Miso Fish Chowder

Date Published: Sept 18th, 2025 | Last Updated: Sept 18th, 2025
Author: Abby | Category: soup, mains
Serves: 8 | Prep time: 20 mins | Cook time: 45 mins

This Miso Fish Chowder tastes just like a clam chowder, but is thinner, more brothy, made with fish instead of clams and not as heavy. It’s made with white miso for an umami punch and packs in a ton of flavour.

The original recipe is from NYT Cooking but I’ve made a few changes with addition of ingredients and also doubled the batch because this soup is just so damn good that it always disappears too quickly. My recipe will make enough to serve 8, but feel free to halve the recipe if you like, but this soup freezes incredibly well and is perfect for meal-prep days.

Although this recipe doesn’t have actual clams in it, it does use clam juice as one of its main ingredients. Clam juice is the broth that comes from steaming clams. While it doesn’t sound the most appetizing, it is important in this recipe to get that seafood/clam/umami flavour infused into the soup. There are a couple brands out there, but one of the most popular ones is by Bar Harbor. I found these bad boys at my local Whole Foods near the seafood section for about $4 per bottle.

Anyways, without further ado, here’s the recipe! If you have any comments or suggestions, I’d love to hear from you in the comment section! You can follow me on instagram, youtube and facebook to see all the recipes I post!

Happy cooking!

Ingredients you’ll need:

1kg (2 lbs) skinless white fish fillets (cod or barramundi work well), sliced to 3cm pieces
Pinch of salt
8 slices of bacon, diced
3 Tbsps unsalted butter
3 stalks of celery, diced
2 leeks, white part only, cleaned and sliced
Pinch of fresh ground black pepper
2/3 cup (200g) white/shiro miso
1.2kg (2.5 lbs) potatoes, peeled and cut into 2.5cm cubes
960ml (4x 8oz bottles) clam juice
4 cups water
2 sprigs of fresh thyme
1 cup heavy cream
5 scallions, sliced, white and green parts separated
1 can of whole sweet corn kernels, drained
Serve: oyster crackers or crusty bread

Directions:

Add a pinch of salt to both sides of the fish pieces and set aside until ready to use.

In a large soup pot on MED heat, add in the diced bacon and sauté until crispy (~5 minutes) then set aside onto a paper towel-lined plate.

In the same pot, using the residual bacon grease, add in 3 Tbsps butter and stir until melted. Add in the celery, leeks, pinch of salt and pinch of black pepper. Sauté until the celery has softened (~8 minutes).

Next add in the white miso paste and mix well until there are no clumps and sauté for 3 minutes to slightly caramelize the miso.

Add in the potatoes, clam juice, 4 cups water, and 2 sprigs thyme. Mix well, turn the heat on to HIGH to let the soup come to a boil, then turn the heat down to LOW and simmer until the potatoes are soft enough to break with a spoon (15 minutes).

Add in the 1 cup heavy cream and the white part of the sliced scallions. Let the soup come to a simmer then add in the fish pieces (from step 1). Continue to simmer until the fish is flakey and cooked (~5 minutes).

Stir in the corn kernels until heated through, then turn off the heat. Taste and adjust salt and pepper as needed.

To serve, ladle the soup into bowls and sprinkle on the cooked crispy bacon (from step 2) and the green part of the sliced scallions to garnish. Serve with oyster crackers or crusty bread. Enjoy!

Summarized Recipe:

Miso Fish Chowder

Date Published: Sept 18th, 2025 | Last Updated: Sept 18th, 2025
Author: Abby | Category: soup, mains
Serves: 8 | Prep time: 20 mins | Cook time: 45 mins

Ingredients:

1kg (2lbs) skinless white fish fillets (cod or barramundi work well), sliced to 3cm pieces
Pinch of salt
8 slices of bacon, diced
3 Tbsps unsalted butter
3 stalks of celery, diced
2 leeks, white part only, cleaned and sliced
Pinch of fresh ground black pepper
2/3 cup (200g) white/shiro miso
1.2kg (2.5 lbs) potatoes, peeled and cut into 2.5cm cubes
960ml (4x 8oz bottles) clam juice
4 cups water
2 sprigs of fresh thyme
1 cup heavy cream
5 scallions, sliced, white and green parts separated
1 can of whole sweet corn kernels, drained
Serve: oyster crackers or crusty bread

