Smoked Salmon Chowder (Hybrid)

I have two salmon chowder recipes on here that I loved and made often in the past.  They had differences (smoked vs. un-smoked chowder,  half & half vs. using flour to thicken, different veggies, cheddar cheese vs. no cheese).  I decided to combine my favorite elements from both recipes to create this recipe, which I really enjoyed.  After this summer, we are loving smoked salmon so much (well, even more than we were).  (If you live in the States, Costco has great smoked salmon that would be wonderful in this.)  Note: This is pretty much the only recipe I used canned creamed corn for.

Smoked Salmon Chowder (Hybrid)
adapted from here and here

2 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, chopped

1/2 cup chopped celery
1 garlic cloved, minced
2 cups diced potatoes
2 carrots, diced
1 small zucchini, chopped

handful of fresh green beans, chopped, optional
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon dried dill weed

1 teaspoon dried tarragon

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika

smoked sea salt, to taste

hot sauce, to taste
8 ounces (or more!) smoked salmon, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 (12 fluid ounce) can evaporated milk
1 (15 ounce) can creamed corn

1/2 cup frozen corn
1 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese

fresh parsley for garnish

2 TBS flour + 2 TBS cold water, to use if not thick enough

1. Melt butter and oil in a large pot over medium heat. Saute onion, celery, and garlic until onions are tender. Stir in other veggies, broth, pepper, dill, tarragon, thyme, paprika, smoked salt and hot sauce. Bring to a boil, and reduce heat. Cover, and simmer 20 minutes or until everything is tender.

2. Stir in salmon, evaporated milk, and corn. Cook until heated through.  If it looks thick enough now, add the cheese and serve.  If not thickened enough at this point, shake together the flour and cold water in a lidded jar.  Make sure the soup is simmering, and whisk the flour slurry into the soup. Whisk constantly and cook until it is thickened.  Serve with fresh parsley if you want.

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