Cauliflower Chowder
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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!
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
Equipment
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.
Video
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Could this be done in a crock pot?
It is very difficult to give exact conversion information to translate a traditional stovetop recipe to be used in a slow cooker without further recipe testing. However, here is an article worth checking out on a possible conversion guide. Hope that helps!
This was very tasty. I made it a couple weeks ago. Since I’m the only one in my home that eats soup I ended up freezing some. It froze just fine.
I like turkey bacon instead of pork bacon.also I think that sea salt is preferable to kosher salt. It has minerals that kosher does not have. Last, I would make sure to use low-sodium broth. The flavor is as good and less salt is healthier for people with high blood pressure and those trying to prevent it.
Thanks for the recipe. Hubby will try it out tomorrow.
I made this last night and it will now be one of our favorite cauliflower recipes! Really delicious. I substituted coconut milk for cow’s milk and didn’t use the flour at all. I pureed about 1/2 to make it thick. Really good! Thank you!
I made this today for lunch! Tasty! The bacon really finishes it off.
Lovely recipe!
Thank you.
I’m going to try this but substitute the milk with coconut milk – sounds delicious!
With a couple small adjustments, this came out great! I only used 1 tbsp butter and pureed about 1/4 of the whole pot to thicken. We didn’t have bacon and it tasted pretty plain on it’s own, so I added 1/2 cup reduced fat sharp cheddar. Super good! Each serving came to 1 1/3 cups. Macros with these adjustments are approx. 144 calories, 5g fat, 19g carbs and 7g protein for anyone interested. We added chunks of chicken to our bowls and dinner was perfect!
Great winter soup. Rather than cook the veggies, onion and garlic in butter, I reserved a T of bacon grease and used that. I topped the soup with the bacon crumbles and shredded cheddar cheese. My wife told me that I will be making this again real soon.
Making this right now as I type this!! Thanks for the recipe 🙂
Not even ready but already tastes suuuuper good 🙂 Never made even one recipe from your collection that was not a hit <3
Made this tonight and basically followed directions. It was SOOOOO GOOD!!! Only changes I made were cauliflower in food processor to make it fine (left a some a bit chunkier) and added some cayenne. So delicious that I can’t wait to have leftovers tomorrow and I would be proud to serve to company. I discovered this blog Christmas 2014 and have been making delicious things from your recipes since! Thank you so very much for sharing your great ideas and talent for making wonderful food!
I love cauliflower and don’t really care for potatoes, so this soup is like a dream come true for me! I’m eating a leftover bowl from last night’s dinner, and I just love it so much. I ended up adding a bit of the extra bacon grease to the veggie mixture while cooking, and I have no regrets.
Thanks for sharing your recipe. I don’t know about u but drives me crazy when everyone wants to change blogger’s recipes!
My only question is I live alone so wondering how well this freezes? Thank you
Unfortunately, I cannot answer this with certainty as I have never tried freezing this myself – there were no leftovers left to freeze! Please use your best judgment for freezing and reheating.
I’ve made this a couple of times now, and for anyone Paleo, dairy free or gluten free, I’ve made the following substitutions:
– used bacon fat to sauté the veggies (also did once with coconut oil and was delish)
– used unsweetened almond or cashew milk in place of regular
– used cassava flour in place a wheat flour
– added 3 Tbs nutritional yeast
– puréed 3 cups of the veggies and broth to make it extra creamy, then added back into the pot
Thanks!! This is wonderful!
My family was skeptical when I said I was going to make this for dinner.., Needless to say, they gobbled it up and said it wasn’t enough. Going to have to make a double batch next time. 🙂
Thanks for the recipe. I read all the comments before posting but I’m not sure the following has been asked/answered:
1. Step 2 ends with adding the cauliflower and cooking until tender. Step 4 also instructs cooking until cauliflower are tender. At what point should they be tender? Before adding flour or when the soup is completely combined and boiled/simmered?
2. There are a fair volume of veggies (and no liquid) in the pot when Step 3 commences (whisk in flour). Do you mean for the flour itself to be slightly browned or the veggie mixture? And why whisking as opposed to stirring?
3. Is there a specific reason to not make a “traditional” cream sauce with the butter, flour and milk separately and then add it to the veggies which are combined with the chicken broth?
4. Can I make this in a crockpot and can I freeze it? (totally kidding!)
Thanks again. Batch is coming off the stove now!
Michael,
1. The veggies should be browned and just beginning to soften in step 2.
2. The flour should be browned a bit. A whisk is simply easier for this than stirring it in but as always, please do what you are most comfortable with.
3. A traditional cream sauce just isn’t needed here! 🙂
Also, this recipe is meant to be quick and easy – if you want to stir versus whisk or if you want a cream sauce over broth, you can definitely experiment and see what works best for you and your preferences. Hope that helps!
After my barrage of questions (thank you for taking the time to answer, btw), it turns out that the chowder is amazing as is (I didn’t make any alterations)! I just didn’t have enough confidence in my recipe-following ability, I guess. Its now a keeper and will be in regular rotation. Thanks again.
I’m curious how you got to your calorie count. I was trying to figure out the calories without the bacon and I ended up with 325 calories for six servings. A head of cauliflower is 210 calories on it’s own.
Nutrition info calculations are always estimates. There are a lot of variations (size of bacon, size of vegetables, how packed the flour is in the measuring cup, etc). The idea behind nutrition information is just to give a ballpark amount!
I made this two nights ago and everyone loved it. I used Canadian Bacon in lieu of bacon simply bc that’s what I had available. It was easy and super yummy! I’m adding it my recipe collection!
I have made this soup twice now, and it is so delicious. I am passing this recipe on to a few friends.
What a GREAT chowder!! I’ve been in such a bad way trying to figure out good, hearty soups that work into my diet — and you give me real bacon and real butter!! Delicious! This one’s goin’ in the box!