This homemade potato and corn chowder is delicious, simple to make, comforting, economical, and made in one pot under 30 minutes. It is soup season and this is one of my award-winning soups in my household apart from my loaded potato soup. My family enjoys it, the girls and hubby happily mop their bowls with bread any time I make it. I can’t blame them, it’s hearty, delicious, flavourful, and more importantly, filling. This soup leaves their bellies full and happy!
Why this recipe is so good
This corn potato chowder is made with frozen corn and that doesn’t compromise the taste at all. Using frozen corn saves time and that means you don’t have to worry about removing kernels from the cob, fingers saved, and less dish to wash. It is simple to make and totally foolproof, this is not one of those complicated recipes, it is actually easy to make and one of the best out there. Easily customizable and a good way to use your leftover meat or seafood. While I have used bacon in my corn and potato chowder, you can also add any protein of choice from chicken, sausages, ham and clam, shrimps, and more. It can be made on the stovetop, slow cooker (crockpot), or even the instant pot. What is not to love!
What you will need to make potato and corn chowder
You will need the following ingredients to make this chunky soup. Potato I used red potatoes but you can substitute with any other waxy potatoes of choice. Frozen Corn: you can substitute for fresh corn on the cobb Onion Fresh garlic Dried thyme Celery substitute with leek Bacon Jalapeno: this is optional but I like my soup a tad spicy, using red jalapeno also gives the soup some contrast of color. All-purpose flour: this is added to make a roux that thickens the soup. You can omit this and substitute it with cornstarch/cornflour. Milk: I used semi-skimmed but you can use full-fat whole milk, half and half, or heavy cream. Low sodium chicken Stock: this is optional as you can substitute it with water. Using stock adds extra flavor to the soup and you can go easy on the salt. Salt and pepper
How to make corn potato chowder
Place a pan on medium heat and once it’s hot, add bacon lardons and cook until golden brown and crispy. Using a slotted spoon, remove the cooked bacon bits and transfer it to a paper towel to drain. Remove excess bacon grease if it is more than 2 Tablespoons. Sauté chopped celery and onions in the bacon grease and cook until translucent. Add chopped garlic and jalapeno and continue to cook for another 2 minutes stirring intermittently so that the garlic does not burn. Add flour to the sauteed aromatics and stir to combine until the flour dissolved. Pour milk and chicken stock into the pot, whisk and deglaze the pan, scraping the bottom of the pan at the same time to remove until the flour is fully combined. Add dried thyme and season with salt and pepper taste. Add chopped potatoes and stir them into the mixture, reduce the heat and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes or until the potatoes are fork-tender. Stir in the frozen corn and half of the reserved bacon bits and cook for another 3 to 5 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning to preference, also add water, milk or chicken stock to the soup to thin it out if it is becoming too thick. Serve the soup with some bacon bits, chopped green onions, and crusty bread of choice.
Tips
If you are not bothered about making this a highly calorific dinner then by all means use butter in making the roux. You can also add cheese (as much as you want) when the chowder is ready.
For richer and thicker corn chowder, add heavy cream or half and half to the recipe. You can also blend about ¼ of the soup
I did not peel the potatoes for this recipe but you can peel yours if you want especially if using potatoes with thick skin.
What to Serve With Corn Chowder
Crusty bread all the way (I love tiger baguette bread) and it doesn’t have to be toasted too, slather the bread with butter and you are good to go. You can also use cheesy bread like this cheesy pesto bread or garlic bread.
How to Store
Fridge: leftover corn potato chowder can be stored in the fridge for up to 5 days. Make sure it is cooled completely before storing To reheat: simply pop it in the microwave for a few seconds or warm on the stovetop. If the chowder is too thick, thin it out by adding a little bit of water or milk for the desired consistency. Can I freeze it: No, I wouldn’t recommend freezing chowder as the texture won’t be the same once thawed. The milk would separate basically and that would give the soup a funny look.
Watch how to make it
What is the difference between soup and chowder? They are both a type of soup. Chowder consist of chunkier vegetables and protein thickened with roux (more of a milk-based) while the soup is a liquid food made from the combination of vegetables and protein Can I make chowder vegan or vegetarian? Yes, you can make potato and corn chowder vegetarian or vegan by omitting the bacon or bacon fat. If you are vegan, use any cooking oil or vegan butter of choice to sweat the vegetables. Also use plant-based milk in place of dairy milk. Can corn chowder be made in the slow cooker? Yes, you can and that is one of the beauties of this recipe. For best results, cook the bacon then sauté the celery, garlic, and onions before adding the rest of the ingredients to the crockpot. Cook on low settings for 6 to 8 hours or high heat for 3 to 4 hours. To thicken your crockpot soup: Instead of roux, make cornflour slurry to thicken the soup, alternatively, blend about ⅓ of the soup. Will canned corn work for this recipe Absolutely, you can use canned corn or a combination of canned creamed corn and ordinary canned corn for this recipe. Best potatoes to use for corn potato chowder Waxy potatoes like red potatoes or Yukon gold are best used for chowders as they hold their shape when cooked in this case boiled. You can also use an all-rounder potato like Maris Piper or Russet.
More soup recipes
Instant pot potato soup Brussels sprout soup Pressure cooker carrot soup Easy vegetable soup Instant pot butternut squash soup Pressure cooker broccoli soup If you made this easy corn chowder with bacon recipe, don’t forget to leave me feedback and rate it 5 stars. Tag me @thedinnerbite on Instagram and save away to your Pinterest. Please subscribe to the blog if you haven’t for free new recipes in your inbox
