Cheesy Bacon Corn Chowder
This is hands down the best corn chowder recipe we’ve ever tried!
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This is hands down the best corn chowder recipe we’ve ever tried! It’s easy to see why – with bacon, potatoes, cheese, and garlic all swimming in a delicately seasoned, creamy corn broth… what’s not to love? Why settle for chowder from a can when you can make it yourself? This would be a great recipe to make on Sunday and have leftovers for lunches throughout the week!
The key to getting that creamy consistency is in the cheese. You may be tempted to buy pre shredded cheese in a bag, but that would be a mistake! For some reason the pre packaged shredded cheese is more resistant to melting, so if you use this kind your soup may come out stringy or clumpy. Instead, go ahead and use a brick of sharp cheddar, and take a few minutes to shred it yourself. We promise this chowder is worth the few minutes of extra effort!
Cheesy Bacon Corn Chowder
Ingredients
- 3/4 lb bacon, diced
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 1 red pepper, diced
- 1 cup celery, diced
- 4 garlic cloves, finely minced
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 4 cups milk
- 2 Russet potatoes, peeled and diced into 1/4-inch cubes
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
- 1 teaspoon pepper, or to taste
- pinch cayenne pepper, optional and to taste
- 2 cups corn (frozen or canned)
- 8 ounces extra-sharp cheddar cheese, grated from a block (pre-grated cheese has trouble melting)
- 1/3 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
- 1/3 cup green onion, finely chopped
Preparation
- Cook bacon in a large stock pot, or Dutch oven. Remove from pot and set on paper towels, leaving the bacon grease in the pot.
- Add onions, celery, and red pepper to the pot and sauté 5-10 minutes until tender. Add garlic and sauté an additional 2 minutes.
- Whisk in flour until lightly brown, about 1 minute.
- Stir in chicken broth, milk, potatoes, thyme, oregano, salt, pepper, and cayenne and bring to a boil. Let soup boil rapidly for about 15 minutes until potatoes are tender. Add more milk or chicken broth as necessary to achieve desired consistency.
- Add corn and all but 1/4 cup of bacon, and reduce heat to low. Slowly stir in cheese until melted. Add parsley and green onion, stirring to combine.
- Remove from heat and garnish with extra cheese, bacon bits, parsley and onion. You can also store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 7 days.
Recipe adapted from Averie Cooks.