“Ishmael and Queequeg arrive on Nantucket Island… They make their way to the Try Pots restaurant, where the proprietor’s wife, Mrs. Hussey, seats them at a table…then asks them but a single question: “Clam or Cod?”
Ishmael is perplexed…
Only when Ishmael detects “a warm savory steam from the kitchen,” and only when two bowls are subsequently placed before them, is the mystery resolved. Chowder. Clam chowder. And what a chowder it turns out to be.”
Chowder, Chapter15 of Moby-Dick.
Chowder originated almost 300 years ago as a simple, hearty shipboard stew made by fishermen and sailors from France and England. The word itself can be traced back to the French word, chaudière, which refers to a large cauldron or cooking pot used to make stews. But looking further back in time, chaudière traces back to the Latin word calderia, meaning a place for warming things or a cooking vessel. Just throwing a little word history at you there.
But how did chowder make it to North America’s cooking pots and soup bowls?
While At Sea: Breton and Newfoundland fishermen and sailors combined their daily catch with salt pork, onions, and hardtack (hard ship biscuits) in a shared pot.
North America: Immigrants brought the dish to coastal North America, Nova Scotia, and New England, where it adapted to local ingredients like abundant clams and potatoes.
Early Records: An 18th-century journal by botanist Joseph Banks describes a 1766 Labrador fishery chowder, and the first American fish chowder recipe appeared in a Boston newspaper in 1751.
The two chowders we have mostly heard about, perhaps even eaten, are:
New England Clam Chowder: Made with chopped clams, diced potatoes, onions, and salt pork or bacon in a thick, creamy milk or cream base. Potatoes took the place of hardtack biscuits. Yay!
Manhattan Clam Chowder: A tomato-based version that replaces milk and cream with a clear, tangy red broth and includes vegetables like carrots, celery, and onions, but no potatoes.
There are other types of clam chowders primarily geared towards the east coast states of Florida, Delaware and Rhode Island. They mainly use clear broth instead of a cream base, and the Florida version makes it “muy caliente” with datil peppers.
So, when did basic chowder begin incorporating a larger variety of ingredients, not just clams?
During the 1700s to 1800s and immigration from Europe to the new land, North America, and the newly created United States. On the east coast, a variety of seafoods could be fished or captured, and made a very delicious addition to the cooking pots. As settlers moved inland, chicken replaced seafood, and newly grown crops of corn and bell peppers could be added to the potatoes and onions. Down in the southern states, a fish boil replaced chowder. While chowder is served in a bowl, the ingredients swimming in a liquid, a fish boil drains away the cooking water. The solid pieces of fish and potatoes are removed from the pot and served dry on a plate, typically slathered in melted butter.
“Alright, thanks for the history lessons”, you’re muttering to yourselves, but why the title, why is chowder good for the soul?
Chowder is good for the soul because its thick, warm, and creamy texture triggers deep emotional comfort, psychological safety, and happy memories of home. The sight, taste, and scent of foods trigger the brain, and, hopefully, good feelings and memories accompany the meal. There is a sense of belonging whether to a family, group of friends, or any type of loving relationship; feeling lonely eases away.
Eating a hot soup makes you slow down; holding the bowl with a dish towel, blowing on a spoonful to relieve the temperature that will make it just right to eat. Just like Goldilocks and the Three Bears, eat it just right, relieve stress, and get ready for a nice soothing nap. But you don’t want that soup to get too cool, the heat is what is telling your brain, “You’re safe and being cared for, relax, breathe, enjoy the moment.”
…and for the future, when you need that safe, relaxing meal, here’s my recipe for Seafood Chowder. I used imitation crab meat which is actually a firm white fish made to look like crab, but if I could get my hands on real lump crab meat…sighs with contentment.
By the way, a huge “Thank You!” goes out to Shylowe and Patrick Chadd, of The Over Bite, of Monticello. I called in a hot-minute bread order of items I believed would go great with the chowder. Croissant Sourdough Bread Loaf, Sourdough Bread Bowls and Corn Muffins, and they were quickly baked up and perfect accompaniments, as I had so believed. Then there were the very last-minute sandwiches ordered when I went there; Gooseneck Grinder and Comb Ridge Club…so good! So, need a special order of breads, muffins, other baked goods, or sandwiches, give The Over Bite a call.
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| Left to Right: Croissant Sourdough Loaf, Sourdough Bread Bowls, Corn Muffins from The Over Bite, Monticello, UT. |
Seafood Chowder
Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter
1 small onion, diced
½ cup diced red bell peppers
1 Tbsp. garlic, minced
4 cups diced, peeled potatoes
2 cups whole kernel corn (frozen or canned that has been drained and rinsed)
2 and ½ cups water or seafood stock
1 lb. bay scallops (cut in half if using sea scallops)
2 cups imitation crab meat, flaked, cut in half if very large pieces (or real lump crab meat if available)
2 cups half & half
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
2 tsp. paprika
2 Tbsp. flour
Preparation:
Melt the butter in a 5-quart pot over medium heat. Add the onion, bell peppers and minced garlic; cook for 3 to 5 minutes until softened.
Increase heat to high; add the diced potatoes, corn and water (or stock) to the pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat back to medium and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, until the potatoes are fork-tender.
Add the shrimp and scallops to the pot. Cook gently for 3 to 5 minutes until the shrimp turn pink and the scallops are opaque.
While the shrimp and scallops are cooking, whisk together the half & half, salt, pepper, paprika and flour.
Add imitation (or real) crab meat. Reduce heat to low, gently stir whisked mixture into pot. Let mixture simmer for 3 to 5 minutes until hot, but do not let it boil after adding the dairy.
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| Seafood Chowder |
Can the chowder be frozen even though it has dairy mixed in? Yes, use freezer safe containers, leaving a 2-inch gap from the lid. Label with date and can be stored for up to 3 months.
To reheat frozen chowder, thaw completely in the refrigerator. Place the soup into a stove top pot, and let it heat up on low and slow, stirring occasionally, until hot. Do Not bring to a boil on high heat, nor use a microwave, as this will break apart the dairy and cause it to curdle.
Mary Cokenour
