Quick coconut red curry seafood chowder

A slow start to summer means soup is still a good dinner or lunch option. Try this seafood chowder with an Asian twist. 

Over the winter, we started making soup almost every week. We doubled recipes and used leftovers for lunch. It was amazing how happily the lunch boxes was transformed by little Hello Kitty thermoses filled with leftover soup.  So, we all got hooked. 

The green leaves are heavy on the trees, spring flowers have come and gone and school is out. Summer is finally taking hold in Chicago. I’ve dusted off the old popsicle molds and have been tending to my summer veggie garden in the backyard. However, like last year, this June has brought us a fair share of rain and I’m finding that I can’t quite let go of my soup habit.

I’ve been experimenting with lighter soups and have already eyed some fresh corn chowder recipes. A quick search for cold soups on Pinterest reminded me that soup doesn’t have to be isolated as a seasonal choice.

Often my recipe ideas come from a desire to use one odd ingredient. I’ve had a bottle of red curry blend for some time and created this recipe to use it once and for all. You can find red curry in specialty Asian stores or Spice Island’s makes a version that will likely be in most grocery aisles. Red curry can vary in spicy heat so start with a little and add to your desired fiery flavor. The seafood mix I used was frozen from Trader Joe’s – easy!

Do you have a favorite summer soup recipe? Let’s make this the summer of soups.

Quick coconut red curry seafood chowder
Makes 4-6 servings

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small yellow onion, diced
2 cups clam juice or vegetable broth
1 small sweet potato, in 1/2 inch cubes
1/2 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels
1 can light coconut milk
1 teaspoon red curry powder
2 cups seafood mix (shrimp, scallops, calamari OR shrimp only)
3 tablespoons chopped, fresh cilantro
Salt to taste

1. Heat the olive oil in a soup pan. Add the onion and stir for a few minutes until translucent.

2. Add the clam juice or broth, and sweet potato. Heat until simmering, cover and cook for about 10 minutes or until the potatoes are tender.

3. Add the corn, coconut milk, curry powder and seafood mix. Return to a simmer and cook for another 3 minutes. Add salt to taste.

4. Turn off heat and stir in fresh cilantro.

See related post on Whipped The Blog: Chicken corn chowder