Andalusian seafood chowder (Gazpachuelo con pescado)

In North America, chowder is a generic name for a wide variety of seafood or vegetable stews and thickened soups, often with milk or cream and mostly eaten with saltine crackers. Chowder is usually thickened with flour, but some varieties are traditionally thickened with crushed ship biscuit. New England clam chowder, perhaps the best known chowder, is typically made with chopped clams and diced potatoes, in a mixed cream and milk base, often with a small amount of butter. Other common chowders include Manhattan clam chowder, which substitutes tomatoes for the milk and cream and typically omits potatoes; corn chowder, which uses corn instead of clams; a wide variety of fish chowders; and potato chowder, which is often made with cheese.

The origin of the term chowder is obscure. One possible source is the French word chaudière, the type of pot in which the first chowders were probably cooked. (This, if true, would be similar to the origin of casserole, a generic name for a set of main courses originally prepared in a dish called a casserole.)

The phonetic variant chowda, found in New England, is believed to have originated in Newfoundland in the days when Breton fisherman would throw portions of the day’s catch into a large pot, along with other available foods.

Fish chowder, corn chowder, and clam chowder continue to enjoy popularity in New England and Atlantic Canada.

This is a Spanish version of the famous North American Chowder. It uses ingredients found all over Spain

Total time: 50 minutes

Servings: 6

Note: For the fish, use a white fish such as cod or halibut. Serrano ham is available at select gourmet markets and specialty stores.

1 egg, at room temperature

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

2 quarts simple fish stock

1 1/2 cups diced boiling potatoes

1/4 cup shelled peas, fresh or frozen

1 1/2 cups chunks of raw fish

1/4 cup chopped Serrano ham

1/3 cup peeled shrimp (3 ounces)

1/4 cup dry sherry

Salt and pepper to taste

1. In the bowl of a blender, place the egg. With the motor running, add the oil in a slow stream until it is emulsified (it will thicken like a mayonnaise). Blend in the lemon juice, then set aside. (If the emulsion happens to “break” while it is blended, simply pour out the mixture and add a fresh egg white to the blender container. Add the mixture in a slow stream to fix the emulsion.)

2. In a large, heavy-bottomed soup pot, add the fish stock and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the potatoes, cover and simmer for 10 minutes, until somewhat softened but not cooked through. Add the peas and cook an additional 5 minutes.

3. Add the chunks of fish, ham, shrimp and sherry. Bring the soup to a boil, then reduce to a gentle simmer.

4. With the blender running, ladle about 1 cup of the hot broth from the soup into the emulsion in the blender and blend until smooth. Remove the soup from the heat and whisk the emulsion into the soup. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately. The soup can be reheated, but do not boil. This makes a generous 2½ quarts of soup.

Each serving: 313 calories; 18 grams protein; 9 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram fiber; 22 grams fat; 4 grams saturated fat; 82 mg cholesterol; 1 gram sugar; 1,402 mg sodium.

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