Boarman's: Report From The XMas Front Line

Boarman's Meat Market in Highland was jumping this morning with people picking up and ordering meat, fish and turkeys for the weekend.

The pick-up line for pre-orders was against the produce.  New orders snaked up a central aisle.  Boarman's had a crew working so that waits were reasonable, and people loaded up on steaks, hams, turkeys, and the house-made sausages.  Guy in front of me ordered three big steaks and picked up his Maple Lawn turkey.

They were sold out of flank steak, so I grabbed a pound of Maryland crab meat to use this weekend.  I need to cook because Mrs. HowChow is working the entire weekend so we can't return to the Red Pearl for a Christmas Day dim sum.

Then I had a last-second inspiration and asked for clams.  Boarman's has them in the back for 50 cents each.  Mrs. HowChow talked about thick clam chowder earlier this week, so I picked up onions and potatoes to work on that tonight.  Plus a sausage to flavor either the chowder or pasta.

Bonus item at the cash register: Boarman's stocks the breads and pies from the Lovebirds bakery that I had seen before at Roots and Gorman Farm.  Lovebirds apparently bakes in Howard County.

Crab Cakes at Boarman's Meat Market

Trust the place in the country to give you a taste of the bay -- and pick up crab cakes for an easy dinner at Boarman's Meat Market.

Boarman's is an institution on Rte 108 in Highland, and the house-made sausage is worth driving out. But Boarman's also makes crab cakes -- each the size of a fist and packed with tasty meat. On earlier visits, I had missed this treat in a case full of meat, but I got the tip from a friend. The cakes are moist and lightly seasoned. Maybe Old Bay? I wasn't exactly sure. I just dropped them on tinfoil and broiled until they browned on each side.

The crab cakes are normally $4 each. One would make a fine meal if you add a few side dishes. Easy enough for a weeknight. Delicious enough for a treat. Mrs. HowChow and I split four, and they were honestly too much for a single meal. (Not that I didn't finish my two!)

The other famous local crab cakes are at Timbuktu just off Rte 100. If you go to Boarman's, it is an easy drive up Rte 108 to Root's Market. That organic market is full of options to round out a meal.

Boarman's Meat Market
13402 Clarksville Pike (Rte 108)
Highland, MD
301-854-2883

NEAR: Boarman's is the intersection of Rte 108 and Rte 216. It's south of Clarksville and west of Fulton.

Sausage at Boarman's Meat Market in Highland

The homemade sausages at Boarman's Meat Market are worth the drive down to the intersection of Rte 108 and Rte 216 in Highland.

Boarman's is an institution at the crossroads just south of Clarksville and west of Fulton. The store is a small grocery and liquor store, but the long-distance draw is the meat department in the back. Specifically, check out Boarman's two kinds of house-made sausage -- a long Italian link and a "country-style" patty for breakfast.

The Italian is perfect just grilled in sandwiches. I used it last Saturday to flavor a fish and vegetable soup and went a more complex route sauteing the entire link to firm up the meat, then slicing it and putting it back in the pan to brown each exposed side. To me, foods like sausage should be something special. I'd rather pass up a month's average sausage so that I can indulge myself when I find something like Boarman's -- or the thick-cut bacon that Boarman's sells by the slice.

You'll laugh, but the sausage doesn't have the grease that you'd expect. Great flavor, but even when I sauteed slices, there was the lightest coating of fan in the pan when I went to cook onions. In contrast, the Mexican and Salvadoran chorizo at Lily's Mexican Market in Columbia looks wonderful, but it is too greasy for me to grill regularly.

Boarman's also sells steaks and other meat. I'd love a recommendation if you buy there. If you like bacon by the slice, you can also check out the Laurel Meat Market near U.S. 1 in downtown Laurel.

Click here for a comprehensive list of ethnic and organic markets in Howard County.

Boarman's Meat Market
13402 Clarksville Pike (Rte 108)
Highland, MD
301-854-2883

NEAR: This is the intersection of Rte 108 and Rte 216. It's south of Clarksville and west of Fulton.