Delicious Seafood Chowder Ideas

Craving comfort food? Seafood chowder is the perfect meal to warm you up on a frigid day in Connecticut! It only takes around 30 minutes to prepare this healthy, creamy comfort seafood. This winter, try making homemade New England Clam Chowder, Seafood Chowder, or Keto Fish Chowder!

Chowder is a hearty, creamy soup traditionally thickened with crackers or a roux. In the 18th century, Americans made chowders with many different types of meat. Today, corn chowders and seafood chowders are the most popular.

New England Clam Chowder

This delicious and easy-to-make New England Chowder comfort-food recipe was adapted from Spend with Pennies.

Ingredients

• 3 – 6.5 oz. cans chopped or minced clams in their own clam juice
• 8 oz. clam juice
• 6 thick center-cut bacon strips, chopped
• 1 Tbsp. butter
• 2 stalks celery, finely chopped
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 ¼ lb. or 3 ½ c. russet potatoes, peeled and diced into ¼-½” cubes
• 3-5 garlic cloves minced
• ⅓ c. all-purpose flour
• 2 c. low sodium chicken broth
• 2 tsp. chicken bouillon
• 2 bay leaves
• ½ tsp. dried parsley
• ½ tsp. dried oregano
• ½ tsp. salt
• ¼ tsp. dried thyme
• ¼ tsp. pepper
• ¼ tsp. red pepper flakes (optional)
• 1 c. heavy cream

Garnishes (Optional)

• Oyster crackers
• Fresh parsley

Instructions

1. Open the cans of chopped or minced clams and drain the juice into a measuring cup. Add additional clam juice to equal 2 ½ cups. Then set aside.
2. Cook the bacon over medium heat in a large pot or Dutch oven. Once the bacon has started to brown, remove 3 strips of bacon and place on a plate lined with a paper towel. Leave the bacon drippings and half of the bacon in the pan.
3. Add one tablespoon of butter to the pot and melt over medium heat. Once melted, increase the heat to medium-high and add the celery and onion. Sauté until the onion is soft (around 5 -7 minutes).
4. Mix in the garlic, potatoes, and optional red pepper flakes (if you want a kick of flavor). Saute for 30 seconds, then sprinkle in the flour. Stir for 1 minute or until smooth, then slowly pour in the chicken broth and 2 ½ cups of clam juice, stirring continuously to prevent the flour from clumping.
5. Add the chicken bouillon, seasonings, and bay leaves to the pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low to simmer.
6. Simmer chowder uncovered until the potatoes are tender (about 15-20 minutes). Then stir in the clams and heavy cream. Once mixed in, remove from heat. Also, remove the bay leaves.
7. Serve immediately with oyster crackers and/or chopped parsley.

Seafood Chowder Recipe

This seafood chowder recipe is packed with chunks of white fish and shellfish. 

Ingredients

• 6 thick center-cut bacon strips, chopped
• 1/4 c. butter
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 tsp. Old Bay seasoning
• ¼ tsp. thyme
• ¼ c. flour
• 1 stalk celery, sliced
• 1 carrot, sliced
• 1/2 c. corn
• 1/2 lb. potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 5 c. broth seafood or chicken
• ½ c. white wine
• 1 lb. bay or sea scallops, quartered
• 1 lb. lobster meat, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 lb. uncooked medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1 lb. cod, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 lb. haddock, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 c. heavy cream

Garnishes (Optional)

• Oyster crackers
• Fresh parsley

Instructions

1. Brown the bacon over medium heat in a large pot or Dutch oven. Remove 3 strips of bacon once it’s browned and place on a paper towel-lined plate.
2. Add the onion and cook until tender. Then stir in the melted butter, flour, Old Bay seasoning, and thyme. Stir continuously and cook for 2-3 minutes or until you have a thick, pale roux.
3. Add the celery, carrots, potatoes, and corn. Sauté for 2 minutes.
4. Pour in the broth and wine. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer for 10 minutes.
5. Stir in the seafood and cook until the seafood is opaque, the fish flakes when speared with a fork, and the potatoes are tender (about 5-10 minutes.
6. Remove from heat and stir in the cream.
7. Serve immediately with chopped parsley and oyster crackers.

Keto Seafood Chowder

If you are looking for a low-carb seafood recipe, try out this keto seafood chowder!

Ingredients

• 8 thick center-cut bacon strips, chopped
• 1/4 c. butter
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 medium onion, diced
• 1 stalk celery, sliced
• 1 lb. cauliflower, chopped (remove the stems)
• 1/2 c. cream cheese
• 1/2 c. clam juice
• 1 tsp. Old Bay seasoning
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. thyme
• 1/4 tsp. pepper
• 5 c. broth seafood or chicken
• 1 lb. bay or sea scallops, quartered
• 1 lb. lobster meat, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 lb. uncooked medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1 lb. cod, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 lb. haddock, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 c. heavy cream

Garnishes (Optional)

• Fresh parsley

Instructions

1. Brown the bacon over medium heat in a large pot or Dutch oven. Remove 4 strips of bacon once it’s browned and place on a paper towel-lined plate.
2. Add the garlic and onion. Cook until the onion is tender. Then add the celery and cauliflower. Sauté 3 -5 minutes or until slightly browned.
3. Add the cream cheese and clam juice. Stir continuously until the cream cheese has melted. Then add the Old Bay seasoning, thyme, salt, and pepper.
4. Slowly pour in the broth and simmer for 10 minutes over medium-low.
5. Add the scallops, lobster meat, shrimp, and fish to the pot. Simmer until the fish flakes when speared with a fork and the shellfish is opaque.
6. Remove from heat and stir in the cream.
7. Crumble the reserved pieces of bacon and sprinkle on top along with chopped parsley.

Warm up this winter with these mouthwatering seafood chowder recipes! You can easily modify any of these recipes to suit your taste and budget by leaving out the lobster or swapping the cod or haddock for your favorite white fish. You can find the best selection of fresh fish and shellfish for your winter cooking at City Fish Market on Silas Deane Highway in Wethersfield, Connecticut. Give us a call at 860-522-3129 to find out what fish are in season!