Description
This Summer Corn Chowder Soup is a creamy, lightened-up chowder packed with sweet corn, zucchini, potatoes, celery, carrots, and smoky bacon. It cooks in one pot, tastes rich without feeling heavy, and makes a comforting summer dinner or easy leftover lunch.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 2 strips bacon, chopped
- 1 cup chopped yellow onion, about 1/2 large onion
- 2 celery ribs, chopped (about 1/3 cup)
- 1 medium carrot, peeled and chopped (about 1/2 cup)
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 medium russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
- 4 cups water or vegetable stock
- 1 bay leaf
- 4 ears sweet corn, husked, silk removed, kernels cut off the cob (about 2 3/4 cups)
- 1 medium zucchini, diced into 1/2-inch cubes (about 1 1/2 cups)
- 1 cup half and half
- Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste
- Chopped fresh parsley, for garnish
- Cayenne pepper, optional for serving
Instructions
- Cook the bacon in butter.
Place a large heavy-bottomed stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the butter and let it melt completely. Stir in the chopped bacon and cook until the bacon starts rendering its fat and begins to brown. This should take about 3 to 4 minutes. - Build the flavor base.
Add the chopped onion, celery, carrot, garlic, and dried thyme to the pot. Stir everything together and let the vegetables cook until they begin to soften, stirring a couple of times so nothing sticks. This usually takes about 5 minutes. - Add the potatoes and broth.
Stir in the diced potatoes, water or stock, and bay leaf. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring the pot to a simmer. Once it reaches a simmer, lower the heat back to medium and continue cooking for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the potatoes are about halfway tender. - Add the zucchini and corn.
Stir in the zucchini and fresh corn kernels. Season with kosher salt and black pepper to taste. Let the soup continue simmering for 8 to 12 minutes, or until the potatoes, zucchini, and corn are all fully tender. - Blend part of the chowder.
Remove and discard the bay leaf. Carefully transfer about 2 cups of the chowder to a food processor or blender. Purée until smooth, then pour the blended soup back into the pot. This step gives Summer Corn Chowder Soup its creamy texture without flour or heavy cream. - Finish with half and half.
Stir in the half and half and cook just until the soup is heated through. Taste the chowder and adjust the seasoning with more salt and pepper if needed. - Serve and garnish.
Ladle the chowder into bowls and top with chopped fresh parsley. Add a light sprinkle of cayenne pepper if you want a little heat. Serve warm.
Notes
- Substitutions:
For a full list of swaps, see the recipe post above. - To make it vegan:
Replace the butter with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Skip the bacon and add 1 1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika, or use a southwest seasoning blend that includes smoked paprika. Replace the half and half with 1 cup full-fat unsweetened coconut milk. Be sure to shake the can before using it. - To prepare the vegan version, start by heating the olive oil in the pot over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, carrot, garlic, thyme, and smoked paprika together and cook until the vegetables soften. Then continue with the remaining steps as written, using the coconut milk at the end instead of half and half.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 189
- Sugar: 6 g
- Sodium: 131.2 mg
- Fat: 8.6 g
- Carbohydrates: 25 g
- Protein: 5.4 g
- Cholesterol: 13.2 mg