My brother-in-law and his wife went clamming today. They brought home quahogs, littlenecks (pissers) and a hermit crab. The littlenecks are called 'pissers' because apparently that's what they do as they try to escape you.
Almost everyone here has access to the sea and it's so easy for them to put on their gear and head out the door for 20 minutes to fetch some clams for dinner. Of course, Boston Clam Chowder is cream-based and the Manhattan Clam Chowder is tomato-based. What type of chowder do the Portuguese make? On our trip to Maine last year I discovered their milk-based chowders at roadside stands. Some were clam chowders, others were fish chowders. My favorite was a smoked-fish chowder as I road-tasted at every stand. Later, I had trouble finding milk-based recipes. As I write this, I realize that I could have simply taken the cream-based recipes and substituted them with milk. Sometimes I am queen of the obvious, then other times not. Nevertheless, it was on the Maine trip that I became a bona-fide "Chowdah Hound".
Oh, I learned yesterday that Rhode Island has a broth-based chowder. I wonder what other chowders are out there waiting to be discovered? Or if there is a "Chowders of the World" cookbook....?
Walking along Martha's Vineyard and the fishing boats, I imagine living here for a summer and fishing and making chowder.
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