A few years ago I visited Ireland. I wasn’t expecting much. I just happened to find a cheap fare on a last minute basis. Let’s just say I fell in love with the place, one of the main reasons being its food. There’s a real reason why people of all ages hang around pubs…the grub is great!
One of my favorite recipes was obtained from the cook/owner of a small pub near Lisdoonvarna. From the moment I opened the pub’s big old wooden door and entered its dim surroundings, I knew something special was about to happen. The long dark mahogany bar accommodated the eight or ten patrons sitting around it. Before each one was the same arrangement. A pint of ale, a big soup bowl and a chunk of bread. The smells of all three wafted through the air, a welcome relief from the chilly fog outside.
I had just gotten off a little motor boat that had returned me to the mainland from one of the Aran Islands off of Ireland’s western coast. It had been a harrowing one hour journey across choppy seas, through a rain that bordered on sleet, with limited visibility the whole time. I was ready to sit down, take a deep breath, be thankful I had survived the trip, and kick back and enjoy something wonderful. And wonderful it was.
The seafood chowder the little pub served was home made and, without reservation, I will say that it can hold its own against any others I’ve come across before or since. It warmed not just my belly, but every part of me from head to toe. I found myself engaged in conversation with the other patrons almost immediately. Normally, people asked where I was from, or I asked them about the town I found myself in. Here, in Lisdoonvarna, we all talked about one thing. “Isn’t this just the best damn chowder you’ve ever tasted, I ask you?”
I know your answer will be “yes,” too, so I urge you to give it a try. It’ll work its magic and have you and your guests raving and begging for the recipe.
2lbs of any combination of white fish, mussels, salmon, smoked salmon, trout, smoked trout prawns and crab meat
1 1/2 pints of fish stock
1 1/2 pints milk…preferably whole milk
1 onion, peeled and finely chopped
6 oz white or red potatoes, peeled and finely chopped
1-2 tablespoons of flour
2 sticks of celery, cleaned and finely chopped
salt and pepper to taste
2 oz corn kernels
6 pink peppercorns, if available
8 oz. white wine
2 tablespoons heavy cream
1 teaspoon chopped tarragon
In a large pot, bring the fish stock,milk, onion, potatoes and celery to a boil. Simmer till the mixture softens. Whisk in the flour. Add salt and pepper, but go easy on the salt if you’re using smoked fish. Add the peppercorns, corn, wine and tarragon and return to boil, then reduce to simmer. Chop the fish to roughly the same size pieces. If using mussels, clean thoroughly. Add fish to the pan and simmer gently for 4 minutes until mussel shells have opened and all the fish is opaque.Add the cream, stir gently so you don’t break the fish and serve with warm baguettes.
