Like Coke, this is the real, real thing ... even though Legal Seafood, which started off as a hole-in-the-wall fish & chips joint on Kendall Square when I came to Boston in 1968, claims they do a better job. This recipe, in my view, meets the stringent requirements from all fronts; characteristic clam flavor, starchiness from the potatoes, smoothness in texture from scalded milk, and to top it all, fragrance of the sea as soon as a piping hot bowl - as shown and those who order a cup are whims - is served.
The 'Mother Recipe' I work with, however, is from the Boston Cooking School Cook Book by Fannie Merritt Farmer, first published in 1896. My copy was a gift from my daughter and son-in-law who found it at an antique book store in Tokyo. It is in almost perfect condition, without a single trace of kitchen warfare because it has been kept, in fact immaculately kept, in a public library in Southern Japan.
1 quart clams
4 cups of potatoes cut in 3/4 inch cubes
1.5 inch cube fat salted pork
1 sliced onion
1 teaspoon salt & 1 teaspoon pepper
4 tablespoon butter
4 cups scalded milk
Try the recipe, I did, it is now on TKT's Tasting Menu and it works like a dream.
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