Summer Corn Chowder
Although it's early in the season, the corn we found at the market was surprisingly sweet and tender.
The corn kernels look like little nuggets of gold.
Amanda's neat trick for chopping scorching hot peppers: plastic wrap mittens!
We followedNancy's advice and blistered the poblano -- it paid off in spades.
Bacon: Nature's candy.
You don't need to add any liquid, as the veggies supply enough of their own juices. In just a few minutes, this becomes...
...this!
Amanda takes her cream seriously.
A bit of pepper finishes the chowder off.
And we're ready to eat!
Author Notes: I started making this chowder in 1990 from a recipe I found in Food & Wine. Not being a fan of bell peppers, I modified it by adding poblano peppers instead and I think it tastes much better. I have also roasted the poblanos on occasion for a richer flavor It's a huge crowd pleaser! - Nancy Jo —Nancy Jo
Food52 Review: This is an earthy, moody corn chowder that alternates between sweet and hot. We were intrigued by the technique of cooking the vegetables in their own juices before adding milk and cream, which seems to intensify all the flavors. - A&M —The Editors
Serves 6
- 6 medium ears of corn
- 6 strips of bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 small onion
- 1 medium poblano, finely chopped
- 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and finely chopped
- 1 small celery rib, finely chopped
- 3 medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded and finely chopped
- 2 medium boiling potatoes (about 1 pound), peeled and cubed
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
- Pinch of sugar
- 1 small bay leaf
- 2 cups light cream, at room temperature
- 1 cup milk
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Chopped parsley, for garnish
- Working over a bowl, cut the corn kernels from the cobs at about half their depth. Then, using the back of the knife, scrape the cobs over the bowl to release all the "milk"; set aside.
- In a large saucepan, fry the bacon over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until crisp, about 10 minutes. Transfer the bacon to paper towels to drain. Crumble and reserve.
- Discard all but 3 tablespoons of the bacon drippings from the pan. Add the onion and cook over moderate heat until golden, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the poblano pepper, jalapeño and celery and cook until slightly softened, about 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, potatoes, salt, allspice, sugar, bay leaf and the reserved corn kernels and their "milk" and stir well. Cook over moderate heat until mixture begins to sizzle.
- Reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are tender, 35 to 45 minutes. Stir in the cream and milk and bring just to a boil. Remove from heat and season with black pepper to taste. Ladle the chowder into bowls and garnish with the crumbled bacon and parsley.
- Your Best Chowder Contest Winner!
More Great Recipes: Corn Chowder|Vegetables|Appetizers|Soups|Corn
2 months ago caroline0ne
This was a total treat. I had received a farm basket with 6 ears of corn, along with one ivory bell pepper and one jalapeño, and I had eaten corn on the cob three times from the last one. So this was a perfect way to enjoy them. I used 2 C light cream and an 8-oz can light coconut milk. As I live alone, I am delighted to have a two quarts left in my refrigerator! I wonder if it would be as good with frozen corn niblets?? I will certainly look forward to celebrating summer this way annually.
8 months ago jenny
I don't like being the only one who didn't have a positive experience...! What did I do wrong?! There wasn't enough liquid in the veg / spice mix to cook the potatoes for 35 mins, after just 2 or 3 it was dry and sizzling, so I added 2 cups stock.... but the overall result (everything else in the recipe was followed) was too rich and sweet and lacking any depth.... Sorry! Maybe it's a cultural thing, chowder isn't in our tradition in the UK
8 months ago Chris Van Houten
That's a shame that it didn't work out- I love this recipe. Perhaps the heat was still too high when the vegetables were cooking? Every time I've made it the veggies release their juices, so I've never been tempted to add stock, but if the heat isn't turned down the juices would just evaporate. The final product could be described as rich and sweet anyway (thanks, cream), so maybe in the end it's more of a cultural thing after all.
about 1 year ago whmcdevitt
i just made this again and i repeat "best corn chowder ever!!!!!!)
about 1 year ago mawhorts
This was stellar with some frozen roasted Hatch chiles I brought back from New Mexico (substituted for both the jalapeno and poblano). Like a few others, I used canned tomatoes for convenience. I also couldn't resist adding some peas at the end. Thank you for the delicious (and flexible) recipe.
about 1 year ago galsmu
Made this last week - big hit! Substituted canned green chilies for the fresh poblano and jalapeño because it's what I had. The fresh corn had a great sweetness. Great idea to up the heat with some cayenne. Love this recipe and will definitely make it again.
