Chaudron, Chaudrée, Cauldron, Chowder!

Nothing says “Atlantic Canada” than a delicious, warm cup of Seafood Chowder. The Capt’n loves it boiling hot, some others like it warm. Most like it creamy and definitely all like it full of Seafood goodness.

The origins of the word Chowder are confusing. Some sources talk about it coming from the French word Chaudron, which means Cauldron, or Chaudière from Quebecois French which means “bucket”. There is also a Portuguese term Caldeirada, which is a Portuguese, Brazilian, Galician and Basque fish and shellfish stew that means “made in a Cauldron”. All these names are pieces of a puzzle that put together make the history of the chowder.

The Chowder originated as a shipboard dish resembling a fish soup with a difference. Chowder was thickened with “Hardtack”, a type of cracker made out of flour, water, and salt that would be long-lasting. One can imagine that sailors, having very limited resources during the long trips across the ocean had to get creative with their cooking. It is easy to assume this is one of the reasons why chowder is so easily associated with everything nautical. One could also assume that Chowder, being rich the way it is, would make one big satisfying meal that would help spend long journeys between cooking and digesting it.

Chowder can also be traced back to the 16^th and 17^th century in France and England as a soup made from any meat, not only fish. One thing is for sure, chowder came on a ship, immigrants from England or France brought it here and it came to stay. So, when people come to the Atlantic Coast, they want Chowder.

There are many varieties of Chowder, from the New England clam chowder, to the Manhattan clam chowder which many people would dismiss as a chowder because of its tomato base, the Corn chowder, which uses corn instead of clams as a base, Fish chowder, potato chowder, which is often made of cheese and many other variations that are specially popular in the North American regions of New England and Atlantic Canada.

Capt’n Kenny’s chowder is based on the New England style clam chowder with added seafood that makes it a Seafood chowder. The Capt’n adds clams, fish, shrimp, scallops, onions, celery, potatoes and a blend of his favorite spices and he lets them all blend for many hours at a very low temperature that embeds all the flavors together into one satisfying, flavorful dish, now available until our closing date in November.

Come and try it out, or if you have already had it before, come and enjoy it. We will be featuring it throughout the Fall. Let us know how you like it. We will be happy to see you again!

The Capt’n and Crew.