White Bean Seafood Chowder

Packed with seafood and enriched with white beans, this chowder is perfect for your East Coast-inspired kitchen party!

Course Soup

Key Ingredient Beans

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 35

Total Time 50

Servings cups (2 L)

Calories 279

2 cups (500 mL) cooked great northern beans, or 1 can (19 oz/540 mL) can white beans, drained & rinsed (see notes)
1/4 cup (60 mL) warm water
1 Tbsp (15 mL) unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups (375 mL) finely diced white onion
1 cup (250 mL) finely diced celery
1/4 cup (60 mL) white wine (see notes)
2 cups (500 mL) low sodium chicken or vegetable stock
1 cup (250 mL) 35% cream (see notes)
2 cans (10 oz/142 g) chopped clams in juice
3 bay leaves
pinch cayenne pepper
1 lb (454 g) potatoes, peeled & cut into 1/2-inch (1 cm) cubes
1/2 lb (227 g) cleaned raw seafood (shrimp, scallops, etc.)
salt & ground black pepper, to taste
2-3 tsp (10-15 mL) fresh lemon juice

Place cooked beans and warm water in a food processor and process until smooth. Set aside.
In a large stock pot, heat butter until melted, then add onions and celery. Cook until tender, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Deglaze stock pot with white wine and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
Stir in stock, cream, prepared bean puree and juice from clams (reserving the clam meat), bay leaves, cayenne and potatoes. Stir well.
Bring to a simmer and cook uncovered until potatoes are tender, but not falling apart, approximately 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Stir in the reserved clams and raw seafood and continue to simmer until the seafood is fully cooked, approximately 3-5 minutes.
Remove bay leaves. Season to taste with salt and pepper, squeeze in fresh lemon juice and enjoy with a sliced warm baguette.

Canned white beans include cannellini or white kidney beans for this recipe.
If cooking beans from dry for this recipe, be sure to cook them until they are very tender. This will create a creamier chowder. Check out our website for more info on cooking dry beans.
The white wine can be substituted with dealcoholized white wine or apple juice.
Looking to reduce fat content in this dish? 2% milk can be substituted for 35% cream. The texture will change slightly.