Ashley’s Recommendations: Use low sodium chicken stock for healthier, less salty chowder.

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 1 cup of short grain rice
• 2 tbsp of white miso paste
• 8 cups of chicken stock or water
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tbsp of ginger
• 1 small geoduck, trimmed and sliced thin
• 2 tbsp of sesame oil
• 1/2 cup of corn flakes
• 3 green onions finely chopped

Directions

1. In a large saucepan or soup pot, combine rice and stock or water and bring to a boil. Watch carefully to avoid boiling over.
2. Turn heat to low and simmer for 1 hour or until rice grains are soft and broken up.
3. Allow to cool slightly then process in food processor or blender until smooth. Add more stock if soup is too thick and return to pot.
4. Bring rice chowder to a boil, add miso paste and stir to mix well and season with salt and pepper to taste.
5. Add ginger and cook for 1 minute to infuse flavors.
6. Remove from heat, add geoduck slices and stir.
7. Divide into bowls, garnish with a drizzle of sesame oil, a sprinkle of corn flakes and green onions and serve immediately.

Ashley’s Recommendations: Can substitute different types of mushrooms or potatoes.

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 1 geoduck (2 to 3 pounds)
• 4 ounces slab bacon, cut into 1/4 -inch dice
• 4 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 large onion, diced
• 3 ounces diced celery root
• 2 tsp minced fresh thyme
• 2 dried bay leaves
• 1 1/2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled, quartered and thinly sliced
• 3 to 4 cups canned clam juice
• 2 cups heavy cream
• Black pepper to taste

For garnish:

• 1 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1/2 pound fresh chanterelles, cleaned and thinly sliced
• Salt to taste
• 2 tbsp minced parsley
• 2 tbsp minced chives
• Crackers

Directions

1. Working over a bowl to catch the liquid, cut the geoduck out of its shell with a sharp knife. Cut out the soft belly and discard. Cut the siphon and body apart, and cut the body into 1/2 -inch dice. Weigh the body meat. Cut the siphon into half-inch slices, slicing only enough to make a total of 12 ounces siphon and body meat.
2. Use the remainder of the siphon for sashimi. Place the thickly sliced siphon meat in a food processor and process until roughly chopped. Put all the geoduck meat in the refrigerator while you continue the recipe.
3. Strain the geoduck liquid into a 1-quart measuring cup. Add enough clam juice to total 4 cups of liquid and set aside.
4. In a large pot, cook the bacon over medium heat until crisp.
5. Add the 4 tablespoons butter, onion, celery root, thyme and bay leaves, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are soft but not browned, about 8 minutes.
6. Add the potatoes and the clam juice mixture and raise the heat to high.
7. Bring to a boil and boil uncovered, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are tender and just beginning to break up, 8 to 10 minutes.
8. Add the cream and reserved geoduck meat to the pot, season with pepper, and take it off the heat to rest for up to an hour. If you’re not serving the chowder within an hour, cool it to room temperature and put it in the refrigerator for up to two days.
9. Reheat the chowder over low heat. While it’s heating, prepare the chanterelle garnish. Place a skillet over medium-high heat and add 1 tablespoon of butter.
10. Saute the chanterelles, sprinkling with salt, until they’ve browned, about five minutes.
11. Serve the chowder in heated bowls, garnished with the chanterelles, parsley, chives and toasted common crackers.

Ashley’s Recommendations: Even better with fresh herbs! Increase each to 2 tbsp when fresh.

Serves 6 to 8

Ingredients

• 1/3 pound sliced bacon, chopped
• 1/4 pound andouille sausage, chopped or bulk pork sausage, crumbled
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup diced celery
• 1 small green bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and diced
• 2 medium-size (about 1 lb. total) firm-ripe tomatoes, cored and diced
• 2 tsp each dry oregano leaves, dry basil leaves, and dry thyme leaves
• Chowder base (recipe follows)
• 2 cups (about 1/2 lb.) sliced fresh or frozen okra
• 1/2 to 3/4 pound cleaned geoduck siphon and/or mantle

Directions

In a 5- to 6-quart pan over medium heat, combine bacon, sausage, and onion; stir often until well browned, 10 to 15 minutes. Spoon out and discard fat.

Add to pan the celery, bell pepper, tomato, oregano, basil, thyme, and chowder base. Bring mixture to a boil (if made ahead, let cool, cover, and chill until next day; reheat to continue).

Add geoduck, stir, and remove from heat immediately. Ladle chowder into bowls.

Chowder base: Mix together 1/4 cup tomato paste, 1 bottle (8 oz.) clam juice, 1 can (12 oz.) tomato juice, and 1 1/2 cups chicken broth.

Ashley’s Recommendations: Can lessen fat content of this geoduck chowder by substituting half and half or milk, using cornstarch to thicken.

6 servings

Ingredients

* 10 oz sliced geoduck
* 4 tbsp unsalted butter
* 1 1/2 onions, diced
* 4 cups clam juice
* 2 cups heavy cream
* 1 large carrot, peeled and diced
* 1 celery stalk, diced
* 1 large red or white potato, peeled and diced
* 1/4 tsp black pepper
* 2 dashes Tabasco sauce
* 1/2 lemon, juiced

Beurre Maine:

* 1/2 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
* 1 tbsp flour

Directions

1. Grind geoduck in meat grinder until roughly chopped.
2. Melt butter over low heat in a large stockpot. Cook onions until soft.
3. Add geoduck and cook an additional 3 min, stirring occasionally to avoid browning.
4. Add clam juice and bring to a boil.
5. Add cream and return to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.
6. Add carrots, celery, and potato. Cook over medium-low heat until veggies are tender, about 10 min.
7. Make the Buerre Maine by mixing softened butter and flour together to form a paste. Press into a whisk and stir into soup until evenly dispersed.
8. Stir in remaining Ingredients, adjusting seasonings to taste.

Does this “gooey duck” recipe sound tasty to you? Perhaps you have some ideas on how we could make it better? Please let us know what you think by leaving a comment below!