I love creamy seafood chowders, but being lactose intolerant, I am loath to order chowder in a restaurant lest I wish to inflict great gastrointestinal distress upon my person. Last night I excavated a recipe for salmon chowder that I had tried only once before, some years ago back in my Minnesota days.
This was originally from Better Homes and Gardens New Diabetic Cookbook, of all places. One fabulous thing about this recipe is that because Yobo has type 2 diabetes and I am lactose intolerant, this chowder suits both of us, since I substitute lactose-free milk for the milk. But don’t let the whole diabetes thing deter you if you don’t have diabetes, because this dish is as flavorful as it is health-conscious.
Like the “Savory Seafood Stew,” it requires a bit of prep work — namely shredding and chopping veggies — so if you have a food processor or chopping apparatus of some kind, I recommend making use of it, or at the very least enlisting a helper, to save time. The cookbook says that the total time for this recipe, from start to finish, is 45 minutes, but if you’re a little slow like me, allow a good hour or a few minutes more, to be safe.
One thing that would be a great time-saver that I have been unsuccessful in locating in my local grocery stores is bagged shredded carrots. Since I can’t find them here, however, I went the old-fashioned route and shredded my own, although in the end I gave up and sent a few chopped pieces through the food processor once I got tired of shredding.
A few other notes: I mostly stuck to the recipe, but if you aren’t on a reduced-sodium diet, then I would strongly suggest bumping up the salt just a little bit to enhance the flavor — it’s just as good to add salt to taste after you dish it up. I used the fresh salmon fillets instead of the canned option, olive oil for the cooking oil, sweet yellow onion, organic free-range chicken broth, and sea salt.
Serving tip: This goes wonderfully with some warm homemade cornbread on the side. (Hat tip to Paula!)
kimchi on a stick 