It's always puzzled me;

Why the Salt Pork ?

Would chopped soft--fried bacon work as well ?

On Sun, 23 Jan 2005 12:37:17 -0500, "Jessica V." > wrote:

wrote:
>> It turned out great! I shared it with my neighbours, who enjoyed it as
>> much as I did.
>
>
>It sounds good, but it certainly isn't New Englad clam chowda. Chowda
>is simple old New England fare made with what was available to the early
>settlers.
>
>Somewhere I have a 1700s recipe for clam chowder but can't put my hands
>on it right now. Here is the recipe I have from the 1940s.
>
>1 qt fresh Maine clams, shucked
>2 thin slices salt pork
>1 small onion diced
>4 cups diced small potatoes
>1 cup water
>salt & pepper
>1 1/2 quarts milk
>Piece of butter
>Common crackers
>
>Fry out salt pork using low heat. Remove pork and cook onion slowly in
>fat, do not burn onion. aa the four cups diced potatoes and the water,
>better add a little salt and pepper right now. Cover kettle, bring to
>steaming point, lower heat, cook until potatoes are soft, about 15 minutes.
>
>In the meantime, using cutting board and a sharp knife, cut the head of
>each clam into two or three pieces. Do the same with the firm part of
>the clam and the soft part of the bellies, also. No, I do not remove
>the black part. Save any juice you can.
>
>When potatoes are soft, stir in cut clams, cover pan again, let cook for
>three minutes, no longer for it toughens the clams. Add 1 1/2 quarts
>milk. Taste for seasoning, add salt and pepper if necessary. Keep in
>mind that as the chowder ripens it may be salty enough. Add piece of
>butter.
>
>Serve with common crackers or pilot crackers. Not sure if pilot
>crackers can be found outside of northern New England.
>
>Jessica
>>
>> New England Clam Chowder
>> Chef Paul Prudhomme, _Seasoned America_
>>
>> Makes 12 main-course servings
>> or 16 first-course servings
>>
>> There is probably no other dish native to New England about which New
>> Englanders disagree more. No one is certain who first came up with the
>> idea of cooking seafood in milk, but it seems likely that the
>> combination arrived in Massachusetts in the seventeenth century with
>> settlers from Old England. There always has been debate about how to
>> properly thicken a clam chowder, and we agree with those who refuse to
>> use flour, since it tends to neutralize the pungency of the clams. Our
>> recipe depends on both diced and grated potatoes, which not only
>> thicken the soup naturally but add a flavor of potato to every
>> mouthful, complementing the clams perfectly.
>>
>> SEASONING MIX
>>
>> 1 1/4 teaspoons white pepper
>> 1 1/4 teaspoons black pepper
>> 1 1/4 teaspoons onion powder
>> 1 1/4teaspoons garlic powder
>> 1 1/4 teaspoons dry mustard
>> 1 1/4 teaspoons dried sweet basil leaves
>> 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
>> 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
>> 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
>>
>> 1/2 pound salt pork, diced (see Note)
>> 2 medium potatoes, peeled and grated
>> 1 cup chopped onions
>> 1 cup chopped green bell peppers
>> 1 cup chopped celery
>> 4 cups clam liquid (can be bottled clam juice), in all
>> 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, in all
>> 4 cups milk
>> 4 cups diced peeled potatoes
>> 2 cups heavy cream
>> 4 dozen shucked hard-shell clams, with their liquid
>> 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
>> Salt, optional (see Note)
>>
>> Combine the seasoning mix ingredients thoroughly in a small bowl. Makes
>> 3 tablespoons plus 1/4 teaspoon.
>>
>> Place the salt pork in a large heavy pot (not cast iron) over high
>> heat, cover, and cook until the pork is sticking hard to the bottom of
>> the pot, about 8 minutes. Add the grated potatoes, the onions, bell
>> peppers, celery, and 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons of the seasoning
>> mix. Scrape the bottom of.the pot well, cover, and cook 3 minutes. Add
>> 3 cups of the clam juice, scrape the pot bottom clean, and cook,
>> scraping the bottom of the pot often, about 13 minutes. Stir in the
>> remaining 1 cup clam juice, scrape the crust from the bottom of the
>> pot, and cook 2 minutes. Add 3 tablespoons of the butter and cook,
>> scraping the pot bottom occasionally, about 2 minutes. Add the
>> remaining seasoning mix and cook, whisking constantly to break up the
>> potatoes and release their starch to thicken the chowder, 4 minutes.
>> Stir in the milk and bring just to the boiling point, then add the
>> diced potatoes and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium and
>> cook, uncovered, scraping often, until the potatoes are tender, about
>> 20 minutes. Watch the pot closely: If the soup begins to bubble too
>> much, reduce the heat, so the milk won't curdle. Add the remaining 3
>> tablespoons butter and the heavy cream and whip with the whisk. Scrape
>> the bottom of the pot, stir, turn up the heat a bit, and cook just
>> until the soup begins to bubble gently. Add the clams, cook 1 to 2
>> minutes, and remove from the heat. Stir in the parsley and salt, if
>> necessary. Makes about 16 cups.
>>
>> Serve the chowder in deep soup bowls with crusty bread.
>>
>> NOTE: Salt pushes the flavors of the other seasonings in this dish.
>> Because salt pork differs depending on where it's processed, yours may
>> be saltier or less salty than ours. If it comes thickly encrusted with
>> salt, rinse some of it off and pat dry before dicing. Taste the chowder
>> at the end, and, if necessary, add salt cautiously until the flavor is
>> just right.
>>
>> Derek's notes:
>>
>> I added 1 teaspoon dried dill weed and 1 teaspoon dried Aleppo red
>> pepper flakes to seasoning mix. I used bacon instead of salt pork,
>> sauteeing the onion/celery/bell pepper in some of the bacon fat. I
>> used grated Russet potato, and diced Yukon Gold potato. I used canned
>> clams instead of live.
>>
>> Derek Juhl
>>

<rj>