New England Clam Boil Recipes

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.

NEW ENGLAND CLAM CHOWDER I

Steps:

• Place diced bacon in large stock pot over medium-high heat. Cook until almost crisp; add onions, and cook 5 minutes. Stir in water and potatoes, and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, and cook uncovered for 15 minutes, or until potatoes are fork tender.
• Pour in half-and-half, and add butter. Drain clams, reserving clam liquid; stir clams and 1/2 of the clam liquid into the soup. Cook for about 5 minutes, or until heated through. Do not allow to boil.

NEW ENGLAND PORTUGUESE CLAM BOIL

Steps:

• De-beard and de-sand the mussels and clams. You may also be able to buy them already cleaned. Cut the chorizo into 6 large pieces (approximately 4 inch lengths).
• In a large pot add the potatoes first, then the onion and chorizo.
• Add the 2 bottles of beer and then enough water to cover the chorizo. Add a generous bit of salt and pepper and then a pinch of pepper flakes if you want some extra heat. Cover and bring the pot to a boil. Cook for about 20 minutes until the potatoes are almost tender.
• Add the clams and muscles and continue to boil for another 10 to 15 minutes or until the clams and muscles have popped open.
• Serve with a small bowl of melted butter and lemon juice and another small bowl of the broth for dipping. Eat by pulling the seafood out of the shell, then dip into the broth to rinse any extra sand and then into the butter. Yum!

RECIPE: PORTUGUESE NEW ENGLAND CLAM BOIL

Steps:

• In a large stockpot over medium heat, add the olive oil. Add the onions, garlic, thyme, bay leaf, black peppercorns and red pepper flakes, and season with salt. Reduce the heat to medium low and cook, stirring often, until the onions are soft but haven't browned too much, 6 to 8 minutes. Add the beer and potatoes, and season with more salt. Increase the heat and cook at a high simmer until the potatoes are almost tender, 20 to 25 minutes depending on the size. Add the sausage, nestling each piece into the broth. Top with the clams and corn. Cover and cook until the clams begin to open, 10 to 15 minutes.
• Using a slotted spoon, divide the clams, sausage and vegetables into bowls. Ladle the broth into each bowl and sprinkle the scallions and parsley over the tops. Serve with lemon wedges.

NEW ENGLAND CLAM BOIL

Steps:

• Arrange corn, sausage, potatoes, and onions in a steamer basket over boiling water in a Dutch oven. Top with lobsters and clams. Cover and steam 20 minutes. Serve with butter and lemon. Makes 4 servings.

NEW ENGLAND CLAM CHOWDER

Steps:

• Scrub the clams, and rinse clean.
• Bring 2 cups of water to a boil in an 8-quart stockpot over high heat.
• Add the clams, and cover tightly.
• After 5 minutes, uncover, and stir the clams with a wooden spoon.
• Quickly cover the pot again, and let steam for 5 minutes more, or until most of the clams have opened.
• Don't wait for them all to open, or they will be overcooked.
• It should only take a little tug or prying to open the stragglers once they are all removed from the heat.
• The total cooking time for large cherrystones will be about 10 minutes; quahogs will need as much as 5 more minutes.
• While the clams are steaming, the broth should become foamy and light.
• It usually spills over a bit just as the clams are cooked and ready.
• As soon as you remove the clams from the stove, carefully pour as much of the broth as you can into a tall, narrow container.
• Let the broth sit for 10 minutes, then carefully pour through a fine-mesh strainer.
• After sitting, 99 percent of the grit will have collected at the bottom of the container.
• If you are not using the broth within the hour, chill it as quickly as possible, and cover it after it has completely cooled.
• Keep refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 2 months.
• Remove the clams from their shells, cover, and refrigerate.
• After they have cooled a bit, dice them into 1/2-inch pieces.
• Cover again, and keep refrigerated until ready to use.
• Heat a 4- to 6-quart heavy-bottomed pot over low heat and add the salt pork.
• Once it has rendered a few tablespoons of fat, increase the heat to medium and cook until the salt pork is a crisp golden brown.
• Remove from pot; set aside.
• Add the butter, onions, garlic, celery, thyme, and bay leaves.
• Sauté, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, until the onions are softened but not browned, about 10 minutes.
• Add the potatoes and the strained clam broth.
• The broth should just barely cover the potatoes; if it doesn't, add enough water to cover them.
• Increase the heat, and bring to a boil.
• Cover, and cook the potatoes vigorously until they are soft on the outside but still firm in the center, about 10 minutes.
• If the broth hasn't thickened lightly, smash a few potatoes against the side of the pot, and cook 1 to 2 minutes more to release the starch.
• Remove pot from the heat, and stir in the diced clams and the cream.
• Season to taste.
• If you are not serving the chowder within the hour, let it cool a bit, then refrigerate; cover the chowder after it has completely chilled.
• Otherwise, let it sit at room temperature for up to 1 hour, allowing the flavors to meld.
• When ready to serve, reheat the chowder over low heat; don't let it boil.
• Ladle into cups or bowls, making sure that the clams, potatoes, and onions are evenly divided.
• Sprinkle with parsley, chives, and reserved salt-pork cracklings.