Ham and Corn Chowder with Beef Tenderloin

One would think beef tenderloin would be the star of any meal including it but here it is out shone by leftovers. I'm still using up the leftover ham and tonight's dish is Ham Corn Chowder. Since there is potato in the chowder I decided to forego a starch on the plate. Good thing too as when I ate this I was quite full, otherwise I would have had another bowl of chowder. 

I decided to make chowder first then I decided what to have with it, so this is possibly the first meal where I've chosen each component to go with all the others. I went shopping knowing I was making chowder and needed beef to go with it, only the cut was left to decide. Tenderloin turned out to be the best value today. I wanted broccoli with the beef and I always seem to manage to get carrots on the plate too. The corn chowder is sweet and so are the carrots so care had to be taken not to end up with a savoury dessert! The tenderloin was done on the BBQ in 2x2x2x2 minutes to get crossed grill marks on both sides. It was seasoned with salt and black pepper. The vegetables were steamed and finished in olive oil. I didn't over cook them this time so I'm quite proud of myself!

The chowder recipe is from TheDancingCook web site and I added red pepper for colour, chicken stock to broaden the flavour profile and white wine for a little acid.

Ham Corn Chowder

2 celery stalks diced

1/4 cup onion diced - I used one shallot

2 tbsp butter

2 tbsp flour

1 oz chicken stock

3 cups milk

2 cups cooked ham diced

2 cups diced potatoes - par boiled

1 1/2 cups frozen corn

1 can creamed corn

2 oz white wine

1/4 of a red pepper diced

1/4 tsp dried thyme

1/8 tsp cayenne

1/8 tsp salt

Par boil the potatoes for a few minutes then drain. Sweat the onion in the butter, then add the celery and red pepper. Add the flour and cook it slightly then add the chicken stock and part of the milk and stir the lumps out.  Add the remaining milk and all the other ingredients.  Bring to a boil then simmer for at least twenty minutes.  I sprinkled more flour over top to thicken it. I used 1% milk for this and no cream so it's fairly lean too.

I was blown away by how good this is, I can't wait till lunch so I can have some more. The steak and vegetables were perfect but even so they paled next to the chowder.