Follow this quick and simple recipe from Sian's Plan for a delicious, healthy meal: Irish Fish Chowder. 

While some of you may root Fish Chowder firmly in New England, for m,e there is nothing more Irish than sitting in the pub with a big bowl of seafood chowder or fish soup after a long rambling walk along a windswept Irish beach.

It goes without saying that it should be served with soda bread and a pint of Guinness!

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Here’s my quick homemade version. This is made with natural yogurt as a much healthier option. If you must use cream, keep it for special occasions.  

A tip is to always keep small bags of frozen seafood in your freezer (available at supermarkets and containing a variety of seafood). Then you can rustle up a taste of home in half an hour, even if the only rambling walk you’ve done is up the three blocks from the subway. 

Irish Fish Chowder recipe

Total Time: 35min

  • Cook Time: 25min
  • Prep Time: 10min

Ingredients:

  • 1 tbsp Olive oil
  • 100 g Bacon lardons
  • 1 Onion (Finely Chopped)
  • 650 mls Fish Stock
  • 4 Waxy Potatoes (Peel and chop into 2cm dices)
  • 400 g Fish (salmon, cod, prawns, shellfish)
  • 4 tsp Parsley (Use fresh if you prefer)
  • 250 mls Natural Yogurt (or Cream for special occasions)
  • 1 Pinch Seasoning

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Method:

Heat the oil in a frying pan.

Fry lardons for 3 minutes.

Add the onions and cook until light golden.

Add stock and potatoes, which have been cut into 2cm pieces, and bring to a boil.

Reduce the heat and cook the potatoes until soft.

While the potatoes are cooking, trim, skin, and bone the fish and cut it into small pieces. Add the herbs to the pot and cook gently for 10 minutes, until the fish is cooked.

Reduce by boiling rapidly for a few minutes if the liquid is very thin.

Add the natural yogurt while the pot is off the heat.

Return to heat, but do not boil.

Taste and season as necessary.

To balance the meal, serve with soda bread and a big bowl of vegetables. (Guinness optional) 

Visit Sian's Plan for more quick, simple, and healthy recipes. 

*Originally published in May 2014, last updated in January 2026.

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