History of West Coast Clam Chowder

© copyright 2004 by Linda Stradley - United States Copyright TX 5-900-517- All rights reserved. This web site may not be reproduced in whole or in part without permission and appropriate credit given. If you use any of the history information contained below for research in writing a magazine or newspaper article, school work or college research, and/or television show production, you must give a reference to the author, Linda Stradley, and to the web site What's Cooking America.

West Coast Chowder - On the West Coast (California, Oregon & Washington), milk or cream is the key. The debate there is whether the chowder should be thick or thin. The west coast boasts some 500 varieties of clams, though only some 30 are well known. Razor clams are far and away the most popularly harvested. They're chopped and minced and sold in small flat cans, making wonderful soups of every variety. On the California coast, the Pismo Clam is a favorite. In Oregon and Washington, wonderful chowders are also made with corn and fresh salmon.