By The Patriots won the Super Bowl. I need to let that sentence exist for a moment before I continue, because what happened on Sunday night was not normal football — it required entirely new vocabulary. Down 28-3 against the Atlanta Falcons, the kind of deficit where experienced fans begin negotiating their feelings, and then one by one they came back, and tied it, and in overtime they won. Twenty-five points. The biggest comeback in Super Bowl history.
Patrick called me before the clock finished. He wasn't using words. He was just making sounds. Sean Sr. called thirty seconds later and said, "Well," which for Sean Sr. is the equivalent of a full emotional breakdown. Sean D. and I had watched at Patrick's and the room went from grief to insanity in fifteen minutes and I screamed in a way I don't usually scream and spilled beer on Patrick's carpet and Patrick didn't even notice and that's how you know it was real.
I went into work Monday and half the city was running on no sleep and pure electricity. The nurses' station had someone's homemade Patriots cake — blue and red frosting, earnest, not beautiful, completely perfect. We ate it at seven AM and felt no shame whatsoever.
For cooking: Patriots victory calls for chowder. Maureen's chowder, which I made in a big pot Sunday evening during the celebration, and brought to Sean Sr. Monday because he deserved something comforting after forty years of loving a football team and being rewarded with moments like last night. He ate two bowls and didn't say anything. He didn't have to.
Maureen’s chowder has always been the kind of thing you make when words aren’t quite enough—when someone has waited forty years for something and finally gotten it, and all you can do is show up with a warm pot and let them eat in peace. The Italian fish chowder she passed down is hearty without being heavy, the kind of comfort food that feels like a reward rather than a consolation. Here’s how I make it.
Italian Fish Chowder
Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 40 minutes | Total Time: 55 minutes | Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 stalks celery, sliced
- 1 medium red bell pepper, diced
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained
- 1 bottle (8 oz) clam juice
- 2 cups chicken or seafood broth
- 1 lb Yukon Gold potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
- 1 1/2 lbs firm white fish (cod, halibut, or haddock), cut into 1 1/2-inch chunks
- 1/2 lb medium shrimp, peeled and deveined (optional)
- 1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- Crusty bread, for serving
Instructions
- Build the base. Heat olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion and celery and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, red bell pepper, red pepper flakes, oregano, and thyme, and cook 2 minutes more until fragrant.
- Add liquids and potatoes. Pour in the diced tomatoes with their juices, clam juice, and broth. Stir to combine, then add the cubed potatoes. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 15–18 minutes, until potatoes are just tender when pierced with a fork.
- Add the seafood. Gently nestle the fish chunks into the simmering broth. If using shrimp, add them as well. Cook for 6–8 minutes, stirring carefully once or twice, until the fish is opaque and flakes easily and shrimp are pink and cooked through. Do not over-stir or the fish will break apart too much—some breaking is fine and adds body to the broth.
- Season and finish. Taste and season with salt and black pepper. Stir in fresh parsley. Remove from heat and let rest 5 minutes before serving —this allows the flavors to settle and the broth to thicken slightly.
- Serve. Ladle into deep bowls and serve with plenty of crusty bread for soaking up the broth.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 290 | Protein: 34g | Fat: 7g | Carbs: 22g | Fiber: 3g | Sodium: 680mg