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This creamy salmon chowder is chock full of flavour and won’t leave you hungry! Loaded with salmon, fresh corn and potatoes, this soup is delicious and satisfying. Sound intimidating? It’s actually a breeze to make and takes only 40 minutes!
If you are a soup lover, take a look at our Soup Recipe Collection for ideas and inspiration!
How many soup recipes do you know? Is it enough or would you like to add another one to your repertoire? I don’t know about you but my kids get a lot more excited about soup when it’s creamy and chunky. And they are thrilled when salmon is in the ingredient list!
This fish chowder is a huge hit in my house, which is absolutely perfect for chilly days and casual, no fuss dinners.
Fish Chowder Flavours
I grew up eating a similar fish soup, which was always made with salmon. It wasn’t creamy though but it was still my favourite as a child.
A chowder by definition is a rich creamy soup which could easily pass for a stew because it’s so thick and chunky. It’s traditionally made with fish or seafood like clams along with corn and potatoes. There are also non-seafood varieties such as corn and potato and sausage chowders.
I followed the classic recipe with the exception of omitting the bacon. The chowder is already rich enough in my opinion. I also wanted the flavour of the salmon to shine without being obscured by the smoky bacon.
As usual, I added a few touches of my own. Without them, why share another fish chowder when the internet is already full of them?!
Salmon is such a great fish to use in soups as its firm flesh holds up well and doesn’t fall apart into flakes. Not to mention, the delicious flavour it imparts.
Salmon is not the only ingredient that makes this soup exceptional. Fresh corn is another favourite. To make the broth particularly lovely, I infused the fish stock with the corn cobs. I also flavoured the vegetable base of the chowder with fresh tarragon.
I find tarragon goes very well with fish. Once I tried it in my Tuna Noodle Casserole, I fell in love with its slightly sweet and mildly liquorice aroma. You can also use dried tarragon if fresh is not available.
Recipe Tips and Notes
- I have used fresh corn on the cob in my recipe for more flavour. However, you can use frozen corn instead if you are not able to source fresh ears of corn.
- You can substitute salmon with other firm fleshed fish like cod or halibut.
- I used fresh tarragon and a bay leaf to flavour my soup, however you can use thyme if tarragon is not your preference.
- Do follow my timings for the potatoes and salmon. You want the potatoes to be fully cooked but not fall apart in your soup. The same goes for salmon, which should be tender but not disintegrating. Since we are cutting it into smaller pieces, 10 minutes is more than enough for cooking it.
- I have thickened my soup with the flour and butter mix but feel free to use cornstarch for a gluten-free version.
- It’s okay to add light cream instead of heavy cream for a lower calorie soup. You can also use either coconut milk or soya single cream for a dairy free version.
- Serve this hearty soup with a piece of crusty bread like our Sourdough Bread or Garlic Butter Dinner Rolls.
Serving suggestions
A hearty soup doesn’t need a lot on the side to become a satisfying meal. In fact, I think that all you really need is a chunk of white bread or sourdough to round things off. Corn muffins are also amazing with a creamy soup!
But if you feel the need to ratchet things up, then I recommend garlic bread, easy to make in your oven or This is an affiliate link.air fryer.
I also like to add a pinch of fresh black pepper.
Storage and leftovers
This isn’t a soup to big-batch and freeze. Potatoes tend not to freeze well and can become grainy when thawed, and cream can separate.
It’s best to eat this one on the day when it’s come straight from the stovetop hot and steaming to the table. Leftovers can be refrigerated and used in 2-3 days.
More Creamy Soup Recipes
- Cream of Broccoli Soup
- Easy Kielbasa Potato Soup
- Chicken Bacon Gnocchi Soup
- Wild Rice and Mushroom Soup
Salmon Chowder
Equipment
- This is an affiliate link.Soup pot
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 onion , chopped
- 2 stalks celery, sliced
- 2 carrots, sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 sprigs fresh tarragon or 1/2 tsp dried tarragon, leaves only
- 2 tbsp flour
- 1 This is an affiliate link.bay leaf
- 1½ litre/6 cups fish stock or chicken stock
- 2 potatoes, medium, chopped
- 2 corn cobs, for flavour only, to be discarded later
- 500g/1 lb salmon fillet, cut into bite-sized pieces
- 250g/1½ cups fresh corn, cut off 2 ears of corn
- 250ml/1 cup double/heavy cream
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Chop the onions and celery and slice the carrots into rounds. Cut the corn kernels off the cob and set aside, reserve the cobs.
- In a soup pot, melt 2 tbsp of butter and sauté the chopped onions, celery and carrots for 5 minutes, then add pressed garlic and chopped tarragon and cook for 30 seconds longer, then sprinkle the flour all over and mix in to combine.
- Add the fish stock, a bay leaf, chunks of potatoes and the corn cobs, from which you cut off the corn kernels earlier. Bring to a boil and let everything simmer over medium heat for 10 minutes, remove the corn cobs with tongs and discard.
- Add the fresh salmon pieces, the corn kernels and let them cook for 10 minutes. Then stir in the heavy cream. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.
Notes
- I used fresh corn on the cob in my recipe for more flavour. However, you can use frozen corn instead if you are not able to source fresh ears of corn.
- You can substitute salmon with other firm fleshed fish such as cod or halibut.
- I used fresh tarragon and a bay leaf to flavour my soup, however you can use thyme if tarragon is not your preference.
- Do follow my timings for the potatoes and salmon. You want the potatoes to be fully cooked but not fall apart in your soup. The same goes for salmon. Since we are cutting it into smaller pieces, 10 minutes is more than enough for cooking it.
- I have thickened my soup with the flour and butter mix but feel free to use cornstarch for a gluten-free version.
- It’s okay to add light cream instead of heavy cream for a lower calorie soup. You can also use either coconut milk or soya single cream for a dairy free version.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I loved this. It has a lot of flavor. I was surprised by how comforting and flavorful it was. I did not miss the bacon at all. I used frozen corn, because it’s what I had. Also, I didn’t have tarragon, so I used thyme and fresh parsley as garnish. Even my picky eater finished her bowl. I will make this again.
Thank you so much for your review!
Easter Friday I tried this recipe. Easy to make smaller quantity; that’s not the case with many recipes. Definitely needs some herbs, don’t avoid them. I used salmon and barramundi, I added dill and chives and loads of pepper at the end. Also used less cream and it was very tasty. During lockdown, my favourite cafe made something very similar for take away meals. How did it measure up? Needs a little more flour, veggies cooked longer and it will be perfect match. Sorry E&G, I can make my own. Definitely will be making again. And best, it’s a no brain, simple to follow recipe without taking hours. Thank you.
So glad you enjoyed, Robyn!
This soup was delicious! I used baked salmon leftover from night before and it was so tasty!
Thank you for your review, Kim!
This was great! Swapped the flour/cream for cornstarch and coconut milk to make it gluten free/dairy free and it worked great!
I am so pleased you were able to adjust the recipe to suit your dietary requirements and still come out with something delicious. Thank you for sharing this with me, Brenda!
Needs more flavor, but I am not sure what to add. I tried this recipe because it didn’t have bacon, but there needs to be a flavor to make up for no bacon. It is not very thick; if I make it again, I would add more flour.
I purposefully excluded bacon as I wanted my salmon chowder to taste like salmon and not bacon, which tends to overpower everything. If a soup with 14 ingredients lacks flavour, I have a questions to ask. Have you followed the directions as written? Every dish is not just a sum of its ingredients. Cooking is not only following a formula. More often than not a cooking skill is also important.
Well said, Julia!
You might need to add salt, usually that’s what makes things seem like they don’t have enough flavor