Maine Fish Chowder Recipes

Steps:

• Cut the shrimp, scallops, and monkfish into bite-sized pieces and place them in a bowl with the crabmeat.
• In a heavy-bottomed pot, melt the butter; add the carrots, onions, celery, potatoes, and corn and saute over medium-low heat for 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are barely cooked, stirring occasionally. Add the flour; reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring often, for 3 minutes. Add the Seafood Stock and bring to a boil. Add the seafood; reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 7 to 10 minutes, until the fish is just cooked. Add the heavy cream, if desired, and the parsley. Add salt and pepper to taste, and serve.
• Warm the oil in a stockpot over medium heat. Add the shrimp shells, onions, carrots, and celery and saute for 15 minutes, or until lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook 2 more minutes. Add 1 1/2 quarts of water, the white wine, tomato paste, salt, pepper, and thyme. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 1 hour. Strain through a sieve, pressing the solids. You should have approximately 1 quart of stock. You can make up the difference with water or wine if you need to.

Steps:

• Fill a large pot halfway with lightly salted water; bring to a boil. Add onions and carrots; cook until slightly tender, 10 minutes. Add potatoes; cook until tender, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Stir in salmon, cod, scallops, shrimp, lobster, and crab; cook over medium heat until salmon and cod are firm but chunks are still slightly translucent in the center, about 10 minutes. Drain half the water from the pot and add clams, heavy cream, and half-and-half. Place butter chunks atop the soup; season with salt and black pepper. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, until salmon and cod are fully cooked and flake easily with a fork, about 30 minutes.

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, saute onions in 2 tablespoons butter. Add the water, potatoes, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 25 minutes or until potatoes are tender. , Combine the flour and milk until smooth. Stir into potato mixture along with evaporated milk. Add fish and the remaining butter; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cook 5-10 minutes longer or until fish is opaque.

Steps:

• Your pot may only take 2 cans of the evaporated milk. Zaar didn't like 2-3 cans. :). Those who hate or are skeptical about evaporated milk have all loved my chowders.
• Place onions and potatoes with thyme and salt and pepper into a large pot and cover with water. If you aren't going to thicken, add butter now.
• Bring to the boil and cook until potatoes begin to cook.
• Using the butter and flour make a roux in a small frying pan by melting the butter, stirring in the flour, whisking and cook 1 minute.
• Continue to cook at a simmer until potatoes are just underdone.
• Add the roux and simmer on medium high heat, stirring until quite thick. Add fish and lower heat to a gentle simmer for 5 minutes.
• Add evaporated milk.
• Lower heat and allow to cook until potatoes are just tender.
• Raise heat to near the boil and turn the heat off. Allow to stand covered most of the day or overnight. Adjust seasoning.
• It can be eaten at this point though I prefer to leave on lowest heat and stir occasionally for an hour then allow to stand all afternoon; overnight is best. I always think most chowders, soups, stews and sauces are best made a day in advance.
• This is at it's very best made a day ahead and slowly reheated. This will not freeze. I prefer cod for the flavor and is most commonly used. There appears to be many steps though all simple. I can throw this together nearly as quick as I can open a can.
• Serve with crackers and sour pickles if you want to go "all New England!".
• VARIATION 1.
• If I am doing clam chowder I use 1 pint of chopped fresh clams or 3-4 small cans of minced clams; using the iquid as part of the water with both fresh and canned clams.
• VARIATION 2.
• For corn chowder I use 2 cans of cream style corn and 1 can of whole kernel corn plus 1 small jar of baby food corn. It really ups the corn flavor.

Steps:

• In a Dutch oven, melt 1/4 cup butter over medium heat. Cook onions until tender but not browned. Add the potatoes, salt, pepper and water. Top with fish. Simmer, covered, until potatoes are fork-tender, 20-25 minutes. , In a large saucepan, heat milk over medium heat until bubbles form around side of saucepan. Stir in evaporated milk and remaining butter; add to fish and potato mixture. If desired, season with additional salt and pepper. Heat through.

Steps:

• Fry salt pork to render all fat in a heavy kettle and then remove.
• Add potatoes, onions, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
• Cover with hot water and cook over medium heat, covered, 15 minutes, until potatoes are just tender.
• Do not overcook.
• Meanwhile, cut fish into large chunks and put into another saucepan.
• Add boiling water to cover and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt.
• Cook slowly, covered, until fish is fork tender, about 15 minutes.
• Remove from heat.
• Strain and reserve liquid.
• Remove any bones from fish.
• Add fish and strained liquid to potato-onion mixture.
• Pour in milk and leave on stove long enough to heat through, about 5 minutes.
• Mix in butter and pepper.
• Serve at once.