about 1 year ago chop chop
I have been meaning to make this dish for quite some time. Tonight I did. Best corn chowder I have ever had. Love the bit of heat this dish has. Going to a friend's "stay cation" at her home in the country in a few weeks and will make dinner for about 10 folks. This will be part of it. Kudos.
over 1 year ago mary anderson
Unbelievably good. I'm certain it needed no substitutions but to appeal to some dinner guests and to make it more of a main dish I made the following changes: eliminated the tomatoes and jalapeno, added 1/2 orange bell pepper, cayenne pepper, char roasted the poblano, used half and half in lieu of light cream, and finished with a dollop of fresh crab and smokey Spanish paprika.
about 2 years ago molly redden
My super market was out of poblanos so I charred a green bell pepper instead. To balance things out, I toasted a dried, seeded Guajillo chile and blended that with a cup or two of the soup, then stirred that back into the pot. I also neglected to skin the tomatoes before it was time to chop them up, so I used half a can of crushed tomatoes instead. Tasted wonderful!
about 2 years ago whmcdevitt
best corn chowder ever!
about 2 years ago courtney conway
I made this recently for a family lunch and it was delicious. We were on vacation without a stocked pantry so I skipped the bay leaf and allspice and used red pepper flakes and a regular orange pepper- but stuck to the recipe otherwise. It was fresh and delicious. Our corn was so sweet that there was no need to add sugar. I will absolutely make this again. I also made the whole-wheat pull-apart biscuit recipes on this site (by Lucas Volger) and they were a perfect pair.
about 2 years ago Yazoolulu
I made this last week and it was fantastic. I used thick-cut bacon and did not use the bacon drippings to fry the onions - it was still quite bacon-y. Since we had folks that couldn't eat spicy peppers, I used several garden red and yellow peppers which added lovely color and taste. Great recipe!
about 2 years ago Audrey
This was sensational. Thank you so much, Nancy Jo! This is going to become a summer staple!
On to my substitutions/cooking notes for future would-be cooks: I used 2c half-and-half and 1c lowfat milk which worked beautifully-- great body and the dairy taste didn't overwhelm the corn flavor to the chowder. (Though I don't imagine that's ever a problem with the original recipe-- however, I have had some too-dairy-heavy corn chowders in my life!)
Sadly, there were no poblanos at the market when I did my shopping, so I swapped that for a red bell pepper-- which worked great! I stil want to try it with a poblano next time, though. I blistered and peeled my red pepper but don't think it was necessary.
Also soaked my corn cobs in the dairy while everything else was cooking, to extract some extra corn flavor. No idea if this really ultimately contributed to the dish but it seemed like good corn chowder protocol!
about 2 years ago Jackie
Made this today for company. I used a 2 qt of half & half since my grocer was out of the light cream.. It was amazing!! I kicked up the spices a little (since I omitted the jalapeño) using poultry seasoning, season all, chicken bouillon & garlic salt.. It went wonderfully with my pastrami & provolone grilled cheese..
THIS ONES A KEEPER!!!
about 2 years ago anne
Amanda, is that pan a saucier from Al Clad? It looks like it, but I don't think I've ever seen one that large! It looks like the perfect soup pot.
over 2 years ago Kari2011
I made with a few modifications since I didn't milk the corn cob when I was freezing my corn. I also used some tomatoes I had canned during the summer. It was delicious, not too much heat or dairy.
almost 3 years ago Jolie Hunt
Made as is and it rocked my world. My husband and I can't stop eating it!
almost 3 years ago Diana Ascarrunz
Overall very good - but if you're looking for a spicy chowder this isn't it.
The soup is actually very light and creamy. :)
about 3 years ago plainhomecook
Not only satisfying to eat but also to cook - all the vegetables smelled fresh, and the bacon and roasted poblano perfumed the whole house. Thank you!
about 3 years ago Stubor
I'm going to try this, but split the potato quantity with cauliflower; cover me, I'm going in!
about 3 years ago chankari
Terrific chowder. Really fresh and just a touch spicy. The corn turned out beautifully - crisp and sweet. I made it vegetarian by using butter instead of bacon, then taking the advice of Nancy Jo and roasting the poblano for something smokey. I think the smoked paprika suggested would have been a good addition, if serving vegetarians (or if you just couldn't make to the butcher's on time!)