American Recipes/ Dinner/ Soup Recipes

Salmon Chowder

4 October 2021 | Last Updated: 10 April 2022 By Aleksandra

This salmon chowder is a delicious thick soup filled with tender chunks of salmon, carrots, potatoes, corn, and topped with crunchy bacon and fresh dill. This chowder is so delicious it’s hard to stop eating it! It’s healthy, nutritious, and filling.

You may also like this cheeseburger chowder.

What is a chowder?

Chowder is a type of soup or stew often prepared with milk or cream and thickened with broken crackers or a roux. Other types of chowder include clam chowder, corn chowder, seafood chowder, lamb or veal chowder made with barley, a wide variety of fish chowders, and potato chowder, which is often made with cheese.

What is the difference between chowder and soup?

A soup is usually made with stock or broth and can be made with vegetables, meat, or fish and is generally not very thick. Chowder can be made with the same ingredients but is more chunky, creamy, and thicker, it’s a little bit similar to a stew.

Ingredients

Here’s what you need to make this delicious salmon chowder:

  • Salmon – use regular salmon or wild-caught salmon. You could also add shrimp to this soup, if you have leftover cooked/baked salmon – you can also use that. You can use other fish than salmon for this recipe. Use firm-fleshed white fish such as cod or halibut.
  • Milk and cream – you can use half and half instead of milk and cream.
  • Broth – I used chicken broth, you could also use vegetable broth, you can swap 1 cup of chicken broth for fish broth of clam juice.
  • Milk to broth ratio – depends on your preferences – we like just 1 cup of milk per 5 cups of broth, we didn’t liked it that much when I added more milk.
  • Bacon – can be omitted, you can also use prosciutto (pan-fry it as well), it also comes out crispy and delicious, but bacon is more traditional.
  • Potatoes – use starchy potatoes such as russets.
  • Old Bay seasoning – optional but it adds so much flavor here and it goes perfectly with this soup, you could also use Cajun seasoning. Another recipe you could add the Old Bay seasoning to is this cheesy potato and egg scramble.
Labeled ingredients for salmon chowder.

Step by step instructions

Chopped ingredients for salmon chowder on a chopping board.

STEP 1: Prepare all the ingredients:

Cut the bacon and carrots into 1/2-inch (1.5 cm) cubes, cut the celery into slices, dice the onion, finely chop dill and garlic.
Cut the potatoes and salmon into 1-inch (2.5 cm) cubes.

Cooked bacon in a pot. Flour is being added to sauteed vegetables in a pot.

STEP 2: Heat the frying oil over medium heat in a large pot and add bacon. Cook for a couple of minutes until fat renders from the bacon and it’s crispy. Transfer bacon to a plate.

You could also cook bacon in the oven and add cooked and crispy bacon directly to the mushroom sauce. You can still use bacon grease from cooking it in the oven to sautee the vegetables.

STEP 3: Add the onions, celery, and carrots. Cook, stirring from time to time, for 5 minutes, until softened.

Add the garlic and Old Bay seasoning, cook for 30 seconds. Stir in the flour and cook for a minute.

Broth is being added to sauteed vegetables in a pot. Potatoes are being added to the soup.

STEP 4: Add the broth and milk. Bring to a boil, simmer for 10 minutes.

STEP 5: Add the potatoes, bring the soup to a boil, simmer for 8 minutes.

Soup with salmon and corn in a bot. Milk is being added to a soup in a pot.

STEP 6: Add drained corn and salmon, simmer for 3 minutes or until the fish is cooked through (you can take out a piece of fish onto a plate and cut it in half to see if it changed its color from dark pink to light pink).

This is the most important part of this recipe: DON’T OVERCOOK THE FISH! I can not stress this enough – small pieces of salmon will cook really quickly. If cooked for too long, it will be tough and rubbery. Make sure to add the fish to water that is only gently simmering and does not cook rapidly.

STEP 7: Take the pot off the heat, add the cream, season the chowder with salt, pepper, and lemon juice, stir in chopped dill.

Pour the soup into bowls, crumble with cooked bacon and sprinkle with more dill.

Enjoy!

What to serve it with

This soup is pretty perfect as it but you may want to serve it with oyster crackers, a crunchy baguette or a piece of crusty bread on the side.