Directions:

Add a pinch of salt to both sides of the fish pieces and set aside until ready to use.
In a large soup pot on MED heat, add in the diced bacon and sauté until crispy (~5 minutes) then set aside onto a paper towel-lined plate.
In the same pot, using the residual bacon grease, add in 3 Tbsps butter and stir until melted. Add in the celery, leeks, pinch of salt and pinch of black pepper. Sauté until the celery has softened (~8 minutes).
Next add in the white miso paste and mix well until there are no clumps and sauté for 3 minutes to slightly caramelize the miso.
Add in the potatoes, clam juice, 4 cups water, and 2 sprigs thyme. Mix well, turn the heat on to HIGH to let the soup come to a boil, then turn the heat down to LOW and simmer until the potatoes are soft enough to break with a spoon (15 minutes).
Add in the 1 cup heavy cream and the white part of the sliced scallions. Let the soup come to a simmer then add in the fish pieces (from step 1). Continue to simmer until the fish is flakey and cooked (~5 minutes).
Stir in the corn kernels until heated through, then turn off the heat. Taste and adjust salt and pepper as needed.
To serve, ladle the soup into bowls and sprinkle on the cooked crispy bacon (from step 2) and the green part of the sliced scallions to garnish. Serve with oyster crackers or crusty bread. Enjoy!

September 18, 2025September 9, 2025

AbbyLeave a comment

Colcannon (Irish Kale Mashed Potatoes)

Date Published: Jan 1st, 2025 | Last Updated: Jan 1st, 2025
Author: Abby |Category: sides, vegetarian, easy
Serves: 8 (1 large bowl) | Prep time: 15 mins | Cook time: 40 mins

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Happy New Year everyone!!!!🥳 I hope everyone had a great 2024, if not, here’s to a better 2025! To kick off the new year, here’s a twist to an old staple.

Colcannon is a traditional Irish mashed potato dish that incorporates kale (or cabbage). It sounds weird, but trust me, it actually works. Think of the kale as an excuse to pile on that butter. 😉

I learned of this dish when I found myself with a large bunch of kale taking up half the space in the vegetable drawer and some potatoes threatening to sprout. A quick search of these ingredients led me to this dish and now this is my go-to mashed potato dish to serve at any occasional to make an interesting twist to a classic.

Happy cooking!

Ingredients you’ll need:

1kg Yukon gold potatoes, diced (peeled or unpeeled depending on how like it)
6 Tbsps (85g) unsalted butter
1 large bunch (~6-8 cups, semi-packed) of kale (curly or lacinato), stems removed and chopped small
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 spring onions, sliced
1/2 cup milk
Salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

Place the potatoes in a pot and add enough water to cover and a sprinkle of salt. Bring the heat up to HIGH to let the water come to a boil, then turn it down to MED and continue to simmer until the potatoes are fork-tender (~15-20 mins). Drain and set aside.

In a medium sized pot or deep pan on MED-HIGH heat, melt the butter and add in the kale. Sauté for a few minutes until the leaves are wilted. Add in the garlic and spring onions and continue to cook for another 2 minutes until fragrant and the spring onions have softened.

Add in the cooked potatoes (from step 1) and milk into the pan and mix it all together. Once everything is heated through, turn off the heat and mash the potatoes until smooth. Taste and adjust salt and pepper to your preference. Done!

Summarized Recipe:

Colcannon (Irish Kale Mashed Potatoes)

Ingredients:

1kg Yukon gold potatoes, diced (peeled or unpeeled depending on how like it)
6 Tbsps (85g) unsalted butter
1 large bunch (~6-8 cups, semi-packed) of kale (curly or lacinato), stems removed and chopped small
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 spring onions, sliced
1/2 cup milk
Salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

Place the potatoes in a pot and add enough water to cover and a sprinkle of salt. Bring the heat up to HIGH to let the water come to a boil, then turn it down to MED and continue to simmer until the potatoes are fork-tender (~15-20 mins). Drain and set aside.
In a medium sized pot or deep pan on MED-HIGH heat, melt the butter and add in the kale. Sauté for a few minutes until the leaves are wilted. Add in the garlic and spring onions and continue to cook for another 2 minutes until fragrant and the spring onions have softened.
Add in the cooked potatoes (from step 1) and milk into the pan and mix it all together. Once everything is heated through, turn off the heat and mash the potatoes until smooth. Taste and adjust salt and pepper to your preference. Done!
Melt 2 Tbsp of butter and drizzle on top with green onion garnish before serving.

