Southwestern Corn Chowder
Make this Southwestern corn chowder for a cozy dinner at home! This vegetarian corn chowder recipe is fresh, wholesome and delicious.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on July 10, 2024
Make this Southwestern corn chowder for a cozy dinner at home! This vegetarian corn chowder recipe is fresh, wholesome and delicious. Itโs perfect for cool late summer or fall evenings when fresh corn is at its peak. Or, you can make it any time with frozen corn.
I wanted the corn flavor to shine and balanced its sweetness with some Southwestern spice. Youโll find bell pepper, poblano and chili powder in this atypical chowder. I promise you will not miss the bacon.
I purposefully avoided using the heavy cream that youโll find in most chowder recipes. Heavy cream has a tendency to dull flavors and also makes me feel weighed down. Instead, I blended a bit of butter into the soup (one of my favorite soup tricks) and stirred in some crรจme fraรฎche or sour cream at the end. These dairy ingredients offer some creaminess, of course, plus some tanginess that you wonโt get from plain cream.
You can easily make this soup dairy free or vegan, if desired. Youโll love the end results either way!
Corn Selection & Preparation Tips
Because great corn is key to making great corn chowder!ย
Buy fresh corn and use it promptly. Freshly harvested corn has the sweetest, most delicious flavor, and it loses that flavor as time goes on.
How to cut corn off the cob: I find it easiest to just lay the corn down on the cutting board. Slice off a strip of kernels lengthwise with a sharp knife, rotate so the flat side is against the cutting board, and repeat as necessary.
If you canโt find fresh corn or want to save a few minutes: Use frozen corn, which tastes much nicer than canned corn. Rinse off any frost on the kernels first, then add them to the pot as directed.
Watch How to Make Southwestern Corn Chowder
Corn Chowder Serving Suggestions
You could count a big bowl of chowder as a light meal. Or serve smaller portions on the side. This chowder goes well with green salads, sandwiches and quesadillas, and simple vegetable sides. Here are a few nice options:
- 10-Minute Quesadillas
- Arugula and Wild Rice Salad with Zippy Lemon Dressing
- Erinโs Peach and Avocado Green Salad
- Favorite Green Salad with Apples, Cranberries and Pepitas
- Favorite Grilled Cheese Sandwich
- Perfect Roasted Green Beans
- Quick Collard Greens
More Fresh Corn Recipes to Enjoy
- The Best Grilled Corn on the Cob
- Elote (Mexican Street Corn)
- Fresh Corn Salsa
- Garden-Fresh Corn Salad
- Succotash
More Cozy Fall Soups & Stews
- Best Lentil Soup
- Classic Tomato Soup (Lightened Up!)
- Broccoli Cheese Soup
- Homemade Vegetarian Chili
- Spicy Black Bean Soup
Please let me know how your chowder turns out in the comments! I love hearing from you.
Southwestern Corn Chowder
Make this Southwestern corn chowder for a cozy dinner at home! This vegetarian corn chowder recipe is fresh, wholesome and delicious. Recipe yields 8 cups or 4 generous bowls.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 8 ears of fresh sweet corn, shucked (or 6 cups frozen corn kernels)
- 1 pound red potatoes, cut into ยพโ cubes (about 3 cups)
- 1 large red onion, chopped
- 1 poblano pepper (optional)*, seeds and ribs removed, choppedย
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 2 celery ribs, chopped
- ยพ teaspoon salt, divided, to taste
- ยฝ teaspoon chili powder
- 2 medium cloves garlic, pressed or mincedย
- 4 cups (32 ounces) vegetable broth
- 2 cups water
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
- ยผ cup chopped cilantro
- ยผ cup crรจme fraรฎche or sour cream or Greek yogurt**
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juiceย
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- Suggested garnishes: Grated sharp cheddar cheese, thinly sliced green onion, additional cilantro leaves and/or a tiny pinch of chili powder
Instructions
- In a medium/large Dutch oven or soup pot, warm the olive oil over medium heat until shimmering. Add the corn, potatoes, onion, poblano, bell pepper, celery, ยฝ teaspoon of the salt, and ยฝ teaspoon chili powder. Stir to combine. Cook until the onions are tender and translucent, about 7 to 10 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes.
- Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds to 1 minute, while stirring constantly. Add the broth and water and stir to combine. Drop in the bay leaf.ย
- Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat as necessary to maintain a gentle simmer. Simmer for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. Itโs not done until the potatoes are fully cooked through and very easily pierced through with a fork.ย
- Remove the pot from the heat. Using kitchen tongs, remove the bay leaf. Carefully transfer about 3 cups of the soup (about half liquid, half solids) to a blender. Securely fasten the lid and be careful to avoid the hot steam as you blend until completely smooth. Add the butter and blend again.
- Pour the mixture back into the pot. Add the cilantro, crรจme fraรฎche (see note if using sour cream or Greek yogurt) and lime juice. Stir to combine. Season with the remaining ยผ teaspoon salt and be generous with the black pepper, to taste. If youโd like more spice, add up to ยฝ teaspoon more chili powder, to taste.ย
- Divide the chowder into bowls and top with garnishes of your choice. Leftover chowder will keep well in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 5 days or for several months frozen.
