One Pot Sausage Meatball Potato Chowder Recipe

simple one pot chowder

One pot meals are the best for busy weeknights making this sausage and potato chowder the perfect dinner! Cooking this chowder couldn’t be easier and clean up is a breeze!

You can make a double batch and freeze the leftovers for another dinner!

I will share variations later in this post. For now, let’s go over the simple ingredients. 

sausage meatball and potato chowder ingredients

Most of these items are basics in the pantry. If you don’t keep these items in your pantry, you might want to consider keeping them in your grocery rotation. The ground sausage can be kept in the freezer.

• ground italian sausage (mild or hot, depending on your preference)
• yukon gold potatoes
• celery
• chopped onion
• garlic
• fresh rosemary
• fresh sage
• chicken broth (option: dry mix)
• butter
• corn starch
• half and half or heavy cream
• parmesean cheese (optional!)
• salt and black pepper

step by step cooking instructions

The steps for making chowder are the same for many recipes. Once you get the hang of making soups and chowders, the sky is the limit with options!

step one: prep the vegetables and ground sausage

I like to chop my veggies first so they are ready to go when I need them. Chop the potatoes into bite-sized pieces last so they won’t discolor. The onions should be a fine chop as well as the celery.

Finely chop the herbs and garlic.

Making the meatballs for this recipe is simple. I like to cut the package of ground sausge into a grid making about 36 meatballs. Then I roll each section into a ball to create the meatballs.

step two: brown the sausage meatballs

Heat a heavy dutch oven on medium to high heat then add the meatballs. If you need olive oil, go ahead and add it. I didn’t need olive oil since the fat will render off of the sausage.

Flip the meatballs so that most of the sides are browned. Remove the meatballs onto a plate with a paper towel to drain excess grease. 

Use another paper towel to sop up some of the excess fat in the bottom of the dutch oven. Try to keep some of the fat and the cooked bits in the bottom of the dutch oven for added flavor!

step three: saute the vegetables

Using the same dutch oven, saute the veggies in this order: first the chopped onion and celery. Saute the onion and celery until tender. Stir the vegetables often to prevent sticking and burning.

Add the chopped potatoes to the mixture and cook until fork tender. Stir in fresh herbs.

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step four: combine remaining ingredients

Next, add the cooked sausage meatballs, homemade chicken stock (or boxed chicken broth or dry mix combined with water) and butter into the dutch oven. 

Bring the chowder to a heavy boil. While it comes to a boil, mix the corn starch with the half and half cream. Pour the mixture into the chowder slowly to thicken.

step five: serve the delicous sausage and potato chowder!​

Now for the best part! Eating! I like to sprinkle grated parmesean cheese on top as well as fresh parsley. Neither are a must but the cheese adds additional heartiness to this delicious chowder! Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve the chowder with warmed store bought french bread or even a can of biscuits. Your family will enjoy this meal!

recipe variations

Let’s chat about some variations for this one pot sausage meatball and potato chowder.

• Use either red potatoes or baby gold potatoes in place of the yukon gold potatoes.
• For a healthier version and less calories, replace the pork sausage with turkey sausage or even chicken sausage. If you have link sausage, remove the casings before cooking.
• If you have fresh spinach on hand, chop it into small pieces and throw it into the dutch oven after adding the liquids. This adds additional nutrition to the chowder.
• Seasonings can be switched from rosemary and sage to italian seasonings or even mexican seasonings to suite your family.
• If you choose to make a mexican version of this chowder with your seasoning choices, add green bell peppers and smoked sausage.

one pot cooking benefits

Do you love one pot meals? I sure do especially on busy nights! This delicous chowder is short on prep time and cook time so it can be made any night of the week. The total time it took me to make this chowder was 30 minutes!

I like to double the batch so that I can freeze the leftovers. That makes another meal even easier! This chowder can be stored in the refreigerator in an airtight container for up to 3-4 days but I doubt it will last that long with hungry people in your home!

kitchen faves

Here are some of my favorite kitchen essentials for making this delicous chowder! Tap the images to shop!

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Print Recipe

Sausage Meatball Potato Chowder

This one pot sausage and potato chowder recipe is delicious and so easy to make! With just a few simple ingredients, you can have a delicious and hearty meal in no time. Perfect for busy weeknights!

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time30 minutes mins

Course: Soup

Cuisine: American

Keyword: butternut squash soup, chowder, dutch oven, one pot meal

Servings: 4 people

Cost: $10

Ingredients

• 1 lb gound sausage
• 4 cups chopped potatoes
• 1 small chopped onion
• 3-4 cloves fresh garlic
• 1 stalk fresh rosemary
• 3-4 leaves fresh sage
• 8f cups homemade chicken stock
• 3-4 tbsp butter
• 2-3 tbsp corn starch
• 1 cup half and half cream
• parmesean cheese for garnish
• salt and pepper

Instructions

• Dice the onion and celery. Mince the garlic. Chop potatoes in bite-size pieces. Finely chop fresh herbs.
• Cut ground pork sausage into a grid in the package creating approximately 36 sections. Form into meatballs.
• Preheat dutch oven then brown meatballs on all sides. Remove from pot and drain on paper towels. Remove some of the rendered fat using tongs and a paper towel, leaving the browned bits in the bottom.
• Add cut veggies and herbs except for potatoes. Saute til tender. Add oil if needed.
• Add potatoes and saute til tender. Add meatballs back into the pot when potatoes are tender.
• Pour in chicken stock and herbs. Stir up the bits from the bottom. Bring to a boil.
• Thicken the chowder using cream and corn starch mixture. Pour slowly into chowder. Bring back to boil and allow to thicken.
• Serve with fresh parsley and plenty of parmesean cheese along with toasted french bread.

Notes

Variations

• Use either red potatoes or baby gold potatoes in place of the yukon gold potatoes.
• For a healthier version and less calories, replace the pork sausage with turkey sausage or even chicken sausage. If you have link sausage, remove the casings before cooking.
• If you have fresh spinach on hand, chop it into small pieces and throw it into the dutch oven after adding the liquids. This adds additional nutrition to the chowder.
• Seasonings can be switched from rosemary and sage to italian seasons or even mexican seasonings to suite your family.
• If you choose to make a mexican version of this chowder with your seaoning choices, add green bell peppers and smoked sausage.