January 1, 2025December 15, 2024

AbbyLeave a comment

Czech Potato Dumplings – Bramborové Knedlíky

Date Published: Feb 13th, 2024 | Last Updated: Feb 13th, 2024
Author: Abby |Category: Czech, sides, breads, vegetarian
Serves: 8-10 | Prep time: 1 hour | Cook time: 1.5 hours total (20-30mins per dumpling)

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What are Czech Dumplings or Knedlíky?

Knedlíky or dumplings are a staple side dish in Czech food. I see it as THE carb in a Czech meal. Similar to noodles in Asian food or pasta in Italian food, if there’s something rich, saucy, or soupy, you bet it’ll be served with a knedlíky.

There are a few different kinds of dumplings, but the two most common ones I’ve seen in Czech are the fluffy bread dumplings (houskové knedlíky) and the denser potato dumplings (bramborové knedlíky). The lighter bread dumplings are made with a yeast dough so it’s fluffy but still with a bit of structure and chew and best served with a saucy dish such as svičkova to soak up all the flavours whereas the potato dumplings are much more dense and is like eating a side dish of potatoes that can balance the richness of a dish such as something served with sauerkraut like a vepřo knedlo zelo. Of the two, the bread dumplings are more commonly seen and you can very easily buy them at the supermarket in Czech instead of making them fresh, but I don’t think anyone will be angry if you use them interchangeably. This recipe is for the potato dumplings (bramborové knedlíky). If you want to make the bread dumplings, you can find the recipe here.

Bread Dumpling / Houskové Knedlíky – lighter, fluffier

Do I need to use a special type of flour?

These dumplings are traditionally made with ‘sharp flour’ or ‘continental flour’ which is a coarser flour made from hard wheat that is common in Europe, but actually super difficult to find in regular grocery stores. As a result, this recipe uses a 3:2 ratio mix of all-purpose flour and farina/cream of wheat to achieve the same texture.

Although these dumplings are pretty easy to make, please allow enough time to cook them all. If you don’t have a big pot, you may have to cook them one or two at a time (which is what I always end up doing) and it takes 20-30 mins each time (allow 1.5 hours to cook all 4). If you’ve got extra pots and the stove space, boil them all at once in separate pots so they’re all ready at the same time! I don’t know why it took me so long to think of this.

How do I freeze leftover knedlíky?

Every recipe for knedlíky I’ve seen always makes WAY more than what you need. My guess is that since you’re going through all the effort of making them, you might as well make a bigger batch and freeze them to have on hand. This recipe is no different. If you follow the instructions, you’ll have enough knedlíky for 8 – 10 people. I had thought about halving the recipe when I was writing it, but then remembered how well they keep in the freezer and how easy it is to have dumplings in a pinch when you’re short on time or too lazy to put in the effort, so I left the proportions alone.

I find it best to freeze leftover dumplings in slices rather than a log so it defrosts quickly. You can either freeze them in single portions or altogether in a bag, but make sure you separate the slices a little so it’ll be easier to separate when you only want to defrost a few slices. I freeze them in a ziploc bag or you can wrap it up in cling wrap individually.

To defrost and reheat: The best way to get the best texture is to steam them, especially if you are reheating from frozen. However, I’m lazy and I take out my desired portion and leave it in the fridge the night before then microwave them with a sprinkle of water before serving.

*Note: This recipe and its instructions have been adapted from Cook Like Czechs (who’s got way more beautiful-looking dumplings than I could ever achieve – check it out).

Happy cooking!

