This may be a dumb question, but I see a lot of you folks talking up chowder in camp, and I was wondering, are you guys cooking the fish first and throwing it in the chowder, or just throwing raw fish in the chowder, and cooking it long enough for the fish to get done?

Toss the raw chunks in the chowder to cook.  It doesn't take long . . . . 5-6 min maybe?  Northern seems to hold it's "shape" a little better.

PhantomJug wrote on Apr 25^th, 2012 at 11:50pm:

Toss the raw chunks in the chowder to cook.  It doesn't take long . . . . 5-6 min maybe?  Northern seems to hold it's "shape" a little better.

sometimes we need more proof.......

PJ is exactly correct. In the briefest possible words he has relayed what is to be done. And indeed it doesn't take long to cook fish in chowder. Make your chowder, get it hot and before it gets to thick (the more you simmer the thicker it will get) dump your chunks of raw fish in. In fact at this point I like to remove my pot from the flames altogether and put it into a cozie for the 5 minutes it will take for the fish to cook. The more you stir your chowder after putting in the fish the more it will fall apart.

The exception to that, again as PJ has pointed out, is Northern. It is very compact and dense (tastes like chicken  ;D ) and is particularly well suited to chowder. Just make sure you have the bones out. If you don't know how go on Utube and then practice.......no bones in the chowder, period. Other fish will work just fine as well......just be sure not to overcook.......7 minutes is W-A-Y to long. Investigate the cozie method of cooking. It will save you lots of fuel and your chunks of fish will stay nice. 

MT. i didn't know what a 'cozie' was, but a quick search found 'cozy', now that's something. thanks.

PhantomJug wrote on Apr 25^th, 2012 at 11:50pm:

Toss the raw chunks in the chowder to cook.  It doesn't take long . . . . 5-6 min maybe?  Northern seems to hold it's "shape" a little better.

PJ and MT have it right. Overcooked fish in chowder/soup turns to mush. Northern is good as it's firmer but you can still overcook it.
The cozie is a great way to make sure you don't overcook/burn your chowder.
You can buy one, or improvise in camp.
I take those big Reynolds Aluminum cooking bags for grilling trout. They'll hold a small chowder pot. Put your covered pot in bag, roll tight and use whatever you have handy for the insulation.
I use an old piece of foam Thermarest sleep pad that doubles as camp-seat.
Put pot on foam, fold over and use a couple of rocks to seal the ends. Works great.
If you don't make your own, Cache Lake makes a killer fish chowder thats even good sans fish.

zski wrote on Apr 26^th, 2012 at 12:35pm:

MT. i didn't know what a 'cozie' was, but a quick search found 'cozy', now that's something. thanks.

Whoops! I think "cozie" is what they put brewskis in isn't it? That was quite some time ago for me and even then I never used those things. I rekon they could be handy.......

I'm a huge believer in the "cozy" because it works like a charm. Stuff keeps cooking for quite a while after you take it off the burner. Stays hot, gets hydrated, and nothing burns. Primo! Plus you save lots of fuel........

I use laker chunks, plus a few drops of red food coloring, to make Jimbo's favorite, pink phlamingo stew... :D

I like to use lakers like OS...just seems more appropriate for chowder.  I leave the skin on when cutting it up - helps keep the chunks together and like everyone else has said, add fish in the last 5 minutes or so. 

pd

solotripper wrote on Apr 26^th, 2012 at 1:48pm:

[quote author=PhantomJug link=1335396584/1#1 date=1335397816] If you don't make your own, Cache Lake makes a killer fish chowder thats even good sans fish.

Thanks for the tip on Cache Lake.  I don't have a recipe to make my own chowder, so I haven't really eaten fish this way.  But I'm going to try it this year. 

prouboy

FWIW, the Kerr brand "red beans and rice" with fish chunks is pretty tasty.  We would marinate the fish in butter with blackening spice and add it in last minute.  Not exactly chowder but a good camping hot-dish.

blackening spice?? 

can you find that in the "spice aisle" of your local grocery store? 

