Fresh Sweet Corn Chowder with Bacon and Potatoes
A creamy late-summer chowder built on real corn (cobs and all), smoky bacon, and Yukon Golds, finished with just enough cream to make it a proper meal instead of a snack in a bowl.
Servings: 6
Calories: 233kcal
Cost: $14-$16
Equipment
- Large Dutch oven or heavy soup pot
- Immersion blender (or a regular blender you don't mind ladling hot soup into carefully)
Ingredients
- 4 to 5 ears fresh sweet corn about 3 to 4 cups kernels, cobs reserved
- 4 slices bacon chopped
- 1 medium onion diced
- 2 celery stalks diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried
- 2 medium Yukon Gold potatoes scrubbed and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
- 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 cup half-and-half
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper optional
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- Fresh chives or parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Cook the bacon in a large pot over medium heat until crisp. Remove to a paper towel, leaving about 2 tablespoons of fat in the pot.
- Cut the kernels from the cobs and set aside. Save the cobs.
- Sauté the onion and celery in the bacon fat, 5 to 7 minutes, until soft. Add garlic and thyme, stir 30 seconds.
- Add the broth and corn cobs. Simmer gently about 15 minutes, then remove and discard the cobs.
- Add the potatoes and two-thirds of the corn. Simmer 8 minutes. Add the remaining corn and cook 5 to 7 minutes more, until the potatoes are tender.
- Puree about 2 cups of the soup with an immersion blender, then stir it back into the pot.
- Stir in the half-and-half and cayenne, if using. Warm gently without boiling. Season with salt and pepper.
- Ladle into bowls and top with crumbled bacon and fresh herbs.
Notes
Don't skip the cob-simmering step if you're working with fresh corn. It's five minutes of doing nothing and it's where a lot of the flavor comes from.
This scales up fine for a crowd. Just don't crowd the pot when you're sautéing the onion and celery, or they'll steam instead of soften.
Leftovers keep 4 to 5 days in the fridge. To freeze, stop before adding the half-and-half, then stir it in fresh after reheating.
Nutrition
Calories: 233kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 0.03g | Cholesterol: 30mg | Sodium: 236mg | Potassium: 515mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 194IU | Vitamin C: 14mg | Calcium: 66mg | Iron: 1mg
