Servings: makes enough for a chowder cook off – maybe 8-10 full size bowls
Ingredients:
2 glasses of Gooseneck Vineyards Pinot Grigio (not for cooking – for drinking while you make chowder)
4 slices of bacon
1 medium yellow onion
3 celery stalks
3 medium size Idaho potatoes
1/4 stick of unsalted butter
3 tbsp of all purpose flour
2 cups heavy cream (don’t cheap out and use half and half)
2 cups whole milk
3 cups clam juice
(5) 10 oz cans of clams, use a combination of chopped and whole. I use Bumble Bee. You can also use fresh clams with juice if you prefer
4 bay leaves
Fresh ground black pepper
Process:
Pour first glass of Gooseneck Vineyards Pinot Grigio.
Finely chop (small as you can) 4 slices of bacon.
Set a large pot over medium or medium/high on your stove and add the bacon to the pot.
Once that’s cooking, begin drinking the Pinot Grigio and finely chop the onion and celery.
This is dangerous, so please watch your fingers.
As the bacon is cooking, make sure you scrape the browned bits off the bottom of the pot. That’s the good stuff.
When the bacon is done, add the onion, celery and butter.
Lower the heat and let everything cook down a bit until the onion becomes translucent.
While that’s cooking, peel the potatoes and cut into 1/4 inch squares. Keeping them small is key. Too large and you might be accused of having a chowder that’s too potatoey (I might trade mark that word).
Add the flour and stir, let that cook for a few seconds and then add the potatoes, cream, whole milk, bay leaves and clam juice.
Open the cans of clams and strain them over the pot and then put the clams off to the side in a bowl. We only want the juice at this point.
Pour second glass of Gooseneck Vineyards Pinot Grigio.
Bring the pot up to a simmer and keep covered while everything cooks for about 20 minutes.
Find a comfortable place to sit down in the kitchen and enjoy your wine.
Get up every few minutes to check on the pot and stir everything around a bit, but don’t over exert yourself. This is your time to relax.
After 20 min or so, add the clams to the pot and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
Season with black pepper to taste. Personally, I go with a pretty healthy amount. Maybe 10-15 cranks on my pepper mill.
No need to add salt, there’s already plenty in there from the bacon and the clams.
And that’s it folks! Enjoy.
~ With love,
Rob