I need to get out of the house more...

prouboy

prouboy... I like Old Bay with Blackening spice. It comes in a   2.25 oz. shaker can ...in the traditional Old Bay yellow colored container.

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I use it all the time for my Cajun Blackened walleye, and I am sure it would go well in a fish chowder.

By the way you have to try sprinkling regular Old Bay seasoning on walleye that have been breaded and fried. Hmmm. We also religously use Old Bay for spicing up water we use for fish, shrimp or lobster boils.

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Puckster wrote on May 6^th, 2012 at 3:17am:

I need to get out of the house more.

Yes, yes you do.

Puckster wrote on May 6^th, 2012 at 3:17am:

blackening spice??  can you find that in the "spice aisle" of your local grocery store?  prouboy

Only if you have to.

Try this:

1 tbsp paprika
1 tsp salt
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp cayenne
1 1/2 tsp pepper (orig recipe was half white, half black, but I use all black)
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp sage

Triple recipe to get one spice islands spice jar full.

Thanks Joe!

prouboy

PhantomJug wrote on May 6^th, 2012 at 4:49am:

Puckster wrote on May 6th, 2012 at 3:17am: I need to get out of the house more. Yes, yes you do.

Okay, Okay!  I went out and saw my baby granddaughter today.  Does that count?

Someday, if I can hold this body together, I'll take that little one canoeing. 

prouboy

prouboy,

Best thing about the Cache lk chowder is that it's good even if you don't add/have fish at all ;)

I bring foil packed Albacore tuna/chicken and if I'm tired or haven't caught something, I throw that in.

I like Zatarains Brand New Orleans products.
Any of their recipes that call for adding ground meat or sausage chunks will work well with any fish you have.

There spicy so be careful with any additional heat.

Gang,

I thought I'd add a good receipe for your consideration and hopefully, enjoyment.

There was an article in BWJ a while that described a Finnish fish chowder, Kalamojakka.  Kala – fish, mojakka - soup.  A bit of digging around showed various ways to prepare and varied ingredients, no doubt, depending on what was traditionally at hand, as most recipes tend to base from.   The author stated that the ingredient that made it a traditional Kalamojakka was the addition of pickling spice.  I like creative cooking and put together my own concoction.  The pickling spice adds a unique, if a bit peppery flavor and it turned out quite nice.  Just make sure you put it into a spice bag, cheese cloth or something similar, as like with Bay leaves, you’ll prefer not to eat those seasonings whole, but take them out. 

Bear Creek makes some pretty good dry soup mixes, found at most grocery stores.  I started with their Creamy Potato soup mix (makes 8, subdivide as needed per group size) as my base.  I use the following ingredients for four healthy servings:
• ½ package Bear Creek Creamy Potato soup mix
• 1 package Backpacker’s Pantry Vegetable Medley
• 1 package pre-cooked bacon (about 2.25 oz size), chopped or crumbled
• 1 large onion, coarsely diced
• Powdered milk, equivalent to make 5 cups liquid
• 1 Tbsp pickling spice (in a spice bag or equiv.)
• Fish, filleted and cubed (one decent 18-20 inch trout, walleye or ?)
• 5 cups water

In a 2 qt or larger pot, sauté the onion and bacon.  Add the spice bag and water and heat to near boiling.  Add the vegetable medley and then stir in the powdered milk.  Heat to a simmer and slowly stir in the soup mix.  Simmer that for 10-15 minutes or until the potatoes are cooked and the soup has thickened.  Add the fish and simmer another 2-3 minutes, cover if you have one, remove from heat and let that sit for about 5 minutes.  Garnish with some reserved bacon bits or crushed crackers.  Don’t eat the spice bag.  Enjoy your chowder! 
pd   8-)

That sounds great!
Almost makes me want to do a group tandem ;)