Ingredients you’ll need:

900g yellow/Yukon gold potatoes
260g (1.5 cups) all-purpose flour
160g (just under 1 cup) cream of wheat/farina
1/2 Tbsp cornstarch or potato starch
1 tsp kosher/cooking salt
1 egg, whisked

Directions:

Prepare the potatoes (make ahead of time): Boil the potatoes with the skin on until soft and easily pierced with a fork (20-30mins). Drain the potatoes and let it cool down completely (1-2 hours, or overnight). Once cooled, peel and discard the potato skin and use a hand grater to finely grate (use the small grating hole) the peeled potatoes into a bowl and set aside.

To save time, boil the potatoes the day before and let it cool overnight then peel and grate it the next day. Don’t peel or grate it too early or else the potato will start drying out.

In a large mixing bowl, mix together the flour, cream of wheat, corn starch, and salt. Add in 1 whisked egg and the grated cooked potatoes. Use your hands or a stand mixer and work the dough until you get a smooth, soft, homogenous dough ball. Add a little extra flour if the dough is too sticky.

Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces (roughly 330g each), each formed into fat logs (see photo). Make sure the length of your log does not exceed the diameter of your pot. Don’t worry if they’re not perfect logs. You’ll hardly notice when you serve them as slices.

Lightly boil a pot of water. Gently lower 2 logs into the water (if you have a small pot, you may want to cook just one at a time to not overcrowd them). Let them boil for 25 – 30 minutes. Occasionally move them around in the water to ensure they are not stuck to the bottom of the pot. They will start to float when they’re roughly halfway cooked. To check if they’re cooked, you can slice off a piece and try it – you should get a dense bread-y texture with a little bounce.

Tip: To save time and if you’ve got extra pots and the stove space, boil them all at once in separate pots so they’re all ready at the same time!

Once cooked, remove each log from the water onto a cutting board or drying rack and stab it a couple times with a chopstick or a fork to release the steam. Let it sit for a few minutes to slightly cool down, then slice into 1.5cm slices and serve!

Some examples of knedliky served in traditional Czech dishes:

Summarized Recipe:

Czech Potato Dumplings – Bramborové Knedlíky

Ingredients:

900g yellow/Yukon gold potatoes
260g (1.5 cups) all-purpose flour
160g (just under 1 cup) cream of wheat/farina
1/2 Tbsp cornstarch or potato starch
1 tsp kosher/cooking salt
1 egg, whisked

Directions:

Prepare the potatoes (make ahead of time): Boil the potatoes with the skin on until soft and easily pierced with a fork (20-30mins). Drain the potatoes and let it cool down completely (1-2 hours, or overnight). Once cooled, peel and discard the potato skin and use a hand grater to finely grate the peeled potatoes into a bowl and set aside.
- To save time, boil the potatoes the day before and let it cool overnight then peel and grate it the next day. Don’t peel or grate it too early or else the potato will start drying out.
In a large mixing bowl, mix together the flour, cream of wheat, corn starch, and salt. Add in 1 whisked egg and the grated cooked potatoes. Use your hands or a stand mixer and work the dough until you get a smooth, soft, homogenous dough ball. Add a little extra flour if the dough is too sticky. Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces (roughly 330g each), each formed into fat logs (see photo). Make sure the length of your log does not exceed the diameter of your pot.
- Don’t worry if they’re not perfect logs. You’ll hardly notice when you serve them as slices.
Lightly boil a pot of water. Gently lower 2 logs into the water (if you have a small pot, you may want to cook just one at a time to not overcrowd them). Let them boil for 25 – 30 minutes. Occasionally move them around in the water to ensure they are not stuck to the bottom of the pot. They will start to float when they’re roughly halfway cooked. To check if they’re cooked, you can slice off a piece and try it – you should get a dense bread-y texture with a little bounce.
- Tip: To save time and if you’ve got extra pots and the stove space, boil them all at once in separate pots so they’re all ready at the same time!
Once cooked, remove each log from the water onto a cutting board or drying rack and stab it a couple times with a chopstick or a fork to release the steam. Let it sit for a few minutes to slightly cool down, then slice into 1.5cm slices and serve!

February 13, 2024February 11, 2025

Abby6 Comments