FAQ:

How to thicken fish chowder?

You can add flour, cornstarch, make a roux, or blend part of the soup and add it to your chowder.

How long does it keep in the fridge?

You can keep it for up to 3 days in the fridge. Reheat it on the stovetop. It keeps very well.

Can it be frozen?

I would not recommend freezing this chowder, it will split.

Salmon chowder in a white plate.

Did you make this recipe? RATE THE RECIPE or tell me in the COMMENTS how you liked it! You can also add a photo of your dish. It would make me very happy and will help other readers. Thank you!!

Salmon Chowder

This salmon chowder is a delicious thick soup filled with tender chunks of salmon, carrots, potatoes, corn and topped with crunchy bacon and fresh dill. This chowder is so delicious it’s hard to stop eating it! It’s healthy, nutritious, and filling.
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Salmon chowder in a white plate.
Print Recipe

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5 from 1 vote
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Servings 6 servings
Calories 424kcal
Author Aleksandra

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon frying oil
  • 7 slices bacon
  • 1 large onion
  • 2 celery stalks
  • 2 large carrots
  • 5 cloves garlic
  • 2 tablespoons flour
  • 1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
  • 5 cups chicken broth
  • 1 cup milk
  • 2 lbs (900g) starchy potatoes such as russets
  • 1 14-oz can corn (400ml)
  • 1 ½ lbs (700g) salmon
  • ¼ cup heavy cream
  • 2 teaspoons lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons chopped dill
  • salt and pepper to taste

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Instructions

  • Cut the bacon and carrots into 1/2-inch (1.5 cm) cubes, cut the celery into slices, dice the onion, finely chop dill and garlic.
  • Cut the potatoes and salmon into 1-inch (2.5 cm) cubes.
  • Heat the frying oil over medium heat in a large pot and add bacon. Cook for a couple of minutes until fat renders from the bacon and it’s crispy. Transfer bacon to a plate.
  • Add the onions, celery, and carrots. Cook, stirring from time to time, for 5 minutes, until softened.
  • Add the garlic and Old Bay seasoning, cook for 30 seconds. Stir in the flour and cook for a minute.
  • Add the broth and milk. Bring to a boil, simmer for 10 minutes.
  • Add the potatoes, bring the soup to a boil, simmer for 8 minutes.
  • Add drained corn and salmon, simmer for 3 minutes or until the fish is cooked through (you can take out a piece of fish onto a plate and cut it in half to see if it changed its color from dark pink to light pink).
  • Take the pot off the heat, add the cream, season the chowder with salt, pepper, and lemon juice, stir in chopped dill.
  • Pour the soup into bowls, crumble with cooked bacon and sprinkle with more dill.
  • Enjoy!

Notes

  • You can use other fish than salmon for this recipe. Use firm-fleshed white fish such as cod or halibut. You can also add shrimp.
  • Old Bay seasoning is optional but it adds lots of flavor to this chowder.
  • The most important part of this recipe: don’t overcook the fish! I can not stress this enough – small pieces of salmon will cook really quickly. If cooked for too long, it will be tough and rubbery. Make sure to add the fish to water that is only gently simmering and does not cook rapidly.
  • How to serve it: This soup is pretty perfect as it but you may want to serve it with oyster crackers, a crunchy baguette or a piece of crusty bread on the side.
  • Calories: 1 serving (1/6 of the recipe). This is only an estimate!
Course Main Course, Soup
Cuisine American
Tried this Recipe? Rate the Recipe and tell us what you think in the Comments!

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4 Comments

  • Reply
    JENNIFER BATTEN
    12 December 2021 at 10:01

    5 stars
    So healthy and colourful. Used fresh corn cobs.

    • Reply
      Aleksandra
      12 December 2021 at 10:11

      I’m glad you liked it, thank you for letting me know!

      • Reply
        JENNIFER BATTEN
        13 December 2021 at 11:16

        The others asked me 3 times what we were having as they loved the smell as it was progressing. Your recipes are just lovely. Just properly freshly prepared food. Well done.

        • Reply
          Aleksandra
          13 December 2021 at 12:37

          Thank you so much, Jennifer!

    5 from 1 vote

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