This is a hearty fish chowder that will warm the cockles of your heart on the coldest windy coastal days. So, as the chef would say…let’s get to cooking.

Captain Hawthorne’s Fish Chowder.

Ingredients:

• One package of salt pork, as lean as you can get it.  Cut off the rind and dice into smallish chunks. 
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter.
• One large onion, diced. 
• 1 tablespoon of chopped thyme leaves.  
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 pounds or four large potatoes, peeled and diced into bite-size chunks. 
• 5 cups of fish stock (homemade preferred)
• Kosher salt and ground black pepper.
• 3 pounds of boneless skinless haddock or cod fillets
• 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
• Chopped chives for garnish.

Cooking.

1. In a large soup pot, sauté the chopped salt port until it’s crispy, take it out, and put it on a paper towel to soak up all the excess grease.  Leave the oil in the pot.
2.  Add the butter, onions, thyme, and bay leaves to the pot and sauté stirring occasionally until the onions are softened but not browned.
3.  Add the potatoes and stock. Bring to a boil for about ten minutes.
4.  Reduce the heat to low and add the fish for about 8-10 minutes (you can also put shrimp, crab, clams, and lobster as seen in the picture below, as long as the shells are completely removed).  
5. Gently stir in the cream, add a dollop of butter, and season with salt and pepper to taste. 
6. Add in the crispy salted pork and give it a gentle stir.
7. Serve in a bowl (a bread bowl would be even better) and garnish with the chives.

Let me know in the comments if you like getting themed recipes.