Seafood Chowder - Atlantic Style!

Growing up in the Maritimes as a Greek kid wasn't half bad.

I had the chance to taste the best of both worlds.
At home I'd have a delicious Greek meal one night, and the next day I'd be pounding back a cheeseburger platter or a seafood chowder at a local diner or restaurant.

I'm also a sucker for a good "Fish and Chips". Beer battered fish is usually what you find around Southern New Brunswick... but there is one gem in Saint John where they bread their fish nice and lightly and oh-so tasty. Stop by and check it out!
Steamer's Lobster Company

Now back to the 'Chowdah'.

I haven't made one of these in some time. I don't remember the exact amount of fish and other things that you have to put in there. I usually wing it and it turns out okay. You should too. I learned to make chowder from a friends mother when I dropped by as she was getting it started. I hung out and chit chatted, asked a couple of questions and put it to memory.

Give me a foundation and I'll build on it...

Isn't it spelled Biatch or Beyotch?

Anyway enough of that banter. Get cookin'.

Atlantic Seafood Chowder


Seafood! (Whatever you can find... but make sure you have some halibut, scallops, haddock, lobster)
Garlic (Stick with 2 cloves for now unless you are a garlic head. Too much garlic will ruin it though)
Celery
Onions
Diced Bacon (Use around 4-5 slices, cut em up good)
Diced Potatoes (3-4 of them... if you are thinking in cups think 2-3 cups, or more. DO whatever you want, what do I care? I'm tired of your potato-fiendishness!)
2 Cups of Vegetable Broth (Water will do as well... trust me)
1 Cup of heavy cream
1 Cup of 2 %/Homo. Milk
Butter!!!
Thyme
3 Bay Leaves
Mild Paprika


Alright. Sautée your bacon. Some strain off the fat, I don't strain all of it. That's up to you. A little fat adds flavor.
Add some butter,celery and onions to the mix.Cook that for a bit but don't burn it. Take it out of the pan and off to the side when done.  In the same pan sautee your potatoes for a minute or two with the garlic and thyme. While that cooks get a pot ready. In your pot, add your liquids (cream, broth/water, milk) and bring to a simmer. Toss your bay leaves in there.


Add your mix of vegetables and potatoes. Let that cook for a bit... roughly 20 minutes until the potatoes are tender and it thickens up a bit.


Now... gently add the seafood. (Fish doesn't take long to cook, you're almost done!)


I'm assuming your lobster is already cooked... toss it in too. Let this all simmer for an extra 5-6 minutes. That should be long enough to cook the delicious bounty from the sea you have going on there.


Add just a touch more butter to finish it off.


Remove it off the heat and serve! Hot and fresh is the best. Eat it with some bread and garnish it with some paprika.

Fakies - Greek Lentil Soup "Telos"

3:30 p.m.

The lentil soup is on the stove simmering on a low heat.

I've attached the recipe below for all of you to see, but first we must taste!

Most folks like to add a little bit of vinegar to the soup before they start eating it. I do that as well. I also add a crumble of feta cheese, but that is entirely up to you. I suggest you try it first without the feta... the traditional Greek way.

5:00 p.m.

I'm stuffed.

Faki/"Fakies" Recipe

- 1 Diced Onion

- Can of Diced Tomatoes/ 3 Ripe Peeled Tomatoes

- 500 gr. of Brown Lentils

- 3 to 5 Cloves of Chopped Garlic

- 2 Bay Leaves

- 1.25+ Litres of Water

- Olive Oil

- Pinch of Sugar

- Red wine Vinegar/Oregano/Feta Cheese (optional)

Before you rinse your lentils, quickly sift through them and try to pick out anything that may look out of the ordinary. Get those defects out! Now give your lentils a good rinse. Cover them with water and boil them for about five minutes. Strain them and leave them off to the side.

In another pot or pan, heat up your olive oil and start cooking your onion and garlic. Once it starts to caramelize, add a few tbsp. of water and continue cooking until everything is nice and soft.

Now in your main pot, start heating up your tomatoes and season them with salt/pepper and a dash of sugar to cut the acidity. Once they start to cook and it looks like a sauce add your garlic and onion mixture. Then, add your lentils and about 1.25 litres of water. You'll have to add a little more water near the end of cooking if you find your "faki" to be too thick.

Bring this all to a boil, add the bay leaves and reduce to a medium-low heat. The last thing you want to do is burn it. If your stove's low level setting is hotter than average, then keep it on low. Let it simmer for about an hour (or until the lentils are fully cooked and soft).

During the last five minutes of cooking, add a tbsp. of red wine vinegar and oregano to taste.

Here's what mine looked like during the cooking process. It's nice and hearty for this cold fall evening!

Enjoy!

Where's the lentils?

Oh... there they are.

Mmm... good for you!

This is how I like it. Nice and hearty. 

Fakies - Greek Lentil Soup

Well here it is. My first post.

My love affair with greek food started at an early age. When you're force fed fish stew by your grandmother you learn to love her cooking pretty quickly.

I am just playing around though, she was a terrific woman and a wonderful cook. She'd take the cheapest ingredients and turn them into something delicious. One of my favourite dishes of hers was lentil soup. This is a hearty traditional greek soup that I plan on making later on today. Let's just hope my girlfriend likes this hearty dish. If not, I'll be eating a whole lot of lentils over the next few days.

To be continued...