Fresh Corn Chowder loaded with sweet summer corn and tender potatoes in a creamy and flavor-packed corn broth. You’ll love that you have options using either fresh corn on the cob, frozen or even canned corn when it’s not in season. It also keeps well in the refrigerator, which I love for meal planning!
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Helpful Reader Review
“This is hands down the best corn chowder that we have ever had. I made it for company and they said that we could have just served them the chowder and skipped the main course because the chowder was so scrumptious! Thank you!” – Karen ★★★★★
The Best Corn Chowder Recipe
If you love the comfort of Clam Chowder, this corn chowder recipe is sure to become a new favorite. This crowd-pleasing soup is perfect for entertaining on cool summer nights. Pair it with warm homemade biscuits and dinner is made!
Corn chowder is quite a treat when fresh corn is abundant. We love to use both the kernels and the stripped cobbs for sweet corn flavor. This corn chowder has the creamy richness of a Potato Soup and the addition of tender corn and bacon makes every bite memorable.
Corn Chowder Video Tutorial
Watch my video tutorial and I’ll show you just how easy it is to make corn chowder. Corn chowder is actually one of the first soups I learned how to make when I got married 21+ years ago. I remember researching the top restaurant copycat soups and then developing this recipe – it’s a keeper!
Ingredients for Corn Chowder
The ingredients here are simple pantry and refrigerator staples that come together to make the best pot of soup.
- Corn: Corn that is still on the cob is best so you can utilize the kernels and the corn milk from the husks. Check out my tips for buying corn. If fresh corn is out of season, no problem – see below for corn substitutions.
- Potatoes: we use Yukon gold potatoes for their tender, waxy texture which is perfect for a chowder.
- Carrot, Celery, and Onion: This aromatic trio is critical to adding flavor and we use them in nearly all of my soup recipes.
- Bacon: Sauteeing the bacon and then cooking the veggies in the bacon grease adds wonderful flavor and we use the cooked bacon to garnish the soup. No one will resist that bacon topping!
- Chicken Broth, Milk and Cream: These form the base of the corn stock. We simmer the shucked cobbs in this combination for a deeply delicious chowder base.
- Cayenne Pepper: This simple seasoning is all you need, plus salt and black pepper of course.
Can I use Frozen or Canned Corn?
Fresh corn on the cob and especially local produce will give this chowder the best flavor. For winter corn chowder or when fresh corn is not available, try these instead:
- Frozen Corn: frozen is usually produced at the peak of freshness so it will work and will save you some time. Since you won’t have the cobs for making corn stock, add a 15 oz can of creamed corn for a tastier broth.
- Canned Corn: Use (1) 15 oz can corn and (1) 15 oz can creamed corn. Add the liquid ingredients at step 3 without pre-cooking them. The liquid from the canned corn will add a boost of corn flavor.
How to Make Corn Stock
Using the whole cob of corn will give you the best-flavored corn stock. Allowing the stripped cobs to simmer for 20 minutes with the broth, cream, and milk draws out every bit of rich and sweet flavor from the corn. After discarding the cobs, you are left with really delicious corn stock.
- Make the Corn Stock – Cut the kernels from the cobs and set kernels aside for making chowder.* Place the bare cobs in a stockpot.
- Add broth, milk, and cream, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 20 minutes while making the chowder. Use tongs to remove and discard cobs before using corn stock.
How to Cut Corn off the Cobs
Cutting corn from the cob can get messy with kernels landing all over your kitchen. You can avoid making a big mess with this simple trick:
Set a small bowl upside down inside of a larger bowl. Place your corn vertically on top of the smaller bowl, hold the top, and cut the kernels off by running your knife straight down against the cob. The kernels will fall into the larger bowl, just be careful not to hit the bowl with your knife. You can also do this over a bundt pan.
How to Make Corn Chowder
- Sautee bacon in a Dutch oven until crisps and renders fat. Remove bacon to a plate, reserving 2-3 Tbsp of bacon grease in the pot.
- Sautee veggies (onion, celery, and carrot) in the bacon grease until softened.
- Add potatoes and corn kernels and season with salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper.
- Add corn stock into the pot and simmer until potatoes are tender.
- Serve in warm bowls garnished with bacon and chives.
