Shrimp & Fennel Chowder

*Post by Angela.

Sometimes my food cravings make me feel like a crazy person. Despite the ridiculous heat wave this weekend, I found myself craving soup. And not just any soup, but a substantial one, something that I'd be more likely to eat in the dead of winter. As I happened to have some shrimp on hand, I decided on this chowder recipe from Epicurious. Despite the fact that this is, in fact, a hearty chowder, it has a surprising delicateness and subtlety - the fennel adds just a wisp of sweetness and anise flavor, and while the soup really showcases the shrimp, it's not overwhelming. And with the addition of some extra bacon, I think it's good enough to maybe even win over some non-shrimp lovers.

List of ingredients for the chowder:

• 2 lbs shrimp, peel on
• 1 small fennel bulb, tops and fronds included
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 6 cloves garlic, 3 crushed, 3 minced
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 2 cups + 2 tbsp water
• 2 cups chicken broth
• Kosher salt
• 12 oz bacon, cut into 3" pieces
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1/4 tsp fennel seeds, chopped
• 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 1/2 lbs Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled, quartered and cut into 1/4" slices
• 2 tbsp corn starch
• 1 14 oz can whole peeled tomatoes with their juices, coarsely chopped
• 1 1/4 cup heavy cream
• Freshly ground black pepper

First, I peeled the shrimp, reserving the shells, and chopped them into 1/2" pieces. It took me a little while (I can have clumsy fingers sometimes), but I just turned the tv to USA, watched a little Psych, and got into a rhythm.

Next, I stripped some fennel fronds, coarsely chopped them, and reserved them for garnish. I snapped off the stalks and tough outer layers and coarsely chopped them for the stock.

I heated 2 tbsp of the olive oil over medium heat, and added the 3 crushed garlic cloves, sauteeing for about 1 minute, until the garlic started to brown. I added the shrimp shells and cooked an additional 3-4 minutes, until the shells were red and aromatic.

I added the chopped fennel stalks/outer layers, wine, 2 cups of the water and the chicken broth, and simmered for 20 minutes. I strained the stock, tossing out all the shells and whatnot, seasoned it with the tiniest bit of salt, and set it aside (I ended up with about 3 1/2 cups). I'm not used to using shrimp shells to flavor stock, but it turned out so lovely this time, I'm going to try to do it more in the future.

I added the bacon (which, in the spirit of honesty, I tripled) to a large pot and heated over low heat, until it had rendered a couple of tbsp fat. I increased the heat to medium high, cooking until the bacon was crispy, then drained all but 1 tbsp of the fat (leaving the bacon in the pot).

I added the remaining 1 tbsp olive oil and the 3 tbsp minced garlic, cooking for about 30 seconds. Then I added the onion, fennel, fennel seeds, crushed red pepper. I cooked for about 10 minutes, until the onion and fennel were soft and translucent.

I added the potato and reserved stock (the stock should cover the potatoes; if it doesn't, add a little more chicken broth or water) and brought the whole thing to a boil. I covered the pot and cooked about 8 minutes. In the meantime, I added 2 tbsp of water to the 2 tbsp of corn starch to create a slurry, then added it into the chowder. I cooked an additional 2 minutes, until the liquid had thickened slightly, and used my spoon to slightly break up and mash the potato slices.

I added the tomatoes in their juices and cooked for 5 more minutes. I added the shrimp, cooked  just one more minute, then took the pot off the heat. At this point, the shrimp weren't quite cooked through, but don't let that make you nervous, they'll keep cooking from the heat of the cooking liquid. It's SO important to make sure you don't overcook the shrimp. Overcooked, tough shrimp make me sad.

I stirred in the cream, seasoned with salt and pepper to taste, and let the pot sit about 10 more minutes (letting the shrimp finish slow-cooking).

To finish it off, I ladled the chowder into a bowl, garnished with the chopped fennel fronds, cranked up the air conditioning and dived in with a few slices of crusty French bread. This makes A LOT of food, but that was a very good thing for me, as I was starving and couldn't get enough of this fantastic chowder. Even if you are saner than I and don't crave soups/stews in the middle of a blazing summer, you should definitely save this recipe for cooler weather.

Comments

[@hawaii2DCdee]

Wow! Fantastic work. Despite this blazing nonsense of a summer I have found myself wanting pho which far less appropriate for summer than chowder. I will be trying this for sure.

[Angela]

Thanks! I am totally on board with the pho-craving. I've been eating all sorts of noodle soups this summer, and then curse myself while lying around in a pool of sweat with a too-full stomach.

[W. Mark Felt]

Yes, chowda please! I'm with you - totally craving soup right about now (and wearing a hoodie, but that's another matter).

[Angela]

It makes me crazy. I sit there with my bowl of soup, SWEATING through every pore in my body, but I just can't stop. Luckily it's a little cooler now, which I'm going to take advantage of.