Chowder Recipes | Taste of Home (2024)

FAQs

What thickens chowder? ›

Add Flour Or Cornstarch

You can thicken soup by adding flour, cornstarch, or another starchy substitute. For the best results, never add flour or cornstarch directly to your soup. If you do, it will clump up on top. Instead, ladle a small amount of broth into a separate bowl and let it cool.

Chowder is a hearty meal made with milk or cream and usually with a Salt pork,bacon,or other base for flavor along with potatoes. Corn is a popular ingredient to add too. You can add almost any protein you can think of but most tend to be made with Seafood.

Texture: The key difference between bisques and chowders is in the final texture—bisques are a smooth, silky seafood soup, while chowders are chunky and toothsome with chunks of potatoes, meat, or vegetables.

Sauté onions, celery, and potatoes in butter before adding to the soup. Add thyme and bay leaves for added aroma and flavor. Simmer the soup for a longer time to allow the flavors to meld together. Finish with a splash of sherry or white wine for added complexity.

The most classic and surefire way to thicken a broth-based soup is with a cornstarch slurry. Whisk together equal parts cornstarch (or arrowroot) and water or broth, then whisk it into the pot of soup. A good ratio to get to a pleasant thickness without your soup tasting goopy or heavy is one tablespoon.

Cornstarch has twice the thickening power of flour. When a gravy, sauce, soup or stew recipe calls for flour, use half as much cornstarch to thicken. To thicken hot liquids, first mix cornstarch with a little cold water until smooth. Gradually stir into hot liquid until blended.

Customarily, chowder included onion, potatoes, and cream. Nowadays, not all chowders adhere to these guidelines.

Add acidity: A squeeze of lemon or lime juice, a dash of vinegar, or a splash of wine can brighten the flavors of a soup and make it taste more complex. Experiment with different cooking methods: Roasting or caramelizing vegetables before adding them to the soup can bring out thei.

New England clam chowder is perhaps the most popular and well-known iteration of the dish. It's a classic combination of clams, onions, corn, celery, bacon or salt pork, and potatoes.

Many regional variations exist, but the three most prevalent are New England or "white" clam chowder, which includes milk or cream, Manhattan or "red" clam chowder, which includes tomatoes, and Rhode Island or "clear" clam chowder, which omits both.

What makes a chowder not a soup? ›

The difference between chowder, soup, and stew is that chowder is a soup made with broth that is thickened with flour and cream, with seafood and/or vegetables mixed in. Soup is made with water or broth and can host a variety of ingredients like pasta, vegetables, fruits, grains, meats or seafood.

A chowder is typically chunky, filled with ingredients like potatoes, carrots and seafood in a thick liquid. The ingredients are often chopped into smaller pieces than you'd get with a stew. The word comes from the French word for cauldron (chaudron), which is the vessel fishermen used to cook their soup in.

The shortcut to making anything taste good is sizzling some onions and garlic in oil, and canned clam chowder is no exception. Sauteed alliums (onions, garlic, and other related vegetables) will add complexity, savoriness, and sweetness to your canned soup, lending it just a touch of homemade flavor.

Kirshtein tells Insider the key to his favorite Campbell's New England clam chowder: "I usually like to season it up with a splash of Worcestershire sauce, a bit of hot sauce, and a couple grinds of black pepper," he said.

You can start with 2 tablespoons of flour for every 1 cup of liquid as a general rule of thumb. To make a smooth paste, combine the flour with a small amount of cold liquid. Stir the paste gradually into the soup. To allow the flour to thicken the mixture, cook and stir it for a few minutes.

"Authentic New England chowders are never thick, however, with most relying on the starch from the potatoes to slightly thicken the broth and milk or cream," explains Charlie Burke, at the online magazine The Heart of New England.

Add flour or cornflour

Put a tablespoon of either into a small bowl and stir in 2-3 tbsp of the soup until you have a smooth mixture. Stir this back into the soup and bring it to a simmer. Cook for a few minutes to allow the starch granules to burst to thicken, and to cook out any flour flavour.

This clam chowder recipe should produce perfectly rich soup. If you'd like your chowder a little thicker, though, you can thicken it with a cornstarch slurry. Simply stir cornstarch into a small amount of cold water (or another liquid, such as wine or stock), then stir the mixture into the simmering chowder.