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Take any coastal region of the world. If you dig deep enough, you’ll find dozens if not hundreds of native seafood soup recipes in that region. Most of these you won’t ever find on the internet. In fact, the overwhelming majority of seafood soups remain relatively obscure.
Take New England, for example, a region known for its rich seafaring heritage and seafood cuisine. In my cookbook, New England Soups from the Sea, I include 80 seafood soup recipes from around New England. Yes, 80! Most people are surprised when they hear that. After all, very few restaurants venture beyond New England clam chowder and lobster bisque.
Before the food industry eroded our coastal culinary traditions and simplified our tastes in seafood, there was a time when Americans consumed the bounty of the sea in many forms, including seafood soups, and were comfortable making a wide variety of seafood soup recipes. I’m sure this is true in other areas of the world too.
From Rhode Island to Maine—Get 80 locally inspired recipes that honor the traditions of America’s northeast.
Old cookbooks are a testament to the diversity that once existed. Chowders used to include dozens of different species, not just clams. Bisques were commonly made with more than just lobster. Fish soups included a greater diversity than just cod and haddock. And seafood stews, native to every seafaring culture on the planet, showcase varieties that are as vast as the ocean itself.
The 100 seafood soup recipes included here may seem like a lot but it barely scratches the surface. Regardless, there’s a lot more to seafood soups than just clam chowder and lobster bisque. Hopefully, you’ll find something new and try something different!
Seafood Stocks and Broths
Chowder Recipes
– Clam Chowders (1-10)
– Fish Chowders (11-17)
– Shellfish Chowders (18-23)
Bisque Recipes
– Lobster and Crab Bisques (24-28)
– Other Seafood Bisques (29-34)
Classic Stews and Medleys
– Mediterranean Seafood Stews (35-42)
– Portuguese Seafood Stews (43-46)
– Cajun and Creole Seafood Stews (47-50)
– Traditional New England Seafood Stews (51-54)
More Seafood Soups and Stews from Around the World
– Southeast Asia (55-64)
– East Asia (65-69)
– Caribbean (70-72)
– Mexico (73-74)
– Central America (75-78)
– South America (79-82)
– Africa (83-86)
– Nordic (87-90)
– Russia (91-92)
– Eastern Mediterranean (93-95)
– United States (96-100)
Before we get to the recipes, it’s important to acknowledge that homemade seafood stocks and broths form the foundation of any great seafood soup. In particular, homemade stocks and broths contain more balanced, aromatic, and fresher flavors than store-bought versions. They are a key to making truly sublime tasting seafood soups.
For example, fish stock gives fish soup recipes, be it fish chowders, stews, or even brothy fish soups, an added but delicate boost in the briny and salty qualities of the sea. It’s a much better choice than water or chicken stock in any fish soup recipe.
Most of the 100 seafood soup recipes are made with homemade stocks and broths. But not all include directions for how to make them. The recipes in this section will go into more depth and serve as a reference for making your own.
If time and/or unfamiliarity means you’re not going to make stocks and broths from scratch, then there are a few good store-bought seafood stock and broth options. In particular, there is an excellent store-bought fish broth and two excellent store-bought clam broths (also called clam juice), which are included in their respective links below.
That said, please understand that making your own stocks and broths will elevate your seafood soup recipes into another stratosphere of deliciousness. Yes, you can make decent soups from store-bought stocks. But you can’t make epic, soul-stirring ones. Making your own seafood stocks and broths is also a nice skill to add to your cooking skills repertoire!
Fish Broth – includes a good store-bought option
Lobster Broth
Crab Stock
Clam Broth – includes two good store-bought options
Shrimp Stock by Culinary Hill
Perhaps the most widely consumed seafood soup, at least in America, New England clam chowder reigns supreme in this category of seafood soups.
Contrary to popular belief, its position as the King of Chowders is only a fairly recent historical development. There are many types of clam chowder in New England, as well as other regional styles around the United States. These classic seafood soup recipes take many forms and can include almost any type of fish or shellfish.
