Catfish and Kohlrabi Chowder with Roasted Red Pepper

Hold the bowl in both hands and you feel it before the spoon ever reaches your mouth — a steady, seeping warmth through the ceramic, the kind that settles into cold fingers on a gray afternoon. This is catfish and kohlrabi chowder with roasted red pepper, a thick, cream-based soup built around flaky catfish, tender cubes of kohlrabi standing in for the usual potato, and roasted red pepper folded in for a smoky sweetness that colors the whole pot a soft, warm coral.

It’s a chowder in the traditional sense — dairy-rich, substantial, built to be a full meal on its own — but the kohlrabi gives it a lighter, slightly peppery undertone that potato never quite offers, and the roasted pepper keeps it from tasting like every other cream-based fish soup you’ve had before.

What Makes This Chowder Worth Your Time

Chowder has a reputation for being heavy, and this version earns its place by not leaning entirely into that. Kohlrabi holds its shape better than potato through a longer simmer, so you get distinct, tender cubes rather than a pot that’s edging toward mush by the time it’s ready. Catfish, mild and a little sweet, doesn’t compete with the roasted pepper’s smokiness — it lets it lead. And because everything simmers together in one pot, this is a genuinely manageable weeknight project that reads as considerably more effort than it actually takes.

What You’ll Need

• Catfish fillets (1½ pounds, cut into 1½-inch chunks) — farm-raised catfish is mild and widely available; cod or haddock work as substitutes if catfish isn’t your preference, though you’ll lose some of catfish’s particular sweetness.
• Bacon (4 slices, diced) — its rendered fat becomes the base the whole chowder is built on. Leave it out for a lighter version and use butter instead, though you’ll lose some of the smoky backbone.
• Yellow onion (1 medium, diced)
• Celery (2 stalks, diced)
• Kohlrabi (2 medium bulbs, peeled and cut into ½-inch cubes) — peel well past the fibrous outer layer; the flesh underneath is what you want, pale and faintly sweet.
• Roasted red pepper (1 large, diced, jarred or homemade) — jarred works fine and saves time; if roasting your own, char it directly over a flame or under the broiler, then steam and peel it before dicing.
• All-purpose flour (3 tablespoons) — thickens the base into true chowder consistency.
• Fish or vegetable stock (3 cups)
• Whole milk (1½ cups) — for a richer chowder, substitute up to half with heavy cream.
• Fresh thyme (a few sprigs)
• Salt and black pepper
• Fresh chives, chopped, for garnish

Making It

1. Cook the diced bacon in a large, heavy pot over medium heat for 5 to 6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it’s crisp and has released its fat into the bottom of the pot. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon, leaving the rendered fat behind, and set it aside for garnish.
2. Add the onion and celery to the fat and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, until they turn soft and translucent, filling the kitchen with a smell that’s sweet and a little smoky from the bacon underneath.
3. Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables and stir constantly for 1 minute, coating everything evenly. This step cooks off the raw flour taste before any liquid goes in, so don’t rush past it.
4. Slowly pour in the stock, whisking as you go to prevent lumps from forming. Add the kohlrabi and thyme sprigs, then bring the pot to a boil before reducing to a gentle simmer.
5. Simmer for 15 to 18 minutes, until the kohlrabi is tender enough to pierce easily with a fork but still holds its cube shape — you’re looking for resistance that gives way smoothly, not mush.
6. Stir in the milk and roasted red pepper, letting the chowder come back to a gentle simmer. The color shifts here, turning from pale ivory to a soft, warm coral as the pepper’s color spreads through the base.
7. Add the catfish chunks and simmer gently for 5 to 6 minutes, until the fish turns fully opaque and flakes apart easily when tested with a fork. Stir carefully at this stage — too much agitation breaks the fish into small, ragged pieces instead of clean, tender chunks.
8. Remove the thyme sprigs, season with salt and pepper to taste, and ladle into bowls. Top with the reserved crisp bacon and a scattering of fresh chives.

The Details That Separate Good from Great

Cooking the flour with the vegetables before adding liquid is the step most home cooks rush or skip entirely, and it’s the difference between a chowder that tastes clean and one that carries a faint pasty undertone through every spoonful. Give it the full minute, stirring constantly.

The other quiet decision is when the catfish goes in. Added too early, it overcooks by the time the kohlrabi finishes softening; added at the very end and simmered gently, it stays tender and holds its shape. Trust the sequence rather than trying to save time by combining steps.

Where It Goes Wrong

The most common failure is a chowder that breaks or curdles slightly, usually from boiling hard after the milk goes in. Dairy-based soups don’t like aggressive heat — once the milk is added, keep the pot at a bare simmer, never a rolling boil.

The second issue is catfish that falls apart into shreds rather than staying in clean, tender chunks. This traces back to stirring too roughly once the fish is in the pot, or simmering it too long past the point of doneness. Stir gently, and pull the pot off heat the moment the fish turns opaque throughout.

Ways to Make Catfish and Kohlrabi Chowder Your Own

Add a cup of fresh or frozen corn kernels along with the roasted pepper for a sweeter, more classically chowder-like profile — corn’s sugars balance nicely against the pepper’s smokiness. If you want more heat, stir in a pinch of smoked paprika or cayenne with the flour, which builds warmth into the base rather than adding it only as a garnish. For a lighter version, swap the whole milk for a mixture of milk and additional stock, reducing the richness while keeping the chowder’s structure intact.

Putting It on the Table

Serve this with crusty bread or oyster crackers on the side for texture against the smooth base. A simple green salad with a sharp vinaigrette works well alongside, cutting through the richness. This is a good dish for a cold weeknight dinner or a casual gathering where you want something substantial that doesn’t require much last-minute attention once it’s simmering.

Keeping and Reheating

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. The chowder thickens further as it sits, so reheat gently on the stovetop over low heat, stirring in a splash of milk or stock to loosen it back to its original consistency. Avoid a hard boil during reheating, which risks breaking the dairy and toughening the catfish further. This chowder doesn’t freeze particularly well — the dairy base tends to separate on thawing, so plan to eat leftovers within a few days rather than freezing them.

Approximate Nutrition Per Serving

Estimates only, based on one of six servings.

Closing

What this chowder gives you is warmth in the most literal sense — a bowl that heats your hands before it ever reaches your mouth, built from ingredients that don’t usually get top billing but hold their own here. Make it once on a cold evening, and that first steady heat through the bowl becomes the thing you remember reaching for again.