Steps:

• In a heavy pot over medium heat, cook fatback until nearly crisp. Add onions, stir, and reduce heat to low. "Chip" a potato by holding it in one hand and turning it slowly while using a sharp paring knife to cut quarter-moon-shaped quarter-inch-thick slices directly into pot, creating an even layer. Chips will have a thick end, which will remain intact, and a thin end, which will dissolve and thicken broth. Repeat with remaining potatoes.
• Add fish in an even layer, then crumbled crackers in an even layer. Do not stir. Add cold water until it nearly covers layers. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, cover, and simmer until potato is tender, about 15 minutes. Remove lid, add evaporated milk, bring to a simmer, and stir. Serve with additional crackers, if desired.

Steps:

• Heat a 2 to 3-quart heavy pot over low heat and add the diced salt pork. Once it has rendered a few tablespoons of fat, increase the heat to medium and cook until the pork is a crisp golden brown. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the cracklings to a small ovenproof dish, leaving the fat in the pot, and reserve until later.
• Add the butter, onions, savory or thyme, and bay leaf to the pot and saute, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, for about 8 minutes, until the onions are softened but not browned.
• Add the potatoes and stock. If the stock doesn't cover the potatoes, add just enough water to cover them. Turn up the heat and bring to a boil, cover, and cook the potatoes vigorously for about 10 minutes, until they are soft on the outside but still firm in the center. If the stock hasn't thickened lightly, smash a few of the potato slices against the side of the pot and cook for 1 or 2 minutes longer to release their starch. Reduce the heat to low and season assertively with salt and pepper (you want to almost over season the chowder at this point to avoid having to stir it much once the fish is added). Add the fish fillets and cook over low heat for 5 minutes, then remove the pot from the heat and allow the chowder to sit for 10 minutes (the fish will finish cooking during this time).
• Gently stir in the cream and taste for salt and pepper. If you are not serving the chowder within the hour, let it cool a bit, then refrigerate; cover the chowder after it has chilled completely. Otherwise, let is sit for up to 1 hour at room temperature, allowing the flavors to meld.
• When ready to serve, reheat the chowder over low heat; don't let it boil. Warm the cracklings in a low oven (200 degrees) for a few minutes.
• Use a slotted spoon to mound the chunks of fish, the onions, and potatoes in the center of large soup plates or shallow bowls, and ladle the creamy broth around. Scatter the cracklings over the individual servings and finish each with a sprinkling of chopped parsley and minced chives.

Steps:

• Place bacon strips in a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Cook bacon until crisp, then remove to paper towels to drain. Drain grease from the pot, reserving about 1 tablespoon. Set heat to medium, and fry onions in the reserved bacon grease until tender, about 5 minutes.
• Add potatoes, and fill pot with just enough water to cover them. Bring to a boil, then cook until potatoes are almost tender, about 5 minutes. Add fish pieces, evaporated milk, whole milk, and butter. Bring to a boil, then simmer over low heat for 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Ladle into bowls, and top with crumbled bacon pieces.

Steps:

• In a small pan over low heat, toast the peppercorns until fragrant, about 5 minutes. Coarsely grind and set aside.
• Trim cod of any pin bones or bits of skin and cut into 1-inch cubes. Lightly salt the cubes all over and set aside on paper towels to drain. Rinse scallops very lightly under cold water. Cut into half-moons and set aside on paper towels to drain. Keep seafood refrigerated until ready to use.
• In a large pot, melt butter over medium-high heat. When the butter is just sizzling, add onion and potatoes and cook, stirring, until the onions start to melt and the potatoes are gold at the edges, about 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, if using bacon, cook the strips in a hot skillet over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until nicely browned, about 5 minutes. Set aside on paper towels to drain.
• Add stock, thyme and toasted peppercorns to pot and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat and simmer for 3 to 5 minutes. The potatoes should not be cooked through.
• Stir in cream and heat through over low heat. Taste and adjust the seasonings with salt and pepper.
• Just before serving, with the chowder simmering over low heat, stir in seafood and simmer until potatoes are soft and seafood is just cooked through, about 5 minutes. Stir in the bacon.
• Ladle the chowder into bowls. You want each serving to be around 2 parts broth to 1 part chunky goodness. Use your fingers to crush the nori into powdery bits, if using, and sprinkle over the top of each serving. Place about 1 teaspoon chives in the center of each bowl and serve immediately.