Dairy-free fish chowder

A chowder that is dairy-free, flourless and made without fish stock

You can call it a fish broth by the look of it instead of calling it a chowder but the name just stuck. I tasted my very first chowder over eight years ago in a cute Dingle restaurant called The Half Door on the west coast of Ireland. It was a well, very well composed chowder, rich both in flavours and in ingredients. What is the worst in finding the best chowder at first? You can not find any better. It sets the standard very high up. Ever since I was trying to find the same great taste in many restaurants but nothing came even close to that Dingle Seafood Chowder.

After continuous disappointments (tasting few really awful ones like fish drowned in heavy cream, or made with thin watery-milky base, or tasted nothing but flour) I decided to make my own chowder, and it was a success. As time passed I played with the ingredients and consistency to suit better with the diet changes I made in the past year. Nowadays my chowder is dairy-free, flourless and made without fish stock. This chowder is slightly thick not from added flour but from the rich vegetable base. It has great colour and texture too.

You will need:
1 onion
1 tbsp coconut oil
2 cloves of garlic
1 leek
1 celery stalk
2 carrots
4 small potatoes
450 g fish mix (cod, salmon, smoked haddock)
1 tbsp creamed coconut
1 bay leaf
freshly ground black pepper
1 tomato
small bunch of parsley

1. Finley chop the onion and gently fry in the oil until softened.
2. Add the diced carrots and potatoes and the minced garlic and fry for a minute or two, then cover with a small amount of water and cook for 5 mins.
3. Add the sliced leek and celery. Add two cups of water. Add the bay leaf too, and gently boil for 10 mins.
4. Drop in the tomato into the soup for a minute or two. Take it out. Let it cool. Peel off the skin and mash the flesh with a fork.
5. Add the diced fish to the veg soup base, add the creamed coconut, the mashed tomato and a cup of water if needed. Season with black pepper.
6. Cook for further 10 to 12 mins, until the fish is done.
7. Serve with finely chopped flat-leaf parsley. Enjoy!