15 minutes. (Do not let the garlic get too brown or the oil will have a bitter taste.)
• Remove from the heat and cool to room temperature. Add the red pepper flakes and infuse for at least 2 hours to allow the flavors to blend. Refrigerate in a covered container for up to 2 weeks.

NEW ENGLAND CLAM CHOWDER II

Steps:

• In a large saucepan over medium high heat, fry the bacon until crisp, about 10 minutes. Drain on paper towels, reserving the bacon fat in the pan, crumble and set aside.
• In the same saucepan with the bacon fat, saute the onion and potatoes for 3 to 5 minutes. Sprinkle with the flour and stir well to coat.
• Pour in the clam juice, bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer for about 15 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.
• Add the half-and-half and minced clams and season with salt and pepper to taste. Finally, whisk in the heavy cream, if desired. Allow to heat through, about 5 minutes. Garnish with the parsley and crumbled bacon. (Note: Do not boil if adding cream.)

CONTEST-WINNING NEW ENGLAND CLAM CHOWDER

Steps:

• In a Dutch oven, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp. Remove to paper towels to drain; set aside. Saute celery and onion in the drippings until tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Stir in the potatoes, water, clam juice, bouillon, pepper and thyme. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, until potatoes are tender, 15-20 minutes., In a small bowl, combine flour and 1 cup half-and-half until smooth. Gradually stir into soup. Bring to a boil; cook and stir until thickened, 1-2 minutes., Stir in clams and remaining half-and-half; heat through (do not boil). Crumble the cooked bacon; sprinkle over each serving.

MY BEST CLAM CHOWDER

Steps:

• Drain juice from clams into a large skillet over the onions, celery, potatoes and carrots. Add water to cover, and cook over medium heat until tender.
• Meanwhile, in a large, heavy saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in flour until smooth. Whisk in cream and stir constantly until thick and smooth. Stir in vegetables and clam juice. Heat through, but do not boil.
• Stir in clams just before serving. If they cook too much they get tough. When clams are heated through, stir in vinegar, and season with salt and pepper.

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.

EAST HAMPTON CLAM CHOWDER

Steps:

• Melt 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) of the butter in a large heavy-bottomed stockpot. Add the onions and cook over medium-low heat for 10 minutes, or until translucent. Add the celery, carrots, potatoes, thyme, salt, and pepper and saute for 10 more minutes. Add the clam juice, bring to a boil, and simmer, uncovered, until the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes.
• In a small pot, melt the remaining 8 tablespoons of butter and whisk in the flour. Cook over very low heat for 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Whisk in a cup of the hot broth and then pour this mixture back into the cooked vegetables. Simmer for a few minutes until the broth is thickened.
• Add the milk and clams and heat gently for a few minutes to cook the clams. Taste for salt and pepper. Serve hot.