Summer Corn Chowder Soup
With a five-star rating and over 90 reviews, it’s one of the most popular recipes on the site. Readers love that all the ingredients cook in a single pot and that the whole dish is ready in under an hour. Plus, leftovers store well. So, you can prepare a big batch, and enjoy quick, delicious meals for several days!
Jump to:
- Summer Chowder Soup Ingredients
- How to Make Corn Chowder Soup
- Summer Corn Chowder Recipe Substitutions
- Corn Chowder Soup Tips
- How to Store Summer Corn Chowder
- Frequently Asked Questions
- What to Serve With Zucchini Corn Chowder
- Video: How to Make Summer Corn Chowder
- More Fresh Corn Recipes
- Zucchini Corn Chowder
It serves amazing on its own or with a side of our Heirloom Tomato Salad.
This summer corn chowder is one of my absolute favorite warm-weather comfort foods! It has all the creamy consistency and rich flavor of traditional corn chowder. However, I lightened it up by cutting out the flour and swapping the heavy cream with half and half.
Then, I added extra include veggies sweet corn from the cob, zucchini, celery, carrots, onions, and potatoes. Flavored with herbs and smokey bacon, it’s my favorite way to sneak extra nutrients into our diet. My kids don’t even realize it and almost always ask for seconds!
Summer Chowder Soup Ingredients
You will need the following ingredients to make this corn chowder:
- Butter
- Bacon
- Onion
- Celery
- Carrot
- Garlic
- Spices – dried thyme and bay leaf
- Potatoes
- Water or veggie stock
- Fresh sweet corn
- Zucchini
- Half and half
How to Make Corn Chowder Soup
- Step 1: Melt butter over medium heat in a dutch oven. Add bacon and cook until bacon renders its fat and begins to brown, about 3-4 minutes.
- Step 2: Add onions, celery, carrots, garlic, and thyme; cook until vegetables begin to soften, stirring couple times, about 5 minutes.
- Step 3: Add potatoes, water, and bay leaf. Raise the heat to medium-high and bring to a simmer, then lower the heat back to medium and simmer for 8-10 minutes or until the potatoes are halfway cooked.
- Step 4: Add zucchini and corn; season with salt and pepper, to taste, and simmer for an additional 8-12 minutes or until the vegetables are completely tender.
- Step 5: Discard the bay leaf. Transfer 2 cups of chowder to a food processor or blender; purée until smooth. Stir the mixture back into the pot. Add half and half and cook just until heated through.
Summer Corn Chowder Recipe Substitutions
What’s great about this corn chowder is that you can make a handful of substitutions to suit your taste or diet needs without compromising the overall taste of the chowder.
- Bacon: Omitting bacon? Add 1 ½ teaspoon of smoked paprika or southwest seasoning blend with smoked paprika in it in Step 2. It will give the chowder a smoky flavor.
- Spices: Don’t have dried bay leaf? No worries, you can completely omit it. For dried thyme, you can substitute with 2 teaspoons of fresh minced thyme.
- Potatoes: For the russet potatoes, red potatoes or baby gold potatoes can be used. If using baby golds, you don’t even have to peel them. Simply scrub really well and dice. Also, a handful of our readers have used cauliflower in place of potatoes for a low-carb option.
- Water: Vegetable stock or chicken stock work great for this chowder.
- Corn: Frozen corn can be used. No need to cook it or defrost it first.
- Half and Half: For a non-dairy option, canned coconut milk works great. You’ll need full-fat (not lite) unsweetened coconut milk. Some readers also tried plain milk, which will definitely work but the chowder will not be as creamy.
Corn Chowder Soup Tips
The key to creating thick and creamy healthy corn chowder without the added flour or heavy cream is puréeing some of the chowder. It creates the best consistency without the added ingredients.
You basically take about two cups of cooked chowder and purée it until smooth in a blender or food-processor, then stir the mixture back into the chowder.
How to Store Summer Corn Chowder
Store leftover chowder in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Reheat the chowder in a pot over medium heat on the stove, or warm individual portions in the microwave.
I don’t recommend freezing this recipe! The taste will change and the texture tends to become gritty once thawed.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. If using fresh corn, simply cut it off the cob and add to the chowder. If substituting frozen corn, no need to thaw it out or cook it first.
Blender works great too. Just be careful adding hot chowder to the blender. Work in batches if need to. And if you don’t have either one, a simple potato masher will get the job done. It will just require a little work on your part.
Here’s what our reader Nichole writes: “The key with this kind of recipe is to know your veggies. Notice how the corn and zucchini where added later… I will be making this and doing it on low for 4- 6hrs. Basically, I’ll add the corn and zucchini the last hour or half-hour (depends on how hot your crockpot is) of cooking time and the coconut milk (half and half if you’re using it) when I’m ready to turn it off. Just stir it in quickly put the lid on for another 10-15 min and done (crocks are hot so the leftover heat will heat up the milk just fine).”