How to Remove Corn Silk
After the corn is shucked, it’s important to remove the silk threads for the smoothest consistency. The easiest way to remove corn silk is to brush the corn with a bristled brush or even a clean toothbrush. The bristles catch the silk and it comes off quickly and easily.
Storing Corn Chowder
- To Refrigerate: Cool the soup completely to room temperature before storing, then transfer it to airtight containers and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
- Freezing: I would not recommend freezing corn chowder since the dairy in the recipe can separate, and potatoes can get grainy and mushy.
- To Reheat: Add soup to a saucepan and reheat over low heat, stirring frequently to bring back the creamy texture. You can also reheat in the microwave, stirring every 30 seconds until heated through.
Topped with bacon and chives, this Corn Chowder becomes such a comforting bowl of soup. It’s a family favorite, right up there with Zuppa Toscana!
More Corn Recipes
If you love sweet summer corn, these corn recipes are the best way to enjoy corn while it’s at the peak of freshness and flavor.
- Boiled Corn on the Cob
- Avocado Corn Salad
- Grilled Corn in Foil
- Instant Pot Corn on the Cob
- Mexican Street Corn
- Shrimp Boil
- Corn Guacamole
Corn Chowder Recipe
Ingredients
For the Corn Stock:
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 1/2 cups milk
- 1 cup heavy cream
For the Corn Chowder:
- 4 cups corn kernels (from 4-5 ears corn), reserve cobs for stock*
- 4 oz (4 slices) bacon, chopped
- 1 large onion, finely diced (1 1/2 cup)
- 1 large carrot, cut into 1/4″ dice (1 cup)
- 3 stalks celery, finely diced (1 cup)
- 1 lb Yukon potatoes, 3 medium, peeled and cut into 1/4″ thick pieces
- 2-3 tsp sea salt, or to taste
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper, or to taste
- 2 Tbsp Chives, chopped, to garnish
Instructions
How to Make Corn Stock:
- Cut the kernels from the cobs and set kernels aside for making chowder.* Place the bare cobs in a stockpot.
- Add 4 cups broth, 1 1/2 cups milk, and 1 cup cream to pot. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer un-covered 20 minutes while making the chowder. Use tongs to remove and discard cobs before using corn stock in step 3.
How to Make Corn Chowder:
- Place a 5 Qt dutch oven over medium/high heat. Add chopped bacon and cook stirring occasionally until browned. Remove bacon bits with a slotted spoon and set aside.
- In the same pot, add chopped onion, celery and carrot to the bacon fat and cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, until onion is soft (7-8 min).
- Add sliced potatoes, 4 cups corn kernels, 2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp black pepper, and 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper. Pour corn stock into the pot, bring to a light boil then simmer uncovered 10-15 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Season with salt and pepper to taste**. Ladle into bowls and garnish with reserved bacon and chopped chives.
Notes
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
More Family-Favorite Soup Recipes
- Chicken Noodle Soup
- Split Pea Soup – My Mother’s recipe
- Beef Stew
- Tomato Soup
- Chicken Tortilla Soup
- French Onion Soup (Natasha’s Fave)
I just have a question. I made corn stock a few days ago- just water and cobs. How can I use my corn stock in this recipe? Should I reduce it then add in the milk/cream?
So glad to hear that! Thank you for your excellent feedback, Annette.
Been eyeing this recipe for a while. I knew I’d love it But didn’t want to cook this for only me and think of something else for my kids…. Well I cooked it today and all my children started off with one scoop just to try…. and everyone wanted a whole bowl after first spoon and I just washed my dutch oven!!!! Loved by my whole family!!!! Thank you so much Natasha
Wow! That’s just awesome!! Sounds like you found a new family favorite Natasha!!
This recipe is so tasty. Made with Iowa sweet corn. It’s a keeper.
Isn’t it the best!! Thank you for sharing this wonderful review!
I love this recipe! My all time favourite by far. I’m making it again today and will continue while the corn season remains. Thx
Hello Lyn, so great to know that you enjoyed this recipe. Thanks for sharing that with us!
This was delicious. I added two bay leaves to the broth while it simmered and some ground thyme to the vegetable mixture. I also left out the potatoes to make it a little less “carby” but followed everything else exactly. So good! Thank you for the recipe!
You’re welcome, Jeanne! I’m happy you enjoyed that!
live in minnesota , every year at corn time i make this soup , everybody loves it , play with it a little bit . hot sauce , dijon mustard , cheese . it’s great thanks
So good to know that this is one of your routine! Thanks for sharing that with us.
So good to know that this is one of your routines! Thanks for sharing that with us.
Natasha — you’ve really done it this time. Hit it out of the ballpark, that is! This soup is absolutely AMAZING. Thank you!
Love it! Thanks so much for your excellent review, Jane. We appreciate it!
Hi, quick question-Can I freeze this soup?
Thank you
Hi Kathy, I haven’t tested that but one of our readers wrote great feedback regarding freezing this recipe
I had a 4th of July party and I had a lot of leftover corn because we made corn on the cob so I gave your soup a try and I’m going to let you know how it is here momentarily thank you and I followed it to a T.
Sounds great and yes we would love to hear your feedback, please.
Is there any way this recipe can be converted for instantpot. Love all your recipes. We really enjoy the breakfast camping ones. Thank you
Hi Rosemary, I haven’t tested it that way but my guess the cook time will be closer to 10 minutes in the instant pot if you do try it, but I think it’s worth an experiment and you could use the saute function to keep everything in the same pot! If you try it out, let me know how it goes.
Yum! Corn on the cob at this time of year is hit or miss in upstate NY- but it was perfect for this chowder-so good!!! The only thing I did different is I didn’t peel the potatoes and added sherry to taste!! Sooooo good!
That sounds amazing! Thank you for that great review, Anne!
My daughter -who is 23 -ate the corn chowder for breakfast this morning-She came right out and said this recipe is a keeper-if you write a cookbook I’ll be the first in line to get one!!
Thanks for your awesome comments, Anne. I love it!
Do you have a cookbook for sale or free
Hi Brenda, we are working on a cook book! Stay tuned!
Natasha, thank you SO much for this recipe! I have been trying to make the perfect corn chowder for years! Yours is PERFECTION! I added shredded rotisserie chicken (which I always do) and along with the bacon and chives I also topped it with pieces of crispy tortilla chips. ( I like the crunch) Thanks again!
You’re very welcome Barbara. Your comments make me smile, thank you for sharing that with us! I hope you love every recipe that you try.
I just saw your reply when I brought your recipe up again to make tonight! Your recipes are ALL fantastic!
Thank you so much!
It was delicious! I added chicken breast and used the canned corn option and evaporated milk, that’s what I had and trying to avoid the grocery store! My family loved it!! Thanks for this great recipe!
So great to hear that you loved this recipe, Tracy. Thank you for sharing that with us!
Hi Natasha, is this okay to make the day before? Love your recipes!! Thank you
Hi Samantha, that will work great.
Terrific recipe! Easy to make and delicious.
Thank you for your awesome feedback!
I’m going to make this soup for a fundraiser and I am trying to convert this for quantity. Does this recipe make about 2 quarts?
Hi Tanya, this recipe makes 8 cups. If you scroll down to the printable version of the recipe the serving size shows 8 cups. You can slide that to the right to increase serving amount. I hope that helps.
Recipe makes more than eight cups. Delicious!!
I’m so happy you enjoyed that Nancy!
Natasha, can you help! Im a little confused on how to make it without fresh corn. I saw to get 1 can of cream of corn and 1 can of corn but im confused on how to do it…?
Hi Kristen, follow the instructions in the section titled: “What if corn is not in season” – basically you don’t have to precook the liquid ingredients with the bare corn cobs in the liquid. You can just add all of the liquid ingredients with the cream of corn in step 3.
This was very good. I followed the recipe almost precisely, with the exception of reducing the salt to 1.5 tspn and that was plenty. Next time I’ll follow the suggestion for thickening it a bit.
Thank you for sharing.
You’re welcome! I’m glad you enjoyed this recipe, Fofi!
I love this soup but mine turned out too salty..(my fault), Is there anything I can do?
Hi Cindy, diluting it may be best if you can by adding more broth or cream. I hope that helps.
Also I find choosing only a low sodium chicken broth works to have a less salty taste. Of course, it helps to continue to taste as you go in preparI got your soup.
When this happens, the easiest solution is to “potato” it, peel a whole potato and place it whole into the soup/stew. Allow to simmer until the potato has soaked up enough of the salt, then remove and discard the potato.
Can you please email me the cor chowder recipe? It won’t let me copy Thank you
Hi Cindy, if you scroll down to the recipe card and click print, you can either print the recipe or highlight off the print screen.