Category: Fish and Seafood

New England Clam Chowder

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New England Clam Chowder

Clam Chowder

The weather in the Northeast has been quite a roller coaster lately. When it’s cold, it’s really cold. And when it’s warmer, it’s usually raining. New England Clam Chowder is the perfect lunch for either side of the crazy winter weather spectrum and anything in between. Warm and comforting, a steaming bowl fills you up while giving you a taste of the sea you might be missing.

I found this recipe in buried my grandmother’s stack of unpublished soup recipes. John Clancy’s name was typed neatly in the top corner of the page so I’m assuming this is his recipe or a collaboration of some kind. This chowder is not as thick as what you would expect from a traditional New England Clam Chowder (and definitely not as thick as the nasty stuff in the can). That may be good or bad, depending on your preference. If you prefer a thicker chowder, you can simply start with a roux – add roughly 2 tablespoons butter and 2 tablespoons flour to the pan before cooking the bacon and onion. However, I believe that if you use really fresh clams (right from the shell), you won’t care about the thickness of the soup. The taste of fresh meaty clams with the smoky bacon is enough to keep you going back for more.

Ingredients:

2 dozen chowder clams, shucked and chopped, and their juice
1 8oz bottle of clam juice
1/4 cup bacon, diced
4 cups potatoes, cut in 1/2 inch cubes
1 1/2 cups onion, coarsely chopped
2 cups heavy cream or half and half
3 sprigs thyme
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

In a large 3-4 quart saucepan, brown bacon and saute onion until golden. Add all clam juice and bring to a boil. Cook potatoes in mixture for 10 minutes or until they are tender. Add thyme, clams, and cream and simmer for 5-6 minutes (careful not let the soup boil or it may curdle). Season with ground pepper and remove sprigs (once thyme leaves have fallen off).

Serves 6.

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Oysters in White Wine Sauce

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Oysters in White Wine Sauce

Oysters in White Wine Sauce close

Most of us don’t think about eating oysters during the holidays, or for that matter in winter at all. But here in the Northeast, specifically on the East End of Long Island, oysters are currently at their tastiest. From late November to mid-January, these delicacies are both large and plump – allowing for additional preparation methods.  It’s hard to compete with the fresh sea taste of a raw oyster, but the cold winter weather often demands hot food this time of year. This unpublished recipe for Oysters in White Wine sauce by my grandmother, Paula Peck, is the perfect compromise of a warm comforting dish that still has the fresh flavor of oysters pulled from the water that same day.

Fresh Peconic Bay Oysters in a Lantern Net

Fresh Peconic Bay Oysters in a Lantern Net

My grandmother and her close friend, James Beard, shared similar views regarding fish and seafood. She insisted that fish and seafood must always be fresh and never overcooked – now standard culinary rules that weren’t as common back in the 1960’s. Although she demanded high quality seafood (usually from Citerella in those days), it’s unlikely she ever got to enjoy the level of freshness that the bays of Eastern Long Island can provide.

With my father working with the Southold Project in Aquaculture Training (SPAT)  – a Cornell Cooperative Extension Program in Southold to revitalize the shellfish of Long Island, I’m often spoiled by the superior quality of the oysters I eat when visiting. These amazing mollusks bulk up over the summer in preparation for winter hibernation (and for us to eat them!), making them an excellent candidate for this soup-like dish. Vegetables and herbs are combined with white wine, lemon juice, and olive oil then simmered for an hour until slightly thickened and fragrant. The shelled (fat) oysters are then simply added with all of their juices and quickly poached until just barely tender. The cooked oysters can then be served back in their shells, making Oysters in White Wine Sauce the perfect appetizer for one of my grandmother’s famous dinner parties for James Beard and Craig Claiborne, as well as your next holiday party.

