Salmon and corn chowder
Jan 22nd, 2009 by Amy
I got my copy of the newly released cookbook, Eating Close to Home, in the mail over the weekend and was eager to try a recipe. I spotted this recipe for salmon and corn chowder right away because it had corn, which we have a lot of. It also fits in perfectly with the Dark Days Challenge - all vegetables (except for the corn) were purchased from our CSA or Eugene Local Foods and the salmon was caught in the Northwest.
A little about the cookbook… Eating Close to Home was written by local author and kitchen gardener, Elin England. It is organized by season and has recipes for standard vegetables like carrots and potatoes and recipes for more unusual vegetables like celeriac and turnips. I liked the book right away because I could tell that the recipes were used many times for family meals and they weren’t just developed to write a cookbook. I also appreciate it’s simplicity - the recipes have fairly standard ingredients and would be easy to make on a weeknight. It is a great investment for CSA subscribers and local food enthusiasts in the Northwest. You can buy it online here or at the Willamette Farm and Food Coalition stand at the Good Earth Home Show this weekend.
I am not usually a chowder fan, but this recipe is not the typical pasty, heavy chowder. It has a more broth-like consistency, lightly sweetened by the corn.
Salmon and corn chowder, adapted from Eating Close to Home
Makes about 6 servings
Ingredients
6 Tbsp butter or olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
2 carrots, diced
3 cloves garlic
3-4 sprigs thyme
3 potatoes, chopped
2 cups frozen corn
3 cups stock (fish, chicken, and/or turkey)
1 lb smoked salmon, cut into 1 inch pieces
2-1/2 cups milk
Melt butter in dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion, celery, carrots, garlic, and thyme and saute for 6-8 minutes. Stir in potatoes and broth. Cover and cook until potatoes are cooked, about 15 minutes. Add the corn and salmon and heat thoroughly, about 5 minutes. Add milk and cook until heated. Season with salt and pepper and serve.
Even though I am not in the northwest, I am interesting in looking at that book - many of the ideas on seasonality could be transferred to the northeast, I’m sure. And the idea that more and more is being written on the local life makes me excited - the more resources and knowledge we have, the more this becomes feasible for more and more people to one degree or another.
This looks amazing! I wish I’d had that book a week ago when I cooked up some salmon and ended up with too much!
Mangochild- The recipes are very applicable to other regions. The seasons and some of the ingredients may be slightly different, but it wouldn’t be difficult to adjust.
Donna - This recipe was really, really good - especially with our corn from Riverbend/Pleasant Hill Farm. Her corn is sooooo good.
Hi,
This is a very delicious recipe. At first we thought of cooking the recipe at my friends house, later we cooked in our home. too awesome.
Thanks Amy,
Robert.
Robert- I am glad you enjoyed the recipe. It is really good. Did you use smoked salmon or fresh salmon?
[...] healthy, nutritious food on the table without a lot of fuss. One of my favorites so far is the Salmon and Corn Chowder recipe made with frozen corn from last year. I have made it for friends and family - always to [...]
[...] Eating Close to Home a few months ago when it was first published. The first recipe we tried was Salmon and Corn Chowder and we were hooked. Now we want to share the book with one of our [...]
Just made this and it was fantastic! I altered it in the following ways:
1) used a can of corn instead of frozen, and used the drained liquid plus water to make the chicken broth with Better than Bouillon;
2) used fresh salmon instead of smoked, sitting two large (pinbones removed) pieces on top of the soup and pushing them down into it, then peeling off and removing the skin after the fish was cooked;
3) omitted milk altogether, because my husband is lactose intolerant;
4) added cracked pepper. YUM!
Recipe made enough for four large bowls.