Whether
you’re in an Italian restaurant in old
town or a chowder house along the waterfront, when it comes to clams
it’s a red or white choice. Clam sauce, red and white, are traditional
toppings for pasta in Italy . And you can get into a heated argument
most anywhere over the relative merits of New England or Manhattan clam
chowder.
In the
Northwest, the clear winner of the chowder argument is New England
style. Manhattan doesn’t make it onto many restaurant
menus around here. And white clam sauce probably has a slight edge
over the red in popularity in Italian eateries.
One test of the popularity of a dish is the number of sites revealed
in a web search. New England Chowder was a five-to-two favorite over
Manhattan , with almost half a million web sites. Red and white Clam
Sauce were almost even with about 100,000 sites each.
Razor clams, dug fresh from the sand, are an obvious choice for these
recipes, but many people believe that to be a waste of this precious
bounty, preferring to fry them. However, the necks of Razor Clams are
pretty chewy and make a good addition to the chowder pot when ground
or chopped very fine. Steamer clams will also work, but most people prefer
to dip them in a butter sauce instead of using them in chowder. Me, too.
Your grocery store has canned clams that work just fine. They come
minced or chopped, or as baby clams, similar to steamers.
The singular
difference between red and white clam chowder is whether the cook uses
milk or tomatoes as a primary ingredient. Of course, there are various
other flavors you might add to the pot. Chowder, by definition, is
a thick soup, but some recipes for Manhattan style don’t call
for it to be thickened. It’s a choice.
Manhattan Clam Chowder (serves 6)
6 strips
bacon, cut into 1” pieces
1
large yellow onion, chopped fine
Two
14.5-oz cans Italian style diced tomatoes
1
cup clam nectar or water
Razor
clam necks, ground or chopped, if available
2
cups potatoes, peeled and diced into 1 / 2 -inch pieces
1
tsp. dried oregano (optional)
1 /
2 tsp. dried thyme (optional)
2
Tbl. Italian parsley, chopped fine (optional)
Cayenne
Pepper to taste
Two
10-oz cans baby clams, juice reserved
8
Tbl. butter
4
Tbl. flour
2
cloves garlic, minced
In a large pot over medium heat, brown bacon until crisp. Remove bacon
to paper towels and set aside. Cook onions in bacon grease until soft
and pale yellow. Add tomatoes, clam juice, clam nectar or water, razor
clam necks, oregano, thyme, parsley and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce
heat and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Add potatoes, bring to a
boil again, reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes more.
Melt half the butter in a small sauce pan. Add flour and minced garlic
and stir constantly over medium heat for 5 minutes. Slowly add 1 cup
liquid from the big pot to the flour-butter mixture (roux), while stirring.
Pour it all back into the big pot and mix well. Add clams, bring to a
boil, reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes more. Add water if needed
to thin the chowder. Stir in the additional butter just before serving.
It’s
ready to serve, but always tastes better if refrigerated and reheated
the next day.
New England Clam Chowder (serves 6)
5 tbsp.
canola oil
1
large yellow onion, chopped fine
1
cup clam nectar or water
Razor
clam necks, ground or chopped fine, if available.
2
stalks celery, chopped fine
2
cups potatoes, peeled and diced into 1/2-inch pieces.
2
Tbl.. Italian parsley, chopped fine (optional)
Pepper
to taste
Three
6.5-oz cans chopped clams, juice reserved
8
Tbl..Butter
4
Tbl..Flour
4
cups milk (half-n-half makes a richer chowder)
1
clove garlic, minced (optional)
Cook onions in canola oil in a large pot over medium heat until soft
and pale yellow. Add clam juice, clam nectar or water, razor clam necks,
celery and potatoes. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer, covered,
until potatoes are soft, about 20-25 minutes.
 Melt half the butter in a small sauce pan; add flour and (optional)
garlic and stir over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Heat all the milk,
but do not boil. Stir two cups of hot milk, slowly, into the roux (flour-butter
mixture).
Add it to the big pot and mix thoroughly. Add the rest of the milk
and chopped clams and heat this mixture just short of boiling for about
10 minutes. Add milk, if needed, to thin the chowder. Just before serving,
stir in the rest of the butter. I might add another dollop or two. It
adds such richness.
As with
the Manhattan variety, this chowder will taste better if refrigerated
and re-heated the next day. Any of the additional ingredients in Manhattan
chowder, bacon, oregano, etc., are welcome to the pot, but use less
of them. It’s easy to overwhelm the
taste of the clams in this recipe.
Clam Sauce
The principle
difference between Red and White Clam Sauce is whether olive oil or
tomatoes are used. Milk is sometimes added to the white variety and
thickened with a roux, but not always. In restaurants, both colors
are usually served with linguini. My preference, however, is to puddle
it over thin spaghetti, sometimes called “spaghettini,” and
serve it with a bowl of Parmesan cheese and Garlic Bread made from my
recipe. (see CRR June 15, 2004 issue or watch for reprint coming soon).
The Italian method, however, is to mix the sauce with the pasta before
serving, incorporating the flavor of the sauce with the otherwise tasteless
pasta.
Red Clam Sauce ( serves 6)
1 / 4 cup
olive oil
3
Garlic cloves, minced
Two
14.5-oz cans Italian-style diced tomatoes
3
Tbl. Italian parsley
Salt
to taste
2
tsp. Chili powder
Two
10-oz can baby clams, juice reserved
One
6.5-oz can minced clams
Cook the garlic in the olive oil over medium heat until pale yellow.
Add the tomatoes, parsley, chili powder and clam juice. Bring to a boil,
reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Add the clams,
salt to taste and cook an additional 5 minutes. Serve over, or mixed
with your choice of pasta.
White Clam Sauce (serves 6)
1 / 2 cup
olive oil
3
garlic cloves, minced
3
Tbl. Italian parsley, finely chopped
2
tsp. chili pepper powder
Salt
to taste
1
/ 2 cup dry white wine
Two
10-oz cans baby clams, juice reserved
One
6.5-oz can minced clams, juice reserved
6
basil leaves, chopped
Cook the garlic in the olive oil over medium heat until pale yellow.
Add the parsley and chili pepper and cook for 2 minutes. Add the wine
and simmer another minute or two. Add clam juice and heat through. Add
the clams, salt to taste and basil, cook it an additional 5 minutes.
Serve over, or mixed with your choice of pasta.
Preparing the pasta:
It’s
always best to boil pasta in a large volume of salted water (one Tbl.
salt per gallon) until it is al dente , cooked through but still slightly
firm. When cooked with too little water, the pasta will absorb too
much water and become mushy. Be sure to stir the pasta several times
while it cooks to keep it from sticking together. Check the package
for approximate cooking time. Measure the time from when the water
returns to a boil. Once done, drain the pasta in a colander and serve
immediately.
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Cleaning Clams