Ingredients:

1 cup white wine
2 tablespoons lemon juice
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, sliced
1 stalk of celery, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
8 peppercorns
3 springs fresh thyme
3-4 sprigs parsley
2 dozen oysters, shucked (with juice) – bottom shells reserved
salt
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 small tomato, finely diced

Combine all ingredients except oysters, salt, chopped parsley, and tomato in a deep heavy saucepan. Bring to a boil. Lower heat, cover, and simmer for one hour.

Add oysters and their juice. When liquid begins to simmer around edges of pot, turn off heat (no more than 4-5 minutes). Season with salt to taste.

To serve, remove each oyster with slotted spoon into reserved shells (or small bowls). Spoon some of the sauce and vegetables into shells. Sprinkle with diced tomato and chopped parley. Garnish with slices of lemon.

Oysters in White Wine Sauce

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Ceviche

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Best Ceviche Ever

Ceviche

Happy Cinco de Mayo!
Those of us that like ceviche, usually love it. We recognize fresh fish as a special treat that requires so little cooking that the acid of lime juice can be used without any heat at all. This traditional Mexican dish is not only appropriate for this Cinco de Mayo holiday but also for spring – to get in the mood for summer.

I’ve written previously about my grandmothers exceptional Mexican recipes, many of which she learned while cooking in Mexico. This ceviche recipe definitely falls into that exceptional category. However, there are two very important aspects of this dish that can make or break it. The fish, which is marinated in lime juice for 3-4 hours, must be extremely fresh. Do not use frozen or anything that smells even the slightest bit fishy (ironically fresh fish should always have a clean smell, never fishy). Otherwise, you will be able to taste that fishiness all throughout the finished dish.

The other important aspect is the hot pepper. I recommend Serrano or even Jalapeño but as many of you may know, the heat of each pepper can vary. For this reason, stay away from using the seeds and add the pepper last, a little at a time, while combining and tasting.

My grandmother served this ceviche (while it was a work in progress) at one of her many dinner parties with James Beard and Craig Claiborne. My father was the designated dishwasher for these parties and he could always tell if a particular dish was well-liked by the leftovers on the plates that came back in the kitchen. Despite the lovely plating (in red cabbage cups), the ceviche came back virtually untouched on every plate. It turns out the hot pepper she used was so spicy that it made the dish inedible. Needless to say, my grandmother was mortified. However, this happens to the best of us and she definitely perfected the ceviche after that incident (and before it was published in “The Art of Good Cooking”). It is now by far the best ceviche I’ve ever had.

Note: Any combination of fish maybe used. I prefer to use just scallops and fish and skip the shrimp but I’ve listed the fish proportions as noted in the cookbook.

Ingredients:

1/3 lb fresh bay scallops or sea scallops
2/3 lb shelled, cleaned shrimp
1/3 lb striped bass, halibut or other firm white fish
1 cup lime juice
1 onion, sliced
1 small green bell pepper, diced
1 small hot pepper, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cans pimentos, minced (optional)
2 teaspoons chopped fresh cilantro
2 cornichons or small dill pickles
salt and pepper to tast
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 cup white vinegar
1 large avocado

Cut all seafood into tiny pieces. Combine in a bowl. Pour lime juice over seafood. Cover bowl and place in refrigerator for 3-4 hours or until seafood has changed color and looks cooked. Drain the lime juice from the seafood.

Combine all the remaining ingredients-except avocado- in a separate bowl. Taste. The mixture should be quite well seasoned-slightly sweet and spicy. Pour over drained seafood and toss well. Place in refrigerator till serving time. Before serving, peel and dice avocado. Combine with fish mixture.

Serves 6

Adapted from “The Art of Good Cooking.”

Ceviche Avocado Shell

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Jim Beard’s Deviled Crab

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James Beard's Deviled Crab

Jim Beard's Deviled Crab

I’m not sure if this recipe exists in one of the many James Beard cookbooks. If I did, I would definitely list the source here. I actually came across this delightfully simple casserole/dip in the Paula Peck stack of unpublished recipes. Since I will usually make any crab recipe I happen to come across, Jim Beard’s Deviled Crab was an obvious must try.

