A creamy, generous pub-style soup brimming with fresh and smoked fish, shellfish, leeks and potato in a milk-and-cream base. Found in every harbour town along the Wild Atlantic Way, it is almost always served with a hunk of brown soda bread.
A modern Irish pub classic of the Atlantic coast; the Kinsale Good Food Circle in Cork holds an annual chowder festival, and the dish typically combines fresh white fish, salmon and smoked haddock (IrishCentral; All Ireland Chowder Festival, Kinsale).
Rich and velvety, each spoonful delivers tender flakes of fish alongside a quiet smokiness from the haddock that lingers underneath the cream. Sweet leeks and soft potato give body, while parsley and dill brighten the finish. Mopped up with soda bread, it tastes of the cold Atlantic in the best way.
A gentle simmer poaches the delicate fish just to flaking without toughening it, and adding the seafood late keeps it from overcooking. The starch released by the potato lightly thickens the broth, while never boiling the cream prevents it from splitting.
Variations
Made with mussels, prawns and clams, finished with a splash of white wine, or with crispy bacon scattered on top
On the Palate
Where Irish Seafood Chowder sits in the Irish flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 4
How it's made
8 steps · 30 min active
- 16 min
Sweat sliced leeks and diced onion in butter until soft but not coloured.
- 22 min
Add diced potato and stir to coat in the butter.
- 310 min
Pour in fish stock and simmer until the potato is almost tender.
- 44 min
Cut the white fish, salmon and smoked haddock into chunks.
- 55 min
Add the fish and any shellfish to the pot and simmer gently.
- 64 min
Pour in the cream and milk and warm through without boiling hard.
- 72 min
Season with salt, pepper and a little fresh parsley and dill.
- 82 min
Ladle into bowls and serve with brown soda bread.
