Creamy Corn Chowder (Printer-friendly)
Velvety blend of sweet corn, potatoes, and savory bacon with herbs and cream.
# What You’ll Need:
→ Vegetables
01 - 3 cups fresh or frozen corn kernels
02 - 2 medium Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and diced
03 - 1 medium onion, finely chopped
04 - 2 celery stalks, diced
05 - 1 medium carrot, peeled and diced
06 - 2 cloves garlic, minced
→ Meats (optional)
07 - 4 slices bacon, diced
→ Dairy
08 - 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
09 - 2 cups whole milk
10 - 1 cup heavy cream
→ Broth & Seasonings
11 - 3 cups low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
12 - 1 bay leaf
13 - 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
14 - 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
15 - Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
→ Garnish
16 - 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives or parsley
# How to Make It:
01 - In a large pot over medium heat, cook the diced bacon until crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. Drain excess fat, leaving 1 tablespoon in the pot. For a vegetarian version, omit bacon and add 1 extra tablespoon butter.
02 - Add butter to the pot. Sauté onion, celery, carrot, and garlic for 4 to 5 minutes until softened.
03 - Stir in potatoes, corn, bay leaf, thyme, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper. Pour in broth and bring to a boil.
04 - Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes until potatoes are tender.
05 - Remove bay leaf. Using an immersion blender, puree about half of the soup to achieve a creamy texture while retaining some chunks. Alternatively, transfer half to a blender and return blended portion to the pot.
06 - Stir in whole milk and heavy cream, then simmer gently for 5 minutes. Adjust seasoning as needed.
07 - Ladle soup into bowls and top with reserved bacon and chopped fresh chives or parsley.
# Expert Tips:
01 -
- It comes together in under an hour and tastes like you fussed over it for way longer.
- The bacon is optional, but those crispy bits hitting creamy chowder create a moment worth savoring.
- You can use frozen corn and it's genuinely better than you'd expect, which means no seasonal limits on comfort.
02 -
- Blending about half the soup is the secret—too much blending and it becomes wallpaper paste, not enough and it's brothy and disappointing.
- If your dairy looks curdled after adding it, you overheated the base; it's salvageable but tastes slightly off, so keep the simmer gentle.
- Frozen corn works as well as fresh, sometimes better, because it's frozen at peak ripeness and doesn't release excess water.
03 -
- Don't skip the smoked paprika—it adds almost invisible depth that makes people ask what your secret ingredient is.
- Taste the broth before adding it; this single habit will teach you more about seasoning than any guide, because you'll learn how salt tastes at different concentrations.