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Smoked haddock, clam and mussel chowder
Serves 4 Starters and mains
Ingredients
- 1kg mixture of clams and fresh, cleaned mussels
- 100ml dry white wine
- 1 litre fish stock (good quality stock cubes or stock are fine)
- 75g salted butter
- 275g leeks, thinly sliced then washed
- 600g potatoes, peeled and cubed
- big pinch saffron, soaked in 3tbsp
- hot water
- 600ml full-fat milk
- 500g smoked haddock fillet, skinned
- 10g chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, to serve
- crisp breads, to serve
Method
Steep the clams and mussels in cold water for 20 minutes. De-beard mussels and drain through a colander. Pour the wine and 150ml cold stock into a large pan. Add salt and bring to the boil.
Place the mussels in the pan, cover and cook on a high heat for 1 minute. Add the clams and cook for 2 more minutes, shaking the pan until all the mussels and clams open. Drain through a colander set over a bowl to catch the liquid. Discard any unopened ones, cover the rest with cling film and set aside.
Rinse and dry the pan and heat half the butter over a medium heat. Add the leeks, cover and soften for 5 minutes, stirring often enough to prevent burning. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Add the remaining butter and the potatoes to the pan. Cover and sweat on a low heat for 5 minutes. Add the liquid from the mussels, leaving any black sediment behind. Add the rest of the fish stock, the saffron and its soaking water and simmer gently for about 15 minutes to cook the potatoes through.
Roughly mash some of the potatoes in the pan to thicken the soup. Add milk and leeks. Bring to a simmer. Cut the fish into 2.5cm strips across and add to the liquid. Lower heat and gently cook for 2 minutes. Check seasoning. Add mussels and clams to briefly warm through. Serve with garnish of parsley and crisp breads.
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