Notes
*Spice level note: Some poblanos are more spicy than others. If youโre sensitive to spice, you can omit the poblano to be on the safe side, and also go easy on the chili powder. If you love spice, you can stir in additional chili powder to taste, or you could even add a chopped jalapeรฑo to the pot with the other peppers.
**Crรจme fraรฎche or sour cream: I like crรจme fraรฎche because it does not curdle when stirred into hot soup. I use the Vermont Creamery brand and typically find it near the goat cheese. If you prefer to use sour cream or Greek yogurt, you can โtemperโ it to prevent it from curdling. Simply place the sour cream or yogurt in a heat-safe bowl. Add a few splashes of the warm soup liquid, stirring after each, until the mixture is warmed through. Then stir the mixture into the soup.ย
Make it dairy free/vegan: Omit the butter. Iโve heard from some commenters who love it without any additional creaminess. Or for results closest to the soup as shown, use my vegan sour cream in place of the crรจme fraรฎcheโit works great! You might enjoy garnishing individual servings with an additional dollop of vegan sour cream on top.ย
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionistโs advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
love this recipe , comes out amazing every time and everyone i make it for adores it! iโve found cayenne pepper works really well with the other flavours. Iโd also recommend more lime (but thatโs just because iโm obsessed with lime!) i also donโt do any of the blending to save time, would recommend :)
Iโm glad you love it, Vikki! Thank you for your review.
Delicious! Oh my goodness. Cut recipe in half, since thereโs only 2 of us, but now wish Iโd make a full pot of it. So tasty! Used
poblano, for some heat. Just excellent! Thank you.
Delicious!! An easy 5/5. Family loved it!! Iโm back again to make it a week later :) Last week I used Greek yogurt, and this week Iโm going to try sour cream. Thanks!!
Thatโs great to hear, Kelly! Thank you for taking the time to review. Iโm glad you loved it.
Delicious! I made the recipe with frozen corn and it was absolutely beautiful and yielded a lot of serves.
Iโm glad you loved it, Zharzi! Thank you for your review.
I exactly followed the recipe and It was simply yummmmm!! Canโt resist to try more of your recipes.
Do you take the skin off the poblano?
Hi Megan, no need to take the skin off.
I made it as written. It was wonderful. Next time I will put in either 1/2 tsp more chili powder or some chopped jalapeรฑo. I will definitely make this again.
Thatโs great to hear, Suzae! Thank you for your review.
I made this recipe as written with one change โ I had most of a can of coconut milk I needed to use up, so I subbed it for the water (I added water to get to the 2 cup amount) and skipped the butter and crepe fraiche. I wound up using my immersion blender to make it all smooth-ish because I wasnโt as precise with my veg chopping as I would like for the recipe as written. I just took a spoonful and it is wonderful. Like late summer in a bowl. Creamy without any dairy โ so I think it is vegan this way. I havenโt tried the original and am sure its wonderful too โ just wanted to take advantage of what I had on hand. Thank you for another perfect recipe!
Thank you for sharing how you made this, Gina! I appreciate your review.
This was delicious! I was looking for a fresh recipe using summer vegetables and this was perfect. I added smoked paprika and Hatch green chiles. I will absolutely be making this again!
Great to hear, Briana! Thank you for your review.
Followed recipe and added just a little more poblano/chili powder and it was perfect! Thanks for such a great recipe, itโs a keeper.
Iโm glad you loved it, Catherine! I appreciate your review.
I made it today,very tasty , thanks a lot. The only adjustment that I made, I added only 4 cups of broth, without adding 2 cups of water. I didnโt want it to be watery and Iโm happy with results โบ๏ธ.
Iโm glad you loved this recipe, Olga! I appreciate your review.
This was SO GOOD!
Great to hear, Ashely! I appreciate your review.
Try not to cringe when you read this question, but is it possible to make this recipe with canned corn? Iโve never found frozen corn since moving to a new country (crazy, right?) and fresh corn is only available seasonally. If yes, when during the cooking process would I add the corn? Thank you so much for all of your wonderful recipes!
I havenโt tried it, but you could. Let me know how it turns out, Tama!
I made this for a tailgate and got rave reviews from veggie and non veggie family alike! The potatoes tasted perfectly melted in it. Thank you!
Youโre welcome, Shoba! I appreciate your review.
Hello from London!
I made this at the weekend โ super quick and absolutely delicious! I added sour cream but actually feel it didnโt need it, so next time Iโll stop at the butter & blending stage.
Iโm looking forward to trying more of your recipes. Iโve been looking for healthy food that also tastes good (and isnโt full of obscure ingredients that are hard to get) and this blog seems just the ticket.
Best wishes,
Caroline
So good! Thank you!
Iโm glad you enjoyed it!
can this be thrown into a