Cauliflower Chowder
by Chungah
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A creamy, low carb, hearty and cozy soup, loaded with so many good-for-you veggies. Perfect for those chilly nights!
Featured Comment
I’ve been making this recipe since it was first published – I can’t believe it’s been 10 years! I also can’t believe that I haven’t reviewed it until now. Follow the recipe and it’s perfect. No one is ever disappointed, there are never leftovers, and I can feel moderately good about getting more vegetables
why i love cauliflower chowder
- Perfect for soup season, ski season, post-holiday season, and blustery winter season
- Oh-so-velvety with all the sneaked in vegetables that even the pickiest of toddlers will love
- Packed with cauliflower, a great source of antioxidants that’s high in fiber and low in calories
tips and tricks for success
- Grab pre-cut cauliflower. To cut down on prep time even more, use pre-cut cauliflower florets.
- Blend, baby, blend. With the help of an immersion blender or a countertop blender, the soup will yield an even creamier, smoother consistency.
- Add garnishes. Garnishes are always optional but a fresh sprinkle of thyme leaves, some crispy bacon or roasted cauliflower will certainly take your soup to the next level, adding more flavor, texture and contrast.
- Serve with crusty bread. Serve with all the homemade crusty bread for dipping, sopping and dunking!
- Mix it up. Add carrots, corn, russet potatoes (this will help thicken up the chowder even more!) or even your favorite blend of seafood.
what to serve with cauliflower chowder
Tools For This Recipe
Dutch oven
Cauliflower Chowder: Frequently Asked Questions
What if I don’t have an immersion blender?
A countertop blender (such as a Vitamix or Blendtec) or food processor should do the trick! When using a countertop blender, cool the soup slightly and blend in batches.
How can I make this vegetarian?
You can omit the bacon and substitute vegetable broth for the chicken broth.
How can I store leftovers?
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days.
Is this freezer-friendly?
We do not recommend freezing this as milk-based soups tend to separate when frozen.
Cauliflower Chowder
A creamy, low carb, hearty and cozy soup, loaded with so many good-for-you veggies. Perfect for those chilly nights!
Video
Ingredients
- 4 slices bacon, diced
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 onion, diced
- 2 celery ribs, diced
- 1 head cauliflower, roughly chopped
- 1 bay leaf
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup 2% milk
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
Instructions
- Heat a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add bacon and cook until brown and crispy, about 6-8 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate, reserving 1 tablespoon excess fat in the stockpot.
- Melt butter in the stockpot. Add garlic, onion and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 3-4 minutes.
- Stir in cauliflower and bay leaf. Cook, stirring occasionally, until barely crisp-tender, about 4-5 minutes.
- Whisk in flour until lightly browned, about 1 minute.
- Stir in chicken broth and milk, and cook, stirring frequently, until slightly thickened, about 3-4 minutes.
- Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until cauliflower are tender, about 12-15 minutes; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Puree with an immersion blender until desired consistency is reached.
- Serve immediately, garnished with bacon and parsley, if desired.
Equipment
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Had this for dinner tonight. It was delicious and so easy to make. We roasted the cauliflower first, as suggested above. Perfect for this cold night.
Just made this and added chili flakes and some kale/spinach at the end. So great! My husband doesn’t like my other cauliflower soup recipe, but he loved this version! Thank you!!
I made this soup tonight and it was so delicious! Thank you for your amazing recipes that come out yummy every time!
Made this tonight and it was wonderful! My normally picky husband ate two bowls. I also topped it with the bacon and it added the perfect crunch and flavor. This is one of my new favorites 🙂
Made this tonight. It was fabulous! Had to add a little extra flour to thinken it up a bit. Thanks for sharing such a fabulous recipe.
We made this tonight–so delicious. Thanks for sharing another tasty one. 🙂
Hi! I’m trying your soup tonight. I will have leftovers and was hoping this could be frozen for later meals? Not sure if the milk in it poses an issue. Thanks 🙂
Unfortunately, I cannot answer this with certainty as I have never tried freezing this myself – there were no leftovers left to freeze! I recommend using your best judgment for freezing and reheating.
