Advice about making a Chowder base

[irisblue]

A roux, 2 parts fat(in this case butter)to 1 part flour.
Or 1 to 1?

I have whipping cream that I can mix with half & half to thin it a bit if needs be as well as the last of my homemade chicken stock.

Today I'd like to make a triple batch, potato & corn tonight, let sit to merge the base flavors, then divvy the base into thirds.
Batch 1-potato-corn
Batch 2-clam-potato-corn
Batch 3-chicken shreds into potato corn chowder.

Freezing is the next question, for sure one of the batches will need to freeze; to reheat, fridge thaw add warm cream as batch reheats? I will remove the cut potatoes from the 3rd batch, as I find potatoes get too granular for my texture.

Advice welcomed

[msongs]

1. freeeze in ice cube trays and bag them up when frozen. keeps for a year

per google searching

[lillypaddle]

2. A roux is equal parts fat and flour

I've never made chowder, so as to the rest of your post

[PJMcK]

3. Chowders vary widely

As you know, this soup can have many different iterations caused by each cook's individuality. Like Mulligatawny soup, these variations are lots of fun!

I think for your roux, 2:1 or even 2-1/2:1 should give you the right consistency. I modestly suggest you use the chicken stock first if you need to thin the mixture; even with a dish like this, I try to be somewhat heart-healthy.

I'm afraid I don't know anything about freezing a chowder. Good luck!

On Ocracoke Island in the OBX, their chowder has a very thin broth. It's profoundly different from New England or Manhattan chowders. I had a seafood chowder at the defunct No-Name Restaurant on the post Boston piers that was so delicious, I went back three days in a row; it was different each time!

Hope yours turn out well, irisblue!

[irisblue]

7. So a side salad with vinegar & oil & low salt won't be heart healthy?

😂😂

[PJMcK]

9. I meant the half and half

(wink)

[alwaysinasnit]

4. If you want to experiment with chowder flavoring, I sometimes use concentrated lobster base.

https://www.betterthanbouillon.com/products/lobster-base/

[dweller]

5. As pointed out above, roux is 1 to 1

I’ve always used bottled clam juice in my chowders

✌🏻

[irisblue]

6. I have a can of clams for the soup. I was planning on cutting them into smaller pieces

Last edited Sat Jan 8, 2022, 08:00 PM - Edit history (1)

And adding the broth to taste.

[rsdsharp]

8. As noted by others, roux is 1:1.

However, there is another issue with roux. The longer you cook it, the darker and more flavorful it will become, but the thickening power will decline. So a blonde roux will thicken better (more) than a darker roux.

[dem in texas]

10. Baked Potato Chowder

I have a recipe that I made up and it has evolved over the years. I hate chowders that are thick as gravy, I like mine just a little bit thick. I used to make clam chowder, but one day I was out of clams and found that could make a chowder as good without the clams, I also found that day old baked potatoes work better in soups than raw or par-boiled potatoes.

I like to use milk in the chowder and right at the end , just before serving stir in a little heavy cream or Mexican crema. Gives a good "mouth" to the chowder.

I usually make at least a half gallon of soup or chowder so I will have some to freeze. I freeze it by the quart and it tastes just as good as the fresh made when heated up. Just don't add the cream before freezing, it should be a last minute thing.

Don't be afraid of the "roux", it is just flour cooked in a little bit of fat. I like to start with bacon and fry it up, drain on paper towels, might add it back to the chowder, but i want the bacon drippings for the fat in roux. When you make a soup or chowder, you are trying to build layers of flavor and the bacon drippings add more flavor to the chowder.

I love soup and chowders, could eat them every day, but my old boy wants heavier meals. I think my two best soups are baked potato chowder and split pea soup. I just made a chicken/rice soup this week, it wasn't too remarkable. but tasted fine in this cold weather.