Ham & Potato Chowder
This ham and potato chowder is one of the most comforting soups to make during the winter months. This traditional and homey soup takes little work to prepare and has pieces of ham, cheese, and of course, potatoes. Together, they form a delicious, hot meal for any cold day of the year. Make it once, and you’ll want it again and again!
Servings 8 servings
Calories 446kcal
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 medium onion diced
- 3 ribs celery diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 ½ tsp kosher salt
- ¾ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 2 cups chopped carrots
- 1 ½ lb red potatoes diced
- 1 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1 stem fresh rosemary
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ½ lb ham diced
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
Instructions
- In a 6-quart stockpot, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Once the butter is melted, add the celery and onion. Sauté the onion and celery until they are softened but not brown, 4-6 minutes. Once the mixture is softened, add the garlic, salt, and black pepper. Stir to combine and cook the garlic for 1 minute.
- Once the garlic is cooked, add the red potatoes, carrots, thyme, rosemary, and chicken stock. Stir, and bring the soup to a boil. Once the soup is boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer. Cover and simmer the soup until the potatoes are soft, 35-45 minutes.
- Once the potatoes are softened, remove the rosemary and thyme. Then remove 1 ½ cups of the potatoes, vegetables, and stock, blend it until it is smooth, and return the liquid to the soup. Add the heavy cream, diced ham, and cheese. Stir and simmer for 10 minutes to allow the ham to heat and the cheese to melt. Once the soup has simmered, the potatoes will break down into the soup, and the blended portion will have thickened the soup slightly.
Notes
- Cooking garlic slightly to reduce the raw flavor that’s implicit in garlic is very important. However, make sure not to cook the garlic for too long, as garlic can burn quickly. Cooking for about 30 seconds to one minute should be the correct length of time necessary.
- If you have any leftover mashed potatoes or ham from the holidays, this is the perfect recipe to use them up! Simply add the mashed potatoes as an additional thickening agent and slice up any leftover ham into bite-size pieces.
- Do not worry if some carrots or celery end up being blended with the potatoes. This may slightly affect the soup's color but will not affect the resulting texture.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 446kcal
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