Top 5 Seafood Dishes
Recipes coming in the next articles
The northeastern part of the United State is noted as the most historical part of the country, and serving up a side of some of the finest seafood along with it, this area offers dishes that you just can’t find anywhere else that taste the same. You can travel all over the continental US and not find lobster as sweet as you find in Maine, crabs as flavorful as you find in Maryland, nor baked haddock like you find in every historical inn everywhere in between.
While it may not be a culinary wonder, it is food with a history as long as the story of the United States, and as American as apple pie.
First, you will never find a lobster anywhere in the world that tastes as good as a Maine lobster. Prepared in a hundred different ways, this sweet meat melts in your mouth. The most “New England” way to have it is either boiled or bake stuffed, thought the purists will always side with the boiled lobster camp. The cold water in the Gulf of Maine creates an environment that produces the finest lobster on the planet.
Next, we would be remiss in not mentioning Baked Haddock. It is a northeastern tradition, a staple in every New Englander’s diet. Lightly crumbed, fresh white haddock from the Atlantic with just a touch of lemon and a smidge of butter, this dish is found on just about every menu of every seafood joint from Maine to Florida, though the further south you go, the less fresh the fish.
The Maryland Crab cake is the flagship dish for the mid-Atlantic region, often loaded with more crabmeat than stuffing. Crab cakes can be served as a mini version for appetizers, a regular size on salads, or a larger size as a full entree. To find the best of the best, Baltimore and surrounding towns have the top recipes, complete with Old Bay seasoning with which no decent Maryland crab cake would be without.
Perhaps the most well-know fare is New England clam chowder. And no, in our humble opinion, Manhattan or Rhode Island clam chowder does not count. This creamy, savory dish is a favorite and the styles can vary depending on where you go. Maine clam chowder tends to be a thin, brothy texture with a hint of cream while the further south you go into Massachusetts, it becomes thicker. Often, the “test” of whether or not the thicker type passes muster is to stand your spoon up in the bowl. If it stays up, eat up!
Lastly, seafood newberg might be one of the richest, most delicious of all seafood dishes found in the northeast. Originally created as lobster newberg, it began popping up in New York during the 1880’s. Delmonico’s restaurant is said to have been the birthplace of lobster newberg, but no real information can be found on the seafood version of the dish. Of course, no good newberg is created without lobster, in addition to scallops, crab, and white fish, usually haddock. The sauce is actually a terrapin sauce, made with cream and sherry. Delicious to the last drop!
While it may not be fancy, nor cutting edge fusion and style, the fare found in the northeastern US is as comforting as the fire we sit around on cold winter nights.
by LA DiNardi
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