Cajun Seafood Chowder

This Cajun Seafood Chowder is rich and creamy, with just the right amount of Cajun spiced seafood including shrimp and tuna, along with sweet corn and earthy potatoes.

It’s perfect comfort food that will make you happy all winter long.

I have been sent product from Island Trollers to facilitate this post, however, all opinions are my own.

Island Trollers

Want to read about how I first got started with Island Trollers? Take a look here at my Tuna Chowder post and recipe.

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Please let me know if you have any questions about this recipe. I read all the comments myself and I try to help as soon as I can. I have readers from all levels of comfort and experience in the kitchen on my site, and I’ve tried to answer some of your questions already in the post. But if I’ve missed anything, please feel free to leave a comment and ask.

Island Trollers albacore tuna

In my opinion, Island Trollers is the best canned tuna there is. It’s fresh. It’s delicious.

Once you open the can, the tuna itself looks like they took a large piece of fresh tuna and put it in the can.

Well, it turns out that the tuna looks so amazing because it’s “raw packed and cooked only once. This is sushi grade albacore in a can, the finest you will find anywhere in the world!”

Don’t drain that tuna

If you’re making this recipe with Island Trollers Albacore Tuna (which I HIGHLY recommend), don’t drain off those tasty juices from the can.

Those are the juices from the fish itself, not just plain ol’ water or oil. Those juices are loaded with Omega 3s.

So, it might feel a little weird not to drain the tuna, but don’t do it.

Once you open the can, and break the chucks of tuna apart, the juices are absorbed back into the tuna.
If you’re making this recipe with Island Trollers Albacore Tuna (which I HIGHLY recommend), don’t drain off those tasty juices from the can.

Those are the juices from the fish itself, not just plain ol’ water or oil. Those juices are loaded with Omega 3s.

So, it might feel a little weird not to drain the tuna, but don’t do it.

Once you open the can, and break the chucks of tuna apart, the juices are absorbed back into the tuna.

And, with this chowder recipe it’s easy to just pour in all the tuna and any juices left in the can.

Check out some of my favorite Island Trollers Recipes

Cranberry Pecan Tuna Salad

Delicious Island Trollers albacore tuna, tart and sweet dried cranberries, crunchy toasted pecans, fresh fruity grapes. This salad comes together quickly and is so delicious!

Check out this recipe

Guacamole and Tuna Stuffed Avocado

This Guacamole and Tuna Stuffed Avocado is super easy to make. And it contains no mayo, so there’s no guilt – it’s just the simple healthy goodness of Fresh tasting Albacore tuna and guacamole stuffed inside a pretty avocado.

Check out this recipe

Individual Tuna Mushroom Pot Pies

These Individual Tuna Mushroom Pot Pies made with Island Trollers Albacore Tuna are so much fun and super yummy. I love the idea of individual pot pies. Just a nice little comforting dish of homemade goodness. Want to make more? Use the servings slider to adjust the amounts.

Check out this recipe

Tuna Cakes

Quick, easy to make, delicious Tuna Cakes (aka tuna patties). They’re agreat lunch or light dinner that’s made with pantry staple canned tuna, andthey’re super kid-friendly.

Check out this recipe

What size shrimp should I buy?

For this recipe I wanted small to medium shrimp so they fit nicely on your spoon, but are still big enough to be hearty. I went with 51/60 count per pound.

That simply means that there are about 51-60 shrimp per pound. Which makes it easy to count out a pound of shrimp if you don’t have a scale.

How to prepare shrimp

Simply defrost frozen, peeled, and deveined shrimp and remove the shell from the tail.

Defrost the shrimp

To defrost the shrimp, simply place them in a medium bowl and cover with cool tap water.

Change the water out for fresh tap water a couple of times, and in about 5-10 minutes they’ll be defrosted. At this point, the tail shell is easily removable.

Pat the shrimp dry with a paper towel.

Then, onto the searing. And shrimp take just about no time at all to cook through. In a couple minutes, you have perfectly seared shrimp.

Cajun Seasoning

My chowder recipe calls for Cajun Seasoning. You can use a homemade blend or a store-bought one for this.

I have a great Cajun Seasoning Spice Mix in this recipe for Cajun Shrimp with Rice. Give that one a try, you’ll love it!

Or, go with convenience, and get a pre-made one from the store.

Do read the ingredients on those store-bought spice mixes though. Some can be mostly salt. And really, there’s no sense in paying so much for just salt. I like a spice mix that is more about spices and herbs than salt.

Recipe notes

I recommend chopping the potatoes into small pieces so they easily fit onto the spoon with some other goodies.

You don’t just want just a spoonful of potatoes, you want a spoonful of Cajun Seafood Chowder!

So, I chopped mine into about ½-inch dice.

And, make sure to chop them fairly uniform in size and shape so they cook at about the same rate.

Can I use another milk?

I call for heavy cream in this soup. It will help thicken the chowder as well as give it a rich creamy flavor.

Of course you can use another milk, you just won’t get the same creamy texture and mouthfeel. Whole milk or half & half would be a nice compromise here – a little fewer calories while still being rich.

If you want to use skim milk you’ll miss out on a lot of richness.

In this case, I’d probably smash up some of the cooked potato and stir it into the soup to add some body back into it.

Kitchen Items you may need

Note: these are Amazon affiliate links

Kitchen knife
Cutting board
Can opener
Soup pot with lid
Spoons
Plate
Mixing bowls
Pretty soup serving bowls

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Cajun Seafood Chowder Recipe

Cajun Seafood Chowder

Debi

This Cajun Seafood Chowder is rich and creamy, with just the right amount of seafood including shrimp and tuna, along with sweet corn and earthy potatoes. It’s perfect comfort food that will make you happy all winter long.

5 from 6 votes

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Cook ModePrevent your screen from going to sleep.

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 40 minutes mins

Course Main Course, Soup

Cuisine American, Cajun

Servings 6 servings

Calories 370 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 1 tablespoon oil
• 1 pound shrimp defrosted, shells and tails removed
• 2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 medium onion chopped
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 pound Yukon Gold potatoes chopped
• 4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
• 3 thyme sprigs
• 2 sliced green onions plus more for garnish if desired
• 3 cups frozen corn defrosted
• ¾ cup heavy cream
• 1 can Island Trollers Albacore tuna 7.5 ounces
• ½ teaspoon paprika

Instructions

 

• Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat.
• Season shrimp all over with Cajun seasoning.
• Once the pan is hot, sear the shrimp 1 to 2 minutes each side, until just pink. Shrimp may need to be cooked in two batches so that they don’t crowd the pan. Remove the shrimp from the skillet to a clean plate, and set aside.
• Melt butter in the same pot, scraping up any browned bits with a spoon. Add onion and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and flour, and cook 30 seconds more. Add chopped potatoes, broth, thyme sprigs, and green onions, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes.
• Stir in corn and cream, and simmer 5 minutes more. Turn off heat and stir in cooked shrimp, tuna, and paprika. Taste for salt & pepper. Remove thyme sprigs.
• Garnish each serving with green onions.

Nutrition

Calories: 370kcalCarbohydrates: 36gProtein: 21gFat: 17gSaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 236mgSodium: 1257mgPotassium: 691mgFiber: 5gSugar: 2gVitamin A: 1303IUVitamin C: 21mgCalcium: 166mgIron: 5mg

Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations, and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary based on brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes, and more.

Keyword chowder, seafood

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