 | Bonnie Aeschliman is a certified culinary professional who owns Cooking at Bonnie’s Place in Wichita. For more information, call 316-425-5224 or visit cookingatbonnies.com. To submit a question to Bonnie, e-mail her at bonnie@cookingatbonnies.com. |
Cooking & Cuisine
2013-01-02 14:02:54
Are chowders and bisques...soups?
Q-When I read soup recipes, some of them are called soup, some are called chowder and some are called bisque. Are these all different names for soup? If not, how do they differ?
A-Chowders and bisques are specific kinds of soup. Traditionally, bisque was made of shellfish. However, today bisque refers to a creamy soup and does not necessarily contain shellfish. Lobster bisque would have shellfish as its base; however, a tomato bisque would be a creamy soup made with a base of pureed tomatoes and other ingredients.
A chowder is a hearty soup with chunks of the main ingredients; it often contains diced potatoes and milk or cream. Chowders are always chunky, never pureed or strained.
Q: Do you have a good soup recipe that is quick to make and hearty enough to serve as the main part a meal? If so, could you share that with us?
A: Here is one of the favorites from a cooking class—Sausage Corn Chowder. It is hearty and very comforting on a blustery winter day and will make a delightful lunch or a comforting supper, especially when served with a wedge of corn bread. It can be made in thirty minutes--and don't worry about leftovers; this soup is great warmed up a day or two later. Sometimes I double the recipe and freeze part for later use.
Sausage Corn Chowder Serves 6
1/2 pound bulk pork sausage (I like Jimmie Dean’s regular or hot)
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 14-ounce can chicken broth
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2cup heavy cream or half-and-half
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
3/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
2 cups frozen corn kernels
1 (15 ounce) can cream style corn
1/2 cup diced red bell pepper
2 to 4 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
Garnish: Shredded Cheddar Cheese
Chopped fresh parsley
1. Brown sausage, onion, bell pepper and garlic in a large heavy pan. Stir and break up sausage and continue to cook until sausage is browned.
2. Add flour, and cook, stirring constantly, about 1 minute. Stir in chicken broth, milk, cream, salt, cumin, and pepper and continue to cook and stir over medium heat until mixture comes to a boil.
3. Stir in frozen corn, cream corn and red bell pepper. Cook chowder over medium heat, stirring frequently, 10 to 20 minutes or until thoroughly heated and thickened. Stir in cilantro. Garnish with a sprinkling of cheese and chopped fresh parsley