3-4 days refrigerated in an airtight container. I find that it even tastes better the next day (just like chili).
Normally I would say no as soups with cream and/or milk usually do not freeze well, however, some of my readers had success with freezing this chowder. My biggest tip would be to reheat the chowder on the stovetop over medium-low heat so the cream does not separate.
What to Serve With Zucchini Corn Chowder
- Green Goddess Cobb Salad
- Sourdough Garlic Bread
- Artichoke Tomato and Spinach Flatbread
- Cheese Bread
- Roasted Bone-In Chicken Breast – craving protein? Try adding shredded chicken to the chowder.
- Cheese Popovers
Video: How to Make Summer Corn Chowder
More Fresh Corn Recipes
If you try our zucchini corn chowder, please leave a star rating and a comment letting us know how you liked the recipe.
Zucchini Corn Chowder
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 40 mins
- Total Time: 55 mins
- Yield: 6-8 1x
- Category: Main
- Method: One-Pot
- Cuisine: American
Description
Creamy chowder loaded with fresh corn and zucchini is the best summer food! This lightened up chowder is made with fresh corn from the cob, no flour, and half and half.
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp. butter
- 2 strips bacon, chopped
- 1 cup chopped yellow onion, about ½ large onion
- 2 celery ribs, chopped (⅓ cup)
- 1 medium carrot, peeled + chopped (½ cup)
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ tsp. dried thyme
- 2 medium (1 lb.) russet potatoes, peeled, diced into ½-inch cubes
- 4 cups water (or veggie stock)
- 1 bay leaf
- 4 ears of sweet fresh corn, husk + silk removed and kernels cut from cob (2 ¾ cup corn)
- 1 medium zucchini, diced into ½-inch cubes, (1 ½ cups)
- 1 cup half and half
- Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper
- Chopped fresh parsley, to garnish
- Cayenne pepper, to serve, optional
Instructions
- In a large heavy-duty bottom stockpot or dutch oven, melt butter over medium heat. Add bacon and cook until bacon renders its fat and begins to brown, about 3-4 minutes.
- Add onion, celery, carrots, garlic, and thyme; cook until vegetables begin to soften, stirring couple times, about 5 minutes.
- Add potatoes, water, and bay leaf. Raise the heat to medium high and bring to a simmer, then lower the heat back to medium and simmer for 8-10 minutes or until the potatoes are halfway cooked.
- Add zucchini and corn; season with salt and pepper, to taste, and simmer for additional 8-12 minutes or until the vegetables are completely tender.
- Discard the bay leaf and then transfer 2 cups of chowder to a food processor or blender; puree until smooth. Stir the mixture back into the pot. Add half and half and cook just until heated through. Taste for salt and pepper.
- Serve garnished with fresh chopped parsley and sprinkle of cayenne pepper, optional.
Notes
- Substitutions: For a detailed list of all substitutions, see the recipe post.
- FAQ: I originally shared this recipe in 2016 and have since updated the post to include all frequently asked questions. If there is something I missed, please ask in the comments below and I’ll be happy to answer.
- To Make it Vegan: replace butter with 2 Tbsp. of olive oil, replace bacon with 1 ½ tsp. smoked paprika or even better some type of southwest seasoning blend that has smoked paprika in it, such as this one (affiliate link). Lastly, replace the half and half with 1 cup full-fat unsweetened coconut milk (make sure to shake the can first). To make these substitutions, you would first heat the olive oil over medium heat, add the veggies (step 2), plus the smoked paprika. Cook until veggies are soft. Proceed with the rest of the recipe as written. If you need further clarification, please ask in the comments.
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
Hi! I'm Katya -- a former corporate paralegal turned full-time recipe developer and blogger behind Little Broken. Here you'll find family-friendly and seasonal recipes made from real ingredients.
Making it now. Could I not just blend with a stick blender right in the pot. Just not until all smooth?
Love to not have to was the blender or Cuisinart parts!
Yes, stick blender is fine too!
Looking for a recipe to use my garden’s abundance of zucchini so I made this for a get together with friends. The only thing I changed was the addition of two roasted poblano peppers chopped up and added at the end. Everyone went crazy for the chowder and asked for the recipe. Thank you for this recipe!
This has become my favorite summer soup as well as my five year old and husband.
This is delicious. Honestly it would be just as good without the half and half if you have a good blender! The smoked paprika instead of bacon worked perfectly.
Thank you for sharing this recipe! It is a regular recipe every Summer. Being a plant-based eater, I do not measure vegetables. We do love to add old bay or Tony’s seasoning when served.
I LOVE this recipe. I make this a couple times every summer, and in the winter when I need a breath of summer. I usually use trader joes frozen roasted corn, but use corn on the cob when I can and it makes a difference! I use the vegetarian alteration, and add the smoked paprika with the veggies and butter so it gets bloomed before adding the veggie stock. I also double the amount of veggies. Such a fantastic recipe!!
