1/4 lb. pork slat
5 lb. potatoes
3 onions
1 tbsp. salt
1 tbsp. black pepper
1 (20 oz.) can baby clams
1 pt. light cream
1 c. milk
1/2 lb. butter

This is the best clam chowder you will ever eat, but you must follow the instructions exactly.

Chop up the salt pork into small cubes and heat over medium heat in a large pot until the cubes are mostly dissolved; remove the cracklings. Peel the potatoes and cut into small cubes (1/4 x 1/4 inch). This is important!! The cubes must be small. Cut the potatoes into julienne fries and then into cubes for best results. Wash the potatoes in a colander and dump in a large bowl. Repeat this process 7-8 times, the potatoes must be very clean. Dump the potatoes into the large pot with the dissolved salt pork.

Cut the onions into cubes the size of the potatoes and dump into the pot. Fill the pot with water until it almost covers the potatoes. (Don't use too much water!!) Add the salt and pepper and stir the potatoes and onions until they blend; boil the mixture until the potatoes are almost done, about 15 minutes. Open the can of clams (unfortunately we can't get real soft shell clams in Florida) and dump only the juice into the pot. Lower the heat to low and cook for another 1/2 hour. Add the canned clams to the pot and simmer for another 1/2 hour. Slowly add the cream and milk insuring the mixture doesn't boil. Place the 1/2 pound of butter on top of the chowder and let it melt over very low heat. Serve with salted crackers and be prepared to go back for more.