Manhattan-Style Clam Chowder

Even though I grew up in the Boston area, I still prefer the spicy flavor of a Manhattan clam chowder to the creamy New England version any day of the week. Brimming with clams and vegetables in a thick, thyme-flavored tomato broth, Manhattan chowder is ahuge hit at our house. We love it on a cold winter’s night and eat it in hollowed-out-bread bowls. If you can’t get freshly shucked clams, canned clams will work.

SERVES 6 TO 8

INGREDIENTS:

• 6 bacon strips, cut crosswise into pieces ½-inch wide
• 1 ½ cups finely chopped sweet onion, such as Vidalia (about 2 large or 3 medium)
• 4 celery stalks (including the leaves), coarsely chopped
• 1 medium green bell pepper, seeded, deribbed, and coarsely chopped
• 1 medium red bell pepper, seeded, deribbed, and coarsely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 teaspoons dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 bay leaf
• Pinch of cayenne pepper
• 6 medium Yukon Gold or red-skinned potatoes, scrubbed and cut into ½-inch dice
• One 28-ounce can chopped tomatoes with their juice
• 1 quart shucked cherrystone clams, chopped, with their juice
• Clam juice as needed
• 2 cups chicken stock or store-bought chicken broth
• Salt
• 1 or 2 drops Tabasco sauce

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Cook the bacon in the pressure cooker over medium-high heat until crisp. Remove all but 2 tablespoons of the bacon drippings.
2. Add the onion, celery, bell peppers, garlic, thyme, oregano, bay leaf, and cayenne. Sauté for 3 to 4 minutes to soften the onion.
3. Add the potatoes, tomatoes and their juice, clams and juice, and stock.
4. Lock the lid in place and cook at high pressure for 7 minutes.
5. Release the pressure naturally and remove the lid, tilting the pot away from you to avoid the escaping steam.
6. Remove the bay leaf, taste the chowder for seasoning, and add salt and Tabasco to taste.

NOTE:

• If you are unable to get freshly shucked clams in your area, substitute an equal quantity of canned clams. Regardless of whether you are using fresh or canned, you will need 4 cups of their juice. If you don’t have that much, add enough bottled clam juice to get 4 cups. You’ll find the clam juice in your supermarket near the canned clams and tuna.