Easy Corn Chowder Recipe
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This easy-to-prepare creamy Corn Chowder Recipe comes together in under one hour and is the perfect late-summer soup. To this day, this is one of my most requested recipes for family and friends.
Soup is and has always been my first love. I love the comfort, being able to graze on it all day, and having always enjoyed making it. If you are the same, try my Clam Chowder or pozole verde.
Corn Chowder
Corn chowder is a tasty, thick soup that uses stock and cream as the base and is simmered with other vegetables, such as potatoes, celery, and onions, to make it a rich stew. Traditionally, chowders include fish, clams, and seafood; however, we are applying those same methods to fresh corn off the cob.
This should be made and eaten during the summer, the peak season for fresh corn and its best flavor. To change this corn chowder, add cooked chicken, ham, sausage, crab meat, shrimp, or lobster.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Corn – I used fresh corn on the cob for this recipe. Use canned or frozen corn kernels.
- Bacon – You can use regular or thick- bacon. I prefer un-cured smoked.
- Onion — Use red, white, yellow, or sweet onions. I also used whole garlic cloves and garnished with optional green onions.
- Celery – This can be large or small diced.
- Peppers – Red, yellow, or orange bell peppers are best because of their sweetness. You can also use green peppers. Other peppers to add in would be poblano or jalapeños chilis.
- Sherry – The best to use is cream sherry. I usually use Harvey’s Bristol Cream sherry brand.
- Potatoes – I like red potatoes best, but Yukon gold or russet potatoes can be used.
- Liquid – Chicken stock, vegetable stock, or water can be used.
- Milk — Half and half is the perfect cross between milk and cream for flavor. However, you can use whole, 1%, 2%, skim, or heavy cream milk.
- Seasoning – I used coarse salt and freshly cracked pepper and enhanced the flavor further with Tabasco and Worcestershire sauce.
How to Make Corn Chowder
Add some corn in the husk to a sheet tray and bake it at 425° for about 25 minutes.
In the meantime, render the bacon fat in a large pot until crispy brown. Once cooked, set the lardons aside.
Add the onions, celery, peppers, and garlic to the rendered bacon fat and cook until browned over medium heat, which takes about 15 to 20 minutes.
Deglaze with the cream sherry and cook until it has been absorbed; only a small amount remains.
Now, remove the corn from the oven and cool slightly before shucking. Trim the kernels off the cob and add them to the pot with sautéed vegetables and the potatoes.
Pour in the stock, turn the heat to high, and bring the soup to a boil.
While the soup is coming to a boil, we need to thicken it. You can make a blond roux by cooking equal parts flour and butter in a sauté pan over low heat until combined.
Whisk the slurry or roux into the soup until it becomes very thick, as a chowder should be, and cook it for a few more minutes over medium-low heat. The technical term is nappe, which means the soup can coat the back of a spoon.
Whisk in ½ and 1/2 and back in the crispy bacon lardons with salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, and Tabasco sauce.
Making Corn Chowder Thick
I made this corn chowder recipe very classically using a blond roux. However, if you want to avoid the flour, here are a few other ways to make corn chowder thick.
- Using an immersion blender, blend some ingredients before adding any thickening agent to thicken the soup naturally.
- Use arrowroot or corn starch and water to help thicken.
- Cook and mash the potatoes before whisking them into the chowder before adding the roux.
Make-Ahead and Storage
Make-Ahead: This soup can be made up to three days ahead for freshness.
How to Store: This can be stored covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. It can be frozen in a plastic container for up to 3 months. Thaw it in the refrigerator for one day before reheating.
How to Reheat: Add the desired amount of soup to a small pot over low heat until hot. The soup may need to be re-seasoned with salt and pepper and thickened.
chef notes + tips
- Substitute with about 4 cups of frozen or canned corn kernels.
- A roux is a thickening agent used in cooking and commonly used in chowders. It provides thickness and body to the soup.
