I watched Mark Bittman prepare this corn chowder on the Today Show one morning and with all the fabulous corn at the farmer’s market right now, I couldn’t wait to try it.
One unique step that he does that adds tons of flavor to the broth, is boil the corn cobs in the water. My corn was very sweet, so I added some cheyenne pepper to balance out the sweetness of the corn.
I also wanted to make it more filling, so I added some diced potatoes and bacon. I generally have Hormel precooked bacon slices from Costco in my freezer and that makes it easy to add bacon to soups, sandwiches, eggs, burgers … doesn’t almost everything taste better with bacon.
This is a perfect soup for the end of summer and our cooler nights. I use 1% milk and it still had a rich, creamy texture that you expect from a chowder. Enjoy!
Ingredients
- 6 ears fresh corn
- 1 medium potato, diced
- 4 slices bacon, cooked and diced
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1 /2 cup chopped onion
- 1 /8 teaspoon ground red pepper (cayenne)
- 1 /4 cup all-purpose flour
- 4 cups milk or half-and-half
Directions
- Shuck the corn. Stand each ear up in a bowl and use a knife to scrape off the kernels. Put the corncobs and 2 cups water in a large pot with a tight-fitting lid over medium-high heat. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat so the water bubbles gently, cover, and cook, checking occasionally, for about 30 minutes. Leave the cobs in the pot until you are ready to make the soup, then discard them and save the corncob broth.
- Put the butter or oil in a large, deep pot over medium-high heat. When the butter is melted or the oil is hot, add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 1 minute. Lower the heat to medium and stir in the flour. Cook, stirring constantly with a whisk or a wooden spoon, until the mixture starts to turn golden and the flour no longer smells raw, just a couple of minutes. Add the milk and the reserved corncob broth and raise the heat to medium-high. Stir or whisk constantly until the flour is dissolved and the soup starts to thicken, about 2 minutes.
- Stir in the cayenne pepper, corn kernels, diced potatoes and bacon and bring to a boil, then lower the heat so that the soup bubbles gently. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the potato is tender and the soup has thickened, 10 to 15 minutes. Taste, adjust the seasoning, and serve.
Notes
adapted from Mark Bittman
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I love to bake, especially cookies, cakes, and pies. I’ll post my adventures in the kitchen, my favorite new recipes, as well as our family favorites.
I love Mark Bittman and I love Corn Chowder. Thanks for sharing and the tip on the cayenne.
barbara-what do you use for a camera and lens?
Hi Jennifer – I recently bought a Canon Rebel T1i with a 50mm 1.8 lens. I’ve been loving it, but so much to learn. Thanks for asking!
Oh yum…I saw this same presentation but didn’t get the recipe and I like your additions anyhow. Why do I do this to myself in the middle of the day when I’m lucky to find a piece of cheese and a cracker for lunch?
Hey Barbara,
As I write this, I’m eating some leftover chicken chowder I made earlier this week. In my humble opinion, it gets better when it’s been in the fridge for a few days! Yours looks delicious. Have a great weekend!
[K]
P.S. Agreed, it’s all better with bacon.
This sounds like a fantastic way to use up some of the good corn I’m finding at local farmers markets, thanks! And yes…bacon
Oh, yummy! With the abundance of our local corn this will taste so good. A few months ago I purchased the Hormel precooked Bacon slices. Nice to know the bacon also tastes good after freezing, as I did not try doing that. Thanks, again!
~Judy
Hehe it’s so true mum! everything does taste better with bacon! This looks delicious, if I see corn chowder on a menu, I order it!
Nice. I like the way you’ve created a bit of a corn stock which must give this nice little recipe some depth of flavour. The potatoes and bacon would just be yummy I agree. Really tops it off. Nice one Barbara
Don’t you just love fresh corn season? Me, too!
Sounds delicious Barbara!
This soup looks amazing. Especially with the bacon on top. This is a great fall soup recipe.
Oh yum!! Gotta put this on my to do list.
yummy! it’s so pretty and looks like such a clean adn healthy chowder.
Mmmm I love corn chowder! So yummy!
that looks comforting i wonder if you can use fat free half and half?
I think fat free half and half would work great. I’ve started using it a little bit myself. In fact I used it last night on some raspberries for dessert and I wondered how they get it thick without having any cream?
I have been really looking forward to more soups and chowders coming up in our house for Fall. This sounds absolutely delightful! I like the additions you made, they sound delicious.