At first glance, I wasn’t really sure what this recipe was. Is it a casserole? A dip? A side dish? I’m still not quite sure. So I’ve decided it can be any one of those things and more, because it’s just that good. One simple description says it all –  deconstructed crab cake. Think your favorite part about a crab cake but amplified. Easier to make and the emphasis is on the crab, the real star of the show (and not the often overused mushy breadcrumbs).

Though I’m sure Paula Peck and James Beard exchanged numerous recipes over the years that they cooked and shopped for ingredients together, I wish I knew more about where this recipe came from. I can definitely see similarities in their cooking and it makes me wonder if this was served at one of their many fabulous dinner parties…
Wherever it came from, I’m glad I discovered it and I think you will be too.

Ingredients:

1 lb crab meat
1 1/2 cups cracker crumbs
3/4 cup chopped celery
3/4 cup chopped onions
3/4 cup chopped parsley
1 tablespoon chopped green bell pepper
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
dash cayenne
1/4 cup melted butter
1/4 cup heavy cream
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Pick over crab meat and remove any cartilage. Roll or crush crackers and measure correct amount. Preheat oven 350 degrees and butter a 1 1/2 quart casserole or 6-8 individual crab or seashells.

Mix crab meat, crumbs, chopped vegetables, all seasonings, melted butter, and heavy cream together thoroughly. Spoon into casserole or shells and dot the top with a little additional butter. Bake 30-40 minutes or bake individual shells 20 minutes. Serve hot with crudités or crackers.

Serves 6.

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Chinese Style Shrimp with Black Bean Sauce

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Shrimp in Black Bean Sauce

Chinese Shrimp

Paula Peck and Chinese food may not seem like they go together. Though she wrote a cookbook full of international recipes, she’s usually associated with croissants or lovely baked treats and not the inexpensive take-out dinner, complete with MSG (though she did go through a phase of excessive MSG use in the mid 60’s). Surprisingly, she has a fair number of Asian inspired dishes. Her recipes span from Korean Meat and Oriental Chicken Kebabs from “The Art of Good Cooking,” to Sushi and this lovely quick shrimp saute or Chinese Style Shrimp with Black Bean Sauce, that remain unpublished since she was preparing for a new book.

I’m not entirely comfortable improvising with Asian ingredients but I’m always surprised at how quick and easy many of the recipes are. The fermented black bean sauce is not as scary as you may think. It’s a basic sauce made up of fermented and salted black soy beans, garlic, rice wine, and salt and can usually be found in the international foods aisle at your grocery store. You could also try making your own sauce from fermented black beans, but the theme of this meal is quick! Combined with the cornstarch mixture (which Paula Peck notes will keep the shrimp moist and succulent during cooking), the sauce coats the shrimp so that the garlic bean flavor can be enjoyed with every bite. Serve alone or create a balanced meal with brown rice and a side of steamed broccoli.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lb uncooked shrimp, peeled and deveigned
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 large egg white
4 tablespoons peanut oil
1 tablespoon fermented black bean sauce (located near the soy sauce in the international foods section at the grocery store)
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons chopped fresh ginger
3 tablespoons sherry (mirin/japanese rice wine may be substituted)
2 tablespoons soy sauce (amount will depend on the amount of sodium in the black bean sauce)
3 scallions cut in 1 inch pieces

Combine shrimp with cornstarch and egg white. In a large skillet, heat oil. Add black beans, garlic, ginger, and half the green onions. Cook over high heat, stirring constantly. Add shrimp. Cook stirring constantly for just a few minutes or until shrimp become opaque. Stir in sherry and soy sauce. Stir only until sauce is thickened. Sprinkle with remaining scallions.

Serves 4.

Chinese Style Shrimp in Black Bean Sauce

 

 

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