- The technical term for deglazing and cooking liquid until it is almost gone is au sec.
- To re-thicken, add a small amount of slurry to the soup once it’s brought to a boil.
- A slurry is an equal parts volume of cornstarch mixed with water until combined.
- The outer husk should be firm if you’re unfamiliar with selecting fresh corn. The top part of the husk, where all the silk is ( that’s the long stringy stuff), should be a little moist. There should also be no blemishes on the outside.
More Soup Recipes
Video
Easy Corn Chowder Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 unshucked ears of corn
- 10 slices of chopped bacon
- 1 peeled and small diced sweet onion
- 4 small diced stalks of celery
- 1 seeded and small diced red bell pepper
- 3 finely minced cloves of garlic
- 1/3 cup of cream sherry
- 10 each large diced red potatoes
- 80 ounces chicken stock
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 cups 1/2 and 1/2
- sea salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
- Tabasco to taste
- Lea & Perrins to taste
- fresh sliced green for garnish
Instructions
- Add the corn in the husk onto a sheet tray, place it on the middle rack in the oven at 425°, and cook for about 25 minutes or until tender.
- In a large hot pot on medium-high heat, render the bacon fat and cook the bacon until it becomes crispy. Once it's cooked, remove the bacon lardons from the pan, turn down the heat to medium, add the onions, celery, peppers, and garlic, and saute for 4 to 5 minutes.
- Continue to sweat the vegetables over low heat for 10-15 minutes
- Deglaze with the cream sherry and cook until it becomes absorbed and only a small amount remains.
- Now, remove the corn from the oven and cool slightly before shucking and trimming the kernels off the cob. Add them to the pot with sautéed vegetables along with the potatoes.
- Pour in the stock, turn the heat to high, and bring the soup to a boil.
- Whisk the cornstarch and water in a small bowl to make a slurry. Then, whisk the slurry or roux into the soup until it becomes very thick, as a chowder should be.
- Cook it for a few more minutes over medium-low heat. The technical term is called nappe, which means the soup can coat the back of a spoon.
- Whisk in the ½ and 1/2 and add back in the crispy bacon lardons, salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, and Tabasco sauce.
- Garnish with optional green onions and additional crispy bacon lardons.
WOW! This is a phenomenal recipe. My husband ate 3 large bowls for dinner.
The only thing I changed/added was to saute/steam 2 chicken breasts and added the chopped up chicken to the chowder. The Harvey’s Bristol Cream really made the flavour so delicious. Thanks for another great recipe!
My pleasure!
Loved this, so easy. Didn’t add Worcester, seemed salty enough. Sooo good !! I was short half and half so added butter. Thanks so much !!
My pleasure!
Sorry to bother you… Is there a common, everyday substitute for sherry. I’ve read some common vinegars that I have – cider, wine, balsamic, rice; or anything else? I’d like to use something that I already have since I wouldn’t use sherry again. Thanks.
vermouth, dry marsala or madeira could also work.
Hey Chef
What a lovely, delicious, soup. Packed full of flavor and it just hits the spot for me.
many thanks!
Can I add shrimp to this. I’m thinking uncooked cleaned shells removed to be added once soup is thick # 7 and done by # 8. If adding pre cooked shrimp add to soup at the very end lid on to stitch 5-10 min. Just to heat the shrimp up. Is there an substitute for cream sherry as I don’t keep it at home only have creamed strawberry sherry which I’m sure would nit be good in this soup recipe.
Yes, I believe i mentioned that in the post. Regular sherry works.
Do you peel potatoes before dicing and adding?
optional
Your step by step instructions describe how to make the roux for thickening the soup….cooking together butter and flour. But in the recipe block your ingredients include cornstarch and water for thickening instead of the traditional cooked “roux”. I don’t think cornstarch is a preferred way to thicken cream soups.
I provide both options. Slurry is a fantastic way to thicken soups and is often less heavy which I like, especially for a summer soup like this.