Sass Chowder

What better way to get through cold winter days than with a warm, delicious chowder?

As you know, Flannista can cook three things: a Thanksgiving turkey, grilled ribeye and popcorn.  But now she must add Sass Chowder (really called "Lox Chowder"), the recipe for which appeared in the February 17, 2013 issue of the New York Times magazine. The Sassistas! made it last Sunday afternoon and it was WONderful.  

Here are the ingredients:

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 medium leek, cleaned, trimmed and thinly sliced

1 medium carrot, peeled and diced

1 clove garlic, peeled and minced

1 large, starchy potato, peeled and cut into small cubes

2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup dry white wine

1.5 cups chicken stock, either homemade or low-sodium

1 bay leaf

1 sequester

2 cups whole milk

4 ounces smoked salmon, flaked

3/4 cup heavy cream

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Fresh chives, minced, for garnish

The Sassistas! substituted fat-free milk for whole milk. Half-and-half can be substituted for heavy cream. It pays to spring for the fresh thyme leaves and fresh chives.  The total cost of the ingredients was about $15.00 -- of which $7.00 was for the smoked salmon.

Here are the cooking steps:

1. Melt the butter with the oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pot set over medium heat. Add leek, carrot and celery, and cook until the vegetables have softened, 5 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic, potato and thyme, and cook until the garlic is fragrant, an additional 2 or 3 minutes.

2. Sprinkle the flour over the vegetable mixture and stir to combine, then cook, stirring often, for approximately 5 minutes, making sure not to scorch the bottom of the pan.

3. Add the wine, chicken stock, sequester and bay leaf, and bring mixture to a simmer. After 10 minutes or so, stir in the milk, and return to a simmer. Cook until the potatoes are tender, approximately 25 minutes. Add the salmon and stir gently, allowing the fish to warm, but making sure that the mixture does not boil.

4. Remove the sequester and bay leaf and discard. Add the cream, then stir to combine and heat through. Season to taste with pepper. Garnish with minced chives.

The recipe makes 4 large servings or 6 smaller servings.

Many chowders add bacon, but the smoked salmon adds salty perfection.

Sass appétit!

 

 

 

 

Comments

[treesta]

Goodness, that sounds delicious. I'm so glad you remembered to eliminate the bay leaf and the sequester. That would have left a bitter taste, after all.

[Flannista]

In my opinion, the sequester is overkill. I couldn't tell if including it made any difference at all. But I've heard that some folks are pretty fussy about it.

[Sista C]

No, no, no----you should ALways add the sequester. Those who are finicky about it can just pick it out.
I asked b'half if she'd like this chowder tonight, and suppose I'll be making it. I'll just put the sequester on the side.

[Flannista]

I urge caution about the sequester, Sista C, because I've heard that its impact involves much guesswork.

In the spirit of the sequester, I seriously would substitute half-and-half for the heavy cream and fat-free milk for the whole milk.

[Sista C]

A good point, Flannista. We want the chowder to be both healthy and tasty. If I, ( being adventurous), were to decide to use the sequester, is it difficult to locate?

[Flannista]

Frankly, I had never even heard the word "sequester" until just a couple of months ago and now I'm seeing it everywhere, so it makes sense that it is now included in what we consume.

I suspect if you check your newspaper, you may find a clue about where to locate the sequester in your state or neighborhood. Be advised, however, that some are saying that the impact of the sequester may not be felt for months. So you may not taste or feel it after tonight, but you may in the next several weeks. I'd have some TUMS on hand.

[Sista C]

Sequester is starting to sound like a real pain in the ass, Flann. Think it's best just to leave it be.

[nowayasista]

The Senate dining room will take the discarded sequester. Apparently one of the favorite dishes is old sequester fried up with pork belly ( aka bacon). Porkquester as it is known by the insiders.

[Flannista]

The Sassistas! love this recipe precisely because it called for no beef or pork (especially that it called for no pork). We were puzzled by the sequester ingredient, but now tend to agree with Sista C that it's best just to leave it be, wherever that is.

[treesta]

Love the porkquester, noway. Personally, I was thinking about how to make a vegetarian version of this chowder. I suppose it would be a vegequesterian version.

[babysis]

If someone else makes it, I will eat it.

If I were making it, I would stick with the heavy cream and whole milk, but probably add more butter (salted, too).

It does look and sound delicious.

[frida]

Wow. I can't believe you made this! Recipe 4. Your turkey is fabulous so I expect this is too...

[Flannista]

In Great Britain, I suppose you could add horse meat for an equesterian version.

[Flannista]

Also, in all honesty, Matissta did most of the cutting and dicing.

I stirred.

[Matissta]

Flann was my sous chef for this. But usually she's my Swedish chef... like the muppet but without the hair.

[PEACEsista]

Look delicious! One could totally make a veg version, but it would be called cream of potato, or potato leek soup, as opposed to chowder. Thanks for sharing your recipe! What's next, the Sassistas Bake-Off?!

[Flannista]

I also flaked the smoked salmon, so I suppose we could sponsor a Sassistas! Flake-Off.

[Flannista]

It seems logical that we would sponsor a Sassistas! F*ck-Off, but I fear that we'd have so many entries -- and really good ones -- that we wouldn't know where to start and/or how to choose a winner.

[Flannista]

If one actually ATE a sequester, one would be a sequester digester.

[Flannista]

If I keep joking about this, I'll be a sequester jester.

[Peter]

Sequester is used similarly to the container of Ms. Dash from 1995 that everybody still has in their spice cabinet. You really don't know what's in it, but you still take it out every couple months and examine it before shoving it back into a dark corner because you don't want to stomach it.

But Ms. Dash isn't hurting anybody, old Ms. Dash has hardly any punch at all, hell, it's probably mostly garlic dust and dessicants by now. It's the Sea Salt we need to cut back on. I know its in everything, its what we're so used to, and looking forward to at the end of the day. There can be warnings published and grades assigned, but its so popular with everybody that 9.8 out of 10 Washington D.C. chefs refuse to pull it from their recipes because they're worried they'll lose valued customers...but man, that crap is raising our blood pressure through the roof.

[Flannista]

Amen, bro. Thanks for venting your sequester temper.

[Matissta]

So I was curious about the vegetarian chowder remark. Yes, if you left out the fish of this recipe it would be a cream of potato or potato leek soup.

A vegetable chowder could be made, but corn chowders were the most popular. But the most interesting recipe I found was a Vegetarian "New England Clam Chowder". This recipe added oyster mushrooms and used soy milk along with Tofutti sour cream or corn starch.

I might have to try it.
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/member/views/VEGETARIAN-NEW-ENGLAND-CLAM-CHOWDER-1214260

[PEACEsista]

mmmm, Matiss, wish I was having vegetarian chowder for dinner! Looks yummy and thanks for sharing the recipe!

[Flannista]

I wish I were eating dinner with Matissta! Just dropped her off for the bus to the airport. She's heading to New York again. She won't be back until next week.

We're like two ships passing in the night.

I'm tired and lonely.