Cross Creek Clam Chowder: A Southern Twist with Cedar Key Clams

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“Oh, Cross Creek Chowder, take a bite!

Cedar Key clams, shinin' oh so bright!

With bacon crispy, potatoes so soft,

A taste of our South, sent from above.”

(To the tune of "Panama Red" by The New Riders of the Purple Sage)

Cross Creek Clam Chowder, as created by legendary self-taught cook Monty Williams, is a delightful twist on the classic, incorporating a tomato base akin to its Manhattan cousin, while emphasizing the use of fresh Cedar Key clams. If you live near a sea shore, look for local clams, but for the inlanders (I’m one!) Cedar Key Clams work beautifully. (In the Atlanta area, they’re sold at Your Dekab Farmers Market in Decatur, near the Emory University Campus.

Monty’s Cross Creek Chowder with Cedar Key Clams

Ingredients

6 slices thick-cut bacon, diced

1 large onion, chopped

3 celery stalks, chopped

2 carrots, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 lbs Cedar Key middleneck clams, scrubbed clean (Availablle at Your Dekalb Farmers Market near Emory University)

2 cups clam juice (from fresh clams or bottled)

2 cups water

28 oz can crushed tomatoes

1/3 cup ketchup

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

2 teaspoons brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper, or to taste

4-6 shakes hot sauce (like Crystal Hot Sauce), or to taste

3 medium red or Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and diced

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley, for garnish

Dry sherry

Instructions

Prepare the clams:

In a large pot, steam the scrubbed Cedar Key clams in 2 cups of boiling water or clam juice until they open, about 5-7 minutes. Discard any unopened clams. Remove the clams from their shells and chop coarsely, reserving all the clam liquid. Strain the clam broth through a fine-mesh sieve and set aside.

Render the bacon:

In a large, heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven, cook the diced bacon over medium heat until crispy. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels, reserving 2 tablespoons of bacon drippings in the pot.

Sauté the aromatics:

Add the onions, celery, carrots, and garlic to the bacon drippings in the pot. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables soften and the onions are translucent, about 8 minutes.

Build the base:

While the vegetables are cooking, blend the crushed tomatoes, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, salt, pepper, hot sauce, and the crumbled cooked bacon (from step 2) using an immersion blender or food processor until mostly smooth.

Simmer the chowder:

Add the tomato mixture to the pot with the vegetables, along with the reserved clam broth and the diced potatoes. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for about 1 hour, allowing the flavors to meld and the potatoes to become tender.

Finish and serve:

Add the chopped clam meat to the chowder and continue to simmer on low for another 5-10 minutes, just enough to heat the clams through without overcooking them.

Adjust seasonings to taste. Add a splash of dry sherry

for added depth. Ladle into bowls and garnish with fresh parsley and the remaining crumbled bacon.