Easy Smoked Fish Chowder

This smoked fish chowder is a simple classic that’s packed full of flavour and perfect for a nourishing weeknight dinner.

I love smoked food – be it cheese, bacon, fish or anything else. There’s something about the flavour which makes you feel as though you’re being given a big hug.

I’ve made a summer version of a chowder before (here). This particular dish is very different – it is a winter classic and there are variations of it all over the world. I suppose it used to be made as a cheap dish to stretch the smoked fish throughout the long, cold winter by bulking it out with potatoes. With the addition of a few exta ingredients – spinach and the classic sweetcorn – it is transformed into a delicious, warming dish to look forward to.

I remember eating a Scottish version of the dish once in Edinburgh – Cullen skink – it was very similar to this one but with no sweetcorn, and was the perfect tonic to warm me up on the bitterly cold day. I think I enjoyed it with a moreish mulled cider that day, but no such luck today!

The Ingredients

• Onion – use a large brown onion. You could also add a chopped leek at this stage of the cooking.
• Smoked bacon – a nice high quality smoked bacon will add so much flavour to your chowder. You can replace with a smoked pancetta.
• Baking potato – I specify a baking potato here because they are large – the perfect size for this recipe. You could switch for 2 ordinary white potatoes.
• Fish stock – or use water and a fish or vegetable stock cube.
• Milk – to add a little creaminess to the broth. When you’ve added your milk, be careful not to bring the chowder to the boil or the milk will split.
• Smoked haddock – I use haddock but you can use smoked cod, trout or basa – or a combination of them. Just make sure that they are boneless – you don’t want to be finding fish bones in your soup.
• Sweetcorn and spinach – these vegetables bring freshness and sweetness to that deep, smoky broth.

Easy Smoked Fish Chowder

Harriet Young

April 30, 2025

A creamy, smoky chowder made with smoked haddock and bacon, with potatoes, sweetcorn and spinach

5

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Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 35 minutes mins

Total Time 40 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine British

Servings 4 people

Calories 341 kcal

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

 

1x2x3x

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 onion
• 4 rashers smoked bacon
• 1 baking potato
• 1 litre fish stock
• 300 ml milk
• 250 grams skinless boneless smoked haddock
• 325 grams tin of sweetcorn
• 100 grams spinach

Instructions

 

• Chop the onion and add to a large saucepan with the olive oil. Cook over a medium heat for 2 minutes, then add the chopped bacon. Cook until the bacon is starting to brown.
• Peel the potato and chop into 1 inch chunks. Add to the saucepan along with the stock and milk. Simmer with a lid on for about 10 minutes, until the potatoes are soft (make sure it doesn’t boil).
• Chop the fish into chunks the same size as the potato chunks. Add the fish and the sweetcorn to the saucepan and simmer for a further 5-10 minutes, until the fish has turned opaque.
• Add the spinach and cook until it is wilted. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Serve with some nice, warm bread on the side.

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 341kcalCarbohydrates: 32gProtein: 17gFat: 17gSaturated Fat: 6gPolyunsaturated Fat: 3gMonounsaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0.04gCholesterol: 56mgSodium: 246mgPotassium: 866mgFiber: 3gSugar: 10gVitamin A: 2642IUVitamin C: 18mgCalcium: 140mgIron: 2mg

Keyword chowder

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More smoked fish recipes:

• Smoked Salmon, Roasted Beetroot and Watercress Smörgåsbord
• Salmon and Beetroot Flatbreads
• Lightly Smoked Salmon Fillets with Crushed New Potatoes and Mustard Cabbage