I’d love to try this recipe, however the all purpose flour is not an option. It basically needs to be paleo friendly. What can I substitute for milk? It needs to be organic, grass fed…etc
Haydee, you can certainly substitute something else for the milk but without further recipe testing, I cannot advise on various substitutions to make this paleo-friendly. Please use your best judgment to make the appropriate substitutions to fit your dietary restrictions.
Hi there! I made this soup tonight and I’m not sure what I did wrong, but the soup had a little bit of a sweet taste to it. I tried to add a little pepper and spice to counter the flavor, but it is still a little on the sweet side. Not terrible, will definitely eat it, but I feel like I did something wrong. What could it be??? Thank you!
Victoria, it is very difficult for me to answer what went wrong as I was not in the kitchen with you. That being said, there are no ingredients in this recipe that has any sweetness to it.
Made this soup last night! Fabulous. The hubs and I both loved it so much. Better than potato soup and better FOR YOU!!!
Chung Ah, I’ve never made a recipe of yours that didn’t turn out fantastically!
I just made this last night – modified it to fit Paleo (subbed almond flour & coconut milk). I added some of the bacon in to the soup to give it that bacon-y flavor, and also put chunks of chicken in it. Oh my, it was pretty amazing! My husband asked for seconds, and he is something of a tough critic. Will definitely be making this dish again!!
I was hoping someone tried to Paleo-fy this recipe. Can’t wait to try it now!
WOW!!! This recipe is delicious. Will definitely be a regular in my house. Thanks for the amazing recipe 🙂
I have to say, I’m a bit skeptical of “healthier” recipes but this soup was fantastic! It’s rich and creamy and packed with flavor! I will definitely be keeping this on the fall soup rotation. Thank you!
I’m on a low carb diet and would like to avoid using flour. Any suggestions for an alternative to thicken the soup? Thanks!
You can try omitting the flour but I cannot speak for how much this will change the overall taste/texture of the dish.
Try pureeing some of the cooked veggies with the chicken broth and adding it back in to thicken the soup.
Just pureeing some of the cauliflower itself should help w/thickening.
Ha! Now that you’ve spent a year in the Bay area, you know bikini weather is only later in the year, if it really exists, but you’ll get used to it in a couple years! It took me 4 before I realized there ARE seasons and I could tell when they began.
I love using cauliflower and a chowder sounds great. I’m planning this for after next grocery run, but will, as others have done, use gluten-free arrowroot, agar agar, or corn or potato starch to thicken instead of using flour [I’ve gone overboard with trying various paleo products].
Can I make it in the crockpot? Well, I’m sure I can, but cook the cauliflower ahead of time, or no? I’ll only have it in for a couple hours. Thank you!!!
Haley, please understand that it is very difficult to give exact conversion information to translate a traditional stovetop recipe to the slow cooker method without further recipe testing. I recommend using your own judgement to convert this recipe to utilize a slow cooker.
The nutritional facts says 30 grams of fat per serving…is that right? That’s like eating a piece of cheese cake. I must be reading this wrong. Can someone tell me why I am seeing the fat for one serving as 30 grams….it can’t be. Looks fantastic!
Thank you so much for pointing that out, Kerri. The numbers have been updated.
Made this tonight! It was good but felt it needed a little more flavour, so added some old cheddar and a little parmesan, and it was divine. I also pureed the soup, which I think also helped to take it to another level. Enjoy! 🙂
Your additions sound amazing, although they definitely add a bit more calories than listed here in the recipe!
I’m wondering if I could make this using frozen cauliflower as the base instead of fresh? I much prefer fresh, but I have a household of 7 to feed and I could make it so much cheaper and much more if frozen would work. Would there be anything else that would need to be done? Perhaps a bit less liquid? Can’t wait to make it! So ready for soup weather!
You can certainly substitute frozen cauliflower but I cannot speak for how much this will change the overall taste/texture of the dish as further recipe testing is needed. It is always best to use the ingredients listed in the recipe to obtain the best results possible.
Just made this for lunch and it was amazing! I added a little bit of basil and threw in some cheddar cheese at the end. Thank you for the great recipe! 🙂
I could eat soup everyday and I’m always looking for new recipes. This one looks really good. I’m gluten-free, so I will try thickening it with half and half and eliminate the flour.
Janet, I made it with almond flour and just a pinch of tapioca starch…it was perfect!
I’m definitely going to use almond flour. I live this soup. Thanks for the tip.