Day 71! Honduras - How 'bout a Road Trip to HMart? Spicy Curry Conch Chowder - Up Next, Hungary

Exotic Curry Conch Chowder

Yes! I found conch!! But wait - not only that, I discovered a whole new shopping galaxy known as HMart  and nothing, I mean NOTHING could have prepared me for the...the...volume, variety and sensory-overloadness of this Asian market experience. 

Picture, if you will, a BJ's-sized store packed full of every possible type of exotic produce, seafood, meat, noodles, rice, spices and virtually anything needed for Asian cooking, including a huge selection of dishes, cooking utensils and gadgets. 

So about Honduras and tonight's meal...Curry Conch Chowder

Located in Central America, Honduras is bordered by Guatemala, El Salvador and Nicaragua. Honduras' cuisine is a fusion of African, Indigenous and Spanish flavors. Interestingly, this country uses more coconut in sweet and savory dishes than any other Central American country. Papaya, plums, pineapples, soups, seafood, roasted meats and rice & beans are all enjoyed by Hondurans.

 Not just any conch - oh no baby, these are Baby Conch - sweet and tender

 That's right, I got to use my grinder to mince them up - is this not the most badass rig ever??!!

 Look at that - a simple disk attachment, a crank of the handle and presto - beautifully minced baby conch

 Bay leaves. I took the picture because I love this jar (.50 at a yard sale) and the camera saw a psychedelic image -viva the 60's - I can't help it - I'm from Cambridge.

 A lovely twist to the chowder - curry powder mixed with cream - I used Jamaican curry because I love the yellow color and the rich flavor. Indian curry would have been too dark and would have muddied up the color of the chowder.

Oh, wait - another HMart score - I made these for my son tonight - shazam - they were crazy good!

The Scallion Pancakes - not part of the meal, but they were too pretty not to include

 I couldn't decide whether to serve corn or flour tortillas with the chowder, so I went with both

 Lovely curried cream, blended into the chowder along with sherry at the end

Fantastic and beautiful to look at as well. I loved the combination of conch, curry, cream and tomatoes

Exotic Curry Conch Chowder ( Adapted from Caribbean Recipes from Roatan Honduras)

• 1 lb. conch
• 1 large onion
• 1/2 cup cream
• 1-2 cups conch broth 
• 4 tomatoes, chopped
• 2 tsp. curry powder (or more to taste)
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1 pinch thyme
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 Tbsp. butter
• 1 small can tomato paste
• 3-4 Tbsp. sherry
• Fresh chopped parsley for garnish

Grind the conch and boil in water until tender. Reverse cooking water. Fry onion in frying pan with butter until cooked (not browned). Add bay leaves and thyme.Add tomatoes, sugar, conch broth, conch and tomato paste. Simmer until tomatoes are soft. Add cream/curry and sherry and simmer (do not boil) until hot. Serve in bowls, with tortillas and garnished with parsley.

Final Assessment: This was a wonderful dish. I'd never had conch before. They're not that different from sea clams and the combination of tomatoes, curry and cream was sublime. A+

Why do YOU cook, Vanessa Barrington?

There are lots of books out right now about canning and preserving and making all kinds of things from scratch. So how is D.I.Y. Delicious. different? It's written by Vanessa Barrington, a talented cook and writer, who figured out how to make stuff on her own, in a real home kitchen. It's filled with recipes for everyday things you will get excited to make yourself when you see how easy most of the recipes are. Soon you'll be making mustard, yogurt, pickles, horchata, crackers and more.

The book also features recipes for using many of the things you'll learn to make. So after you learn to make Creme Fraiche (pg. 116) you can make Artichoke Soup with Creme Fraiche (pg.119). It also includes lots of cool ideas you probably haven't considered before like Savory Porridge with an egg and cheddar cheese or Pulled Pork Canapes with fig rosemary jam.

Vanessa Barrington is creative, socially conscious and just plain fun. She's a talented writer, recipe developer, and coincidentally a terrific conference roommate. So, why does she cook?

"The simplest answer is that I don’t know how NOT to. I feel more like myself in the kitchen than I do anywhere else. Sometimes it’s the only thing that makes any sense to me, especially during times of emotional upheaval, national strife, (elections/terrorist attacks/the televised aftermath of hurricanes) or on ordinary bad days. Even on a good day spent in front of my computer answering emails and writing all day, nothing feels so good as pulling out a cutting board and knife, and beginning the soothing work of chopping.

It wasn’t always like that. In fact, there have been periods in my life when I didn’t really like food. As a kid, I was a picky eater. I’d sit at the dinner table for hours, after everyone else went out to play, rather than eat the gray, overcooked pork chop and the canned peas on my plate.

When I started working in the restaurant business in my 20s, a whole new world opened up to me and I realized that I wasn’t really picky, just discerning. I started out by trying to recreate the dishes I served to customers. I had no idea of technique, but usually the results were somewhat ok. I was good at figuring things out. Eventually I taught myself how to cook.

These days, I’m not so much into restaurant food. Of course I go out and I do enjoy it. Occasionally I even have a meal that bowls me over. But what I like best is just poking around in the refrigerator, the garden, and the farmers’ market, figuring out what I want to eat, and then perhaps calling a friend to share it with me. I cook because I really like my own cooking and feel healthiest when I cook for myself. At the end of even the most delicious vacations, I can’t wait to get home and cook something simple to eat."