I love corn chowder–this looks so good. Thanks for a great recipe.
The sweet corn with a little cayenne kick sounds so great! Now, I really want to get my hands on more fresh corn.
This corn chowder sounds delicious! I love the fresh corn and bacon used.
I so agree about the bacon. It’s like a little black dress. Chowders are so delicious. My fridge is full of corn, well full if you think of a one occupier household.
Barbara, this is a fantastic recipe and I think your adding potatoes and bacon is perfect! It makes it a meal!
Corn chowder with bacon is always a treat, you make it look so good too in that crock.
Bon appetit!
=:~)
I can honestly say that I have never had corn chowder, but I am thinking it is going to have to change! This looks delish!!! And I agree, anything is better with bacon!
What an excellent recipe! I’m hanging onto the end of the Silver Queen corn season for all it’s worth and this would be a perfect way to use them. And thanks so much for sharing Mark Bittman’s brilliantly obvious tip of boiling the scraped corncobs for broth – wow – which I’ll definitely adopt.
I totally agree that everything tastes better with bacon! I love corn in any form and this chowder sounds and looks perfect for our not-quite-warm enough nights too
This looks amazing! I love how rich and creamy it looks…yum!
I adore corn chowder!! What a marvelous recipe, Barbara. Love that bacon is involved; that will draw in the men of my family.
Oh, how delicious. I like corn chowder, yet never made my own. I should put an effort of making it one day.
This looks amazing, especially with potatoes and bacon added. Thanks for the recipe- it’s going in my “Make soon!” folder!
You can never go wrong with corn chowder!
Great corn chowder recipe. I’d read or heard that somewhere before that boiling the cobs gave the chowder more flavor and I think I’m going to try that!
Everything is better with bacon, of course! Your corn chowder looks amazing…perfect for the chilly weather we have been having in SoCal.
Lovely corn chowder and the addition of bacon is always so delicious
Have a great week!
Gera
I love your little soup bowls. And the chowder looks excelent!
YES, bacon makes everything better!
Your photos are stunning! I love the soup bowls too! Thumbs up:)
Great shots. Wonderful meal that won’t break anyone’s budget either
Hi, Barbara! I am catching up on blogs today. It has been so long, but I see you are still making a lot of good stuff and it all still looks lovely. Your site is wonderful! Would love to make this chowder soon!!!
Yum! This looks so delicious and ready for fall!
Yum! Looks awesome! Especially for a weekend lunch in the fall!
This reminds me that I have several ears of sweet corn in the fridge that I still haven’t used…guess I’ll just need to make this!
This is a wonderful looking corn chowder Barbara! I love the addition of bacon, potatoes and the cayenne pepper. I had not heard of boiling the cobs, so thanks for the tip.
I love the look of your new site!
Beautiful corn chower. I’ve never made corn chower and I’m wondering why. Yours looks so inviting. Did you buy Mabey corn by any chance?
I love the addition of potatoes and bacon to the corn chowder. One to make the soup richer and creamier, the other makes it so fragrant. Just love this recipe. It is especially suitable for the rainy season here right now..
Sawadee from bangkok,
Kris
My mom used to make a chowder recipe when I was younger but I had totally forgotten about it until now, it really isn’t something you see in the UK but I cannot think of a reason why. Thanks for the reminder!
This looks great, Barbara. I love chowders especially with bacon.
I made this today I didn’t have half and half so used 2 cups whipping cream and 2 cups milk.. for chicken broth I used bullion.. and bacon bits were the real ones from hormel that come in the bag.. Was a hit with hubby…
I haven’t had any fresh corn yet this year. Thanks for reminding me what a great, versatile recipe this is. So glad your hubby enjoyed it.
Best corn chowder I’ve ever eaten. I’d never made corn chowder and I don’t like the packaged corn chowder. The corn was fresh from our garden, and it had the same sweet, yummy taste we get munching off the cob. Thganks !
I made this and it was declicious. I used wheat flour and fat free half and half. It was awesome!
Hi Cathy – So glad you enjoyed it! The fat free half and half is a great way to cut calories. I’ll have to try it with that soon. Thanks!
Best corn chowder I have ever made! I’m thinking of adding some chopped clams to a future batch, and there will definitely be future batches!
Thanks Laurie! I haven’t made it in a while and now is the perfect time. Clams would be a great addition.