1. Authentic New England Clam Chowder
2. Milky Maine Clam Chowder
3. Rhode Island Clam Chowder by Saveur
4. Manhattan Clam Chowder
5. Long Island Clam Chowder
6. Portuguese Clam Chowder
7. North Carolina Clam Chowder by The Blond Cook
8. Minorcan Clam Chowder by She’s Cookin
9. Pacific Northwest Razor Clam Chowder by Serious Eats
10. Pacific Northwest Manila Clam Chowder by Luna Cafe
11. Classic New England Fish Chowder
12. Smoked Haddock Chowder with a Poached Egg
13. Portuguese Fish Chowder (Two Different Ways)
14. Bluefish Chowder
15. Wild Salmon Chowder
16. Cullen Skink (Scottish Smoked Fish Chowder) by Healthy Christian Home
17. Bermuda Fish Chowder by Goslings Rum
18. Lobster Corn Chowder
19. Mussel Chowder with Fennel
20. Oyster Chowder with Spinach
21. Scallop Chowder with Wild Mushrooms
22. Caribbean Conch Chowder by Garlic and Zest
23. Shrimp Chowder by Masterclass
When it comes to bisques, it’s rare to find anything other than a lobster bisque on restaurant menus. But other types of seafood bisques can, and should, be made too.
The key to any great bisque is the stock. Crustaceans, especially lobsters and crabs, make incredible stocks. The one advantage of making bisque from seafood other than lobster and crab, is they tend to be less time-consuming. Mussel and clam bisques only require their respective broths, which are easily made via five to ten minutes of steaming.
24. Lobster Bisque by Cafe Delites
25. Crab Bisque
26. Slow Cooker Key West Crab and Lobster Bisque by xoxoBella
27. Corn and Blue Crab Bisque by Grits and Pinecones
28. She Crab Bisque (South Carolina Crab Bisque) by What a Girl Eats
29. Crawfish Bisque by Went Here 8 This
30. Scallop Bisque
31. Clam Bisque
32. Mussel Bisque
33. Salmon Bisque
34. Shrimp Bisque by African Bites
Every seafaring culture has its native seafood stews. Bouillabaisse, cioppino, gumbo, paella, and countless others combine multiple types of fish and shellfish with their ultra-flavorful juices from their shells, mixing, melding, and morphing into some truly wondrous symphonies of the sea.
The difference between a soup and a stew is really just the amount of liquid. Soups are brothier and stews are thicker, the latter coming from a higher ratio of meat and vegetables to broth and/or an extended simmering to reduce the broth to a thicker consistency.
But there are plenty of gray areas. Many types of seafood soup recipes have a stew-like character more from the multifarious types of seafood than from a thickened base. For example, bouillabaisse is often more soup-like than stew-like. Same for the simple milk-based New England shellfish stews, like oyster stew, And some soups like chowder are more like stews. Thick or think, in the end, the only thing that really matters is if it tastes good. And with stews and medleys, you can never go wrong. I consider them the Mt. Everest of all seafood dishes and truly some of the greatest dishes on the planet.
35. Bouillabaisse
36. Cioppino
37. Smokey Cioppino by Killing Thyme
38. Zarzuela (Spanish Seafood Stew)
39. Bourride (French Seafood Stew)
40. Zuppa di Pesce (Italian Fish Stew)
41. Croatian Seafood Stew (Brudet) by Forking Good Food
42. Seafood Paella by Spain on a Fork
43. Portuguese Clam Stew
44. Portuguese Seafood Stew
45. Portuguese Squid Stew
46. Shrimp Mozambique (Portuguese Shrimp Stew)
47. Shrimp and Crab Gumbo by Burrata and Bubbles
48. Creole Seafood Gumbo by Southern Bytes
49. Seafood Gumbo by Louisiana Seafood
50. Shrimp Etouffee (Cajun Shrimp Stew) by Dinner at the Zoo
51. Traditional Oyster Stew
52. Maine Lobster Stew
53. Traditional Clam Stew by New England Today
54. Traditional Scallop Stew
There are so many seafood soup recipes from around the world that it would be impossible to include them all. Any country with a significant coastline surely has a long tradition of soups with seafood. What follows are some of the more well-known recipes. If you have some favorite seafood soup recipes not included here, please share in the comments below!
Also, I’ve attempted to select recipes without overly exotic or impossible-to-find ingredients. You may have to substitute an ingredient here and there but the recipes could at least be closely approximated in most kitchens.
55. Tom Yum Goong (Thai Hot and Sour Soup with Shrimp)
56. Thai Bouillabaisse
57. Mohinga (Burmese Fish Noodle Soup)
59. Crab Bee Hoon (Singaporean Crab Noodle Soup) by Rasa Malaysia
60. Fish Soup Bee Hoon (Singaporean Fish Noodle Soup) by Ang Sarap
61. Vietnamese Sweet and Sour Fish Soup (Canh Chua Ca) by Hungry Wanderlust
62. Vietnamese Shrimp Pho by Sense and Edibility
63. Miso Salmon Sinigang (Filipino Tamarind Salmon Soup) by Mikha Eats
64. Indonesian Fish Soup (Tekwan Palembang) by Asian Food Network
65. Kimchi Seafood Soup by Champagne Tastes
66. Japanese Asari Clam Miso Soup by Low Carbing Asian
67. Traditional Miso Soup with Dashi Stock by Just One Cookbook
68. Chinese Milky White Fish Soup by Souped Up Recipes
69. Sister Song’s Chinese Fish Soup by Omnivore’s Cookbook
70. Jamaican Rundown (Jamaican Fish Stew) by Recipes from a Pantry
71. Caribbean Seafood Soup by Homemade Zagat
72. Puerto Rican Shrimp Stew (Asopao de Camarones) by Latino Mom Meals
73. Mexican Fish Soup (Caldo de Pescado) by In Mama Maggie’s Kitchen
74. Veracruz Style Fish Soup (Bacalao a la Veracruzana) by Muy Bueno Cookbook
75. Honduran Fish Soup (Sopa de Caracol) by 196 Flavors
76. Guatemalan Seafood Soup (Tapado) by 196 Flavors
77. Nicaraguan Fish Soup (Sopa de Pescado) by Nata Knows Best
78. Panamanian Seafood Stew (Guacho de Mariscos) by Curious Cuisiniere
79. Parihuela (Peruvian Seafood Soup) by Pisco Trail
80. Chilean Seafood Stew (Caldillo de Congrio) by whats4eats
81. Encebollado (Ecuadorian Fish Stew) by Amigo Foods
82. Moqueca (Brazilian Fish Stew) by De l’Amour en cocotte
83. African Fish Pepper Soup by African Bites
84. East African Fish Stew by Hunt Gather Cook
85. West African Fish Stew by Jayne Rain
86. Moroccan Fish Soup by Rafaella
87. Norwegian Salt Cod Stew by The Forked Spoon
88. Finnish Salmon Soup (Lohikeitto) by The Skinny Spatula
89. Swedish Fish Soup (Svenska Fisksoppa) by The Daily Meal
90. Icelandic Fish Soup (Fiskisupa) by Abra’s Kitchen
91. Ukha (Russian Fish Head Soup) by Peter’s Food Adventures
92. Russian Smoked Fish Soup by Lin’s Food
93. Greek Fish Soup (Psarosoupa) by Dimitra’s Dishes
94. Turkish Mackerel Soup by Turkey’s for Life
95. Croatian Fish Stew by Chasing the Donkey
96. South Carolina She-Crab Soup by Cameron’s Seafood
97. Maryland Crab Soup by Savoring the Good
98. South Carolina Seafood Stew by Two Healthy Kitchens
99. North Carolina Fish Stew by The Blond Cook
100. Restaurant-Style Seafood Soup by Ask Chef Dennis
From Rhode Island to Maine—Get 80 locally inspired recipes that honor the traditions of America’s northeast.
Craig Fear is the creator of Fearless Eating and the author of three books, The 30-Day Heartburn Solution, Fearless Broths and Soups and The Thai Soup Secret. After years helping clients with digestive issues, Craig decided to pursue writing full-time. He intends to write many more books on broths and soups from around the world! Click here to learn more about Craig.
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