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The calls start arriving at the First Church of Belfast weeks before the Christmas Fair is held in mid-November.
“People say, ‘There’s going to be fish chowder, right?’” said Heather Wren, the church’s office administrator. “It’s not a Christmas Fair without the fish chowder. It’s quite the tradition.”
People love the scones, quiche and other treats whipped up by seasoned church bakers for the fair, an annual event that for more than 60 years has raised money for church operations, and is set for 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday. They may peruse the array of handmade crafts up for sale, or bid in the silent auction.
But if there’s one thing the fair is locally famous for, it’s the fish chowder, made for the past 30 years by Waldo County resident Don Hoenig. Each year, he and his wife Lynn wake up early the morning of the fair, head down to the church, and begin cooking up two massive steaming stockpots full of chowder. It’s a heartwarming community tradition, in more ways than one.
“We’re still doing it, all these years later,” Hoenig said. “It’s really so simple. But it’s one of those yearly traditions we’ve always done.”
Unlike its thicker cousin clam chowder, a Maine fish chowder is a thin, milk and cream-based soup, with tiny circles of yellow butter dotting the surface like an oil slick, and haddock and potatoes resting gently at the bottom, alongside onions and either bacon or salt pork. It’s plain and unfussy, meant to warm your bones and showcase fresh Maine fish. It’s been a staple of coastal kitchens for generations, whether the cook used powdered milk during the Great Depression, or added fancier culinary touches in contemporary times.
Hoenig says he can’t claim ownership of the First Church fish chowder. He’s just using a recipe he got from the original church chowdermaster, Capt. George Jennings, who for years prior to Hoenig’s reign was the man with the ladle.
Jennings, a parishioner at the church for decades, was a larger-than-life character, who came from a long line of seafaring Mainers. A graduate of the inaugural class of Maine Maritime Academy in 1943, he was a sea pilot, shepherding boats of all sizes and functions across Penobscot Bay. His work took him as far north as Newfoundland and across the eastern seaboard, and even once — unintentionally — to France, though that’s a story for another time.
“I have this kind of romantic notion that George would cook up pots of chowder for his crew on boats, although that’s probably not the case,” Hoenig said. “I just know that George was one of the older members of the church that really welcomed us when we moved to Belfast.”
Jennings also served as harbormaster for both Belfast and Camden, was a boat broker, real estate agent, writer and painter and, according to his son George Henry Jennings, an excellent cook.
“Dad was the kind of person who could take a little of this, and a little of that, and really put a nice meal together,” said the younger Jennings, who lives in Camden. “Fish chowder was a staple. Dad used to deliver meals to people that were shut in, and that was one of the things they always made.”
George Henry Jennings doesn’t know exactly when his father began making his famous fish chowder for the First Church of Belfast Christmas fair. He guesses it was sometime in the 1970s, but it could have been earlier than that. The First Church — which celebrated its 200th anniversary in 2018 — has held its fair since at least 1961, and likely much earlier than that. Either Capt. Jennings or his wife had been making chowder for a crowd since at least 1967.
Hoenig and Capt. Jennings became fast friends when Hoenig began attending the First Church in the early 1980s. A few years before Capt. Jennings died in 1993, he gave Hoenig his secret chowder recipe. Hoenig never wrote it down, however; the proportions and steps are firmly lodged in his memory.
That said, the famous First Church fish chowder recipe isn’t terribly different from other traditional Maine fish chowders. The secret ingredient, Hoenig said, is the little things: the amount of salt, the order in which you add the ingredients, the texture of the fish and potatoes.
“Don’t oversalt it. Don’t let the potatoes get mushy. And make sure it’s fresh fish,” said Hoenig, who said he buys his haddock at either Young’s Lobster Pound in Belfast, or at Hannaford, if they have fresh fish available. “There’s really no substitute for haddock. That chowder mix they sell at Hannaford is terrible. Cut it up yourself and make sure it’s fresh.”
Luncheon starts late morning at this year’s Christmas Fair, with the Hoenigs ladling out hot, fresh chowder for all comers — parishioners or not.
“It’s really just a wonderful community tradition,” Hoenig said. “It’s nice to feel like there’s a little history there, too.”
First Church Fish Chowder
(Note: This recipe has been scaled down from the version usually made for the Christmas Fair, which is meant to serve a large crowd)
Serves 6-8
2 pounds fresh haddock or other firm, fresh white fish, cut into bite-sized chunks
2 pounds yellow potatoes, peeled and medium diced
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
4 ounces/quarter pound bacon or salt pork, chopped
4 tablespoons (half a stick) butter
3 and a half cups half and half
2 cups whole milk
Salt and pepper to taste
Clam juice (optional)
In a large pot, fry up the bacon or salt pork on medium heat until crispy. Drain off the fat, and then add the onions and half the butter and saute until the onions are translucent. Add the potatoes and the rest of the butter, and add enough water until the potatoes are just covered. Season with salt and pepper (don’t oversalt it), and allow to boil until the potatoes are cooked but not mushy. Add a little more water, and then add the fish. Allow to boil until the fish is flaky but not overdone, and then turn the heat down to low and add the half and half and whole milk. Optionally, add a little clam juice if you want a more seafood-y taste. Do not allow the dairy to boil, but do allow it to get nice and hot. Season with more salt and pepper, and serve.
