Best seafood chowder

SERVES 2- 4

I love seafood chowder. It’s easy to make and doesn’t have to cost the earth, so chow down on some chowder this week.

12 mussels

1/³ cup white wine

2 tbsp olive oil

2-3 rashers bacon, diced

1 tbsp butter

1 large onion, finely diced

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1 stalk celery, diced

1 carrot, peeled and diced

2 medium potatoes, peeled

and diced into 2cm pieces

2 cups water, fish or

vegetable stock

200ml cream zest and juice of 1 lemon

12 scallops, fresh or thawed

2-3 fish fillets (I use gurnard),

cut into chunks

2 spring onions, thinly sliced,

to garnish

Small handful parsley,

to garnish

Crusty bread, to serve

1 Give mussels a quick scrub, then pile them into a large pot with the wine. Bring to a simmer, then cover and steam for 2-3 minutes or until the mussels open. Remove from heat and tip the mussels and wine into a bowl to cool. When cool enough to handle, remove the mussel meat and roughly chop, leaving the smaller ones whole. Discard the beards.

2 Heat oil in a saucepan and sauté the bacon until crispy. Add the butter and sauté the onion and garlic until beginning to soften. Add celery and carrot, then sweat until the veges are softened – about 15-20 minutes.

3 Pour in the reserved mussel/ wine mix and stock, then add the potatoes. Simmer until potatoes are soft – about 10 minutes. Add the cream, lemon juice and zest.

4 Bring to the boil and add scallops, fish and mussels.

Cook for 1-2 minutes only until fish is just cooked. Taste and add salt if required and a decent grind of black pepper.

5 Garnish with spring onions and parsley. Serve with bread.