Photo #331: Seafood Chowder

While almost everyone else in the United States was eating leftover turkey on the the day after Thanksgiving, I decided to make some Seafood Chowder. This involved a trip to The Waterfront Seafood Market. It's so nice that we have one in Ankeny now. It saves the time that it would take to drive to West Des Moines, and it's the best place to get fresh fish. This made a nice meal for Lisa, Colin and I before we headed out to the movies. This time I made the chowder without the bacon. Instead I sauted the onion in butter. I do think that the bacon adds some nice flavor, however.




Here's the recipe:

Seafood Chowder

3 slices of bacon, diced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups of cubed peeled potatoes
1 cup of water
1/4 pound of bay or sea scallops, quartered
1/4 pound of fresh or frozen lobster or crab, cut into 1 inch pieces
1/2 pound uncooked medium shrimp
1 pound tilapia (or 1/2 pound cod, 1/2 pound haddock)
2 T butter, melted
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon minced fresh parsley (or 1/2 teaspoon dried)
3 cups of soy milk (original recipe called for 2 c milk, 1 12 oz can evaporated
milk, but I use soy milk whenever I can.)

In a large soup kettle or Dutch oven, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon to paper towels. Reserve drippings. Sauté onion in drippings until tender. Add potatoes and water. Bring to a boil. Cook for 10 minutes.

Add the scallops, lobster, shrimp and tilapia. Cook for 10 minutes or until scallops are opaque, fish flakes easily, and shrimp is pink. Add the butter, salt and parsley. Stir in the milk. Heat through. Garnish with bacon. Serves 6.