I’ve tried making this recipe MANY times now, however, the final product never looks like the picture in the post.
I even left out all of the corn and zucchini from the blending phase of this recipe, adding those ingredients in after blending the carrots, celery, onion and potato and leaving ALL of the corn and zucchini whole and STILL don’t end up with a bowl of chowder that even comes close to as full as the picture in the post.
I even added an extra zucchini and two extra ears of corn in the hopes of coming close to the picture in the post that shows a bowl of chowder overflowing with fresh corn and veggies…then I watched the video and I realized why my attempts were failing. It is clear in the video that her chowder in the end will be as thin as soup as well…it is obvious that veggies are loaded into the bowl before taking the photo for the post. Oh well. I’ll just continue adjusting until I achieve the consistency that I consider a chowder and credit myself with the actual recipe.
Hi Katie: Thanks for your feedback! We simply scooped some extra veggies into the bowl for the images but the recipe is exactly as written.
I’ve been making this for the past two summers and had to come back to comment how much I LOVE this wonderful recipe! I used vegetable stock and being from Maryland love to serve it with a dash of Old Bay! Thank you for bringing this recipe into my life!
Thank you Laura for your feedback! I’m so glad you love the recipe.
Made this for the first time today and loved it! This will become a regular for me.
I love this soup and make it every few months! I use frozen corn which seems to work just fine. I do think it’s a little bland if made with water so I use veggie stock. This was my first time using homemade veggie stock and it was delicious, but since the stock was unsalted I had to salt the soup pretty heavily. I definitely recommend adding the cayenne too
Love this recipe. Blending some of the soup makes it creamy without the additional calories and adding more corn taste. Sometimes I simmer with one of the cobs.
This was horrible. No flavor at all. Disappointed
This is the best light chowder recipe I’ve come across! We have made it several times. First two times I made it exactly as the recipe is stated (well, I cheat with the pre-cooked bacon) and it was pretty darned good. I love the fact that the broth is flavorful but thin, not heavy – no one wants that heavy cream soup in the summer! And we now live near several farms so I call this my Monday soup – we hit the farms on Friday and Tuesday for fresh veggies so this gets made with the leftover corn and zucchini on Monday! FYI – I think you should never review a recipe until you have made it at least 2x following the recipe before you start substitutions and changes. But we did start making some changes. I prefer using canned evap milk over half and half as I don’t have the issue of worrying about the half and half separating during the reheat process (I tend to sub it out now in all my recipes). And since we tend to like a bit more depth to the soup, I started throwing in just a tiny 1/4 tsp of cayenne. Not enough to be noticeable heat, it just adds a bit of depth to the flavor and enhances it. If we have broth/stock around, we use that instead of water since we typically do not have veggie stock in the house. This is a great “you can’t go wrong” recipe that I have shared with multiple friends over the past 2 months – thank you for a great soup!
I LOVE this soup. My whole family eats it, including all the kids! I use smoked paprika instead of bacon. I add it first to bloom in the butter before sautéing the veggies. I generally use Trader Joes fire roasted frozen corn, but decided it use corn on the cob since it’s in season right now. It is extra delicious!! The crispness of the fresh corn kernels adds some fantastic texture. I wouldn’t change a thing from the recipe as posted. Fantastic!!
I made this with leftover roasted ears of corn, added a jalapeno, subbed cauliflower for the potatoes and coconut cream for the half-and-half. Added a bit of chili powder and cayenne to season. Threw in some grilled chicken at the end and it turned out SO GOOD! This is definitely on our soup rotation.
A quick tip, use the bisque setting if your have it on your blender. I could have blended more of the soup and left out the coconut cream to “lighten” the recipe.
Thank you Christine! So glad you enjoyed the chowder.
Could you cook this in a slow cooker please?
I haven’t tried it but I’m pretty sure you can modify the recipe to cook in a slow cooker.
A family favorite…even my preschoolers love to eat it! If you’re looking to freeze it I’ve found I just portion out half the pot after I purée but before adding the half and half. I add 3/4 c half and half to my original pot. When I thaw the extra soup out I warm it on the stove and add an additional 3/4 c half and half right before serving.
Omigosh this was a great recipe find!
I switched up a few things out of necessity: didn’t have zucchini, added a couple handfuls of kale towards end (just before whipping cream—which I used instead of half and half); had Yukon gold potatoes, so I used those. I had chicken bone broth in fridge so used that (2C) with water. Added 1/2 tsp Old Bay. I think jalapeño would be a great addition for next time to amp up the heat. My hubby loved it—even with the kale, haha.
Thanks so much for the dinner inspo!!
Really wonderful soup! So quick & easy to make. It’s the kind of soup you could add whatever additional veggies you have on hand and it will always taste good. I will make this again! Thank you.