This Chunky Corn Chowder with Sweet Corn and Bacon is a quick and easy soup that is filled with flavor and perfect for anytime of year!
This creamy, chunky, hearty chowder is so flavorful and satisfying! We’ve enjoyed it for dinner and lunches recently. We even froze it and reheated it and I’m happy to report that this soup passed the freezer test. We are lucky enough that we can get fresh sweet corn several times throughout the year here in Austin so this is a great way to make the most of it! I also tried this recipe with flash frozen sweet corn and it did just as well if you can’t find fresh. That’s all to say that this recipe really holds up and you will definitely want to make it!
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Chunky Corn Chowder with Sweet Corn and Bacon
I often think of hearty soups like chowders as cold weather meals but this soup is surprisingly light yet somehow still filling. Making it the perfect soup for a meal no matter what the weather is!
BMW and I were having a conversation about how corn is often thought of as a late summer thing but we both associate it with fall. Maybe it’s because our summers tend to last quite a long time down here in Austin. Anyways, that is what got me thinking that this Chunky Corn Chowder with Sweet Corn and Bacon would make a lovely starter to a Thanksgiving meal. Or a nice dinner on a fall evening and delicious leftovers for lunch the next day.
Quick and Easy Chunky Corn Chowder
This soup is pretty adaptable. You can use vegetable or chicken broth, whichever you happen to have. I have used both and they both work well. Yukon Gold potatoes are my favorite in this soup but red potatoes would work in their place. I like the saltiness and texture that crumbled bacon adds but if you don’t do bacon I would suggest adding some roasted and salted pumpkin seeds
Don’t be scared of the cayenne in this recipe. It adds just a touch of heat that brings out the flavor of the paprika. The cream really cools things down. If you don’t have green onions, chives will work really well in their place.
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Chunky Corn Chowder with Sweet Corn and Bacon
Ingredients
- 2 strips bacon fried and crumbled
- 4 ears corn about 3 cups of kernels
- 1/2 yellow onion diced
- 4 cloves garlic pressed or minced
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 4 cups vegetable or chicken broth
- 1 lb yukon gold potatoes cut into bite sized pieces
- 1 cup cream
- 1 tbsp ground paprika
- 1 tsp kosher salt plus more to taste
- 1/2 tsp black pepper plus more to taste
- 1/4 tsp ground cayenne
- 1 bay leaf
- 3 green onions thinly sliced
Instructions
- In a large heavy bottomed pot, fry the bacon until crispy. 5-8 minutes. Set bacon on a paper towel to drain. Wipe out most of the bacon grease from the pot, leaving about 1 tsp.
- Meanwhile, cut the kernels off the stalks and reserve the stalks. Use the kernels from about 3 of the stalks in the soup, reserving the last kernels for topping.
- Add the garlic and onion to the pot with the bacon grease on medium heat. Cook for about 3-5 minutes until onions have softened.
- Add the corn and flour to the pot and stir until everything is well combined.
- Put the potatoes into the pot with the reserved corn stalks, paprika, cayenne, salt, pepper and bay leaf. Pour broth over everything and stir. Cover and let cook over a low boil for about 15 minutes until potatoes are tender.
- Remove corn stalks and discard. Using an emersion blender, blend about half of the soup. Alternatively, remove about half of the soup and blend in a blender until smooth and add back to pot.
- Remove soup from heat and stir in cream. Taste and add salt if needed.
- Divide into bowls and serve with crumbled bacon, green onions and fresh corn kernals on top.
Sounds great. Would it work without the cream and just not be as thick?
Yes, you could make it without the cream. Could sub milk or try reducing down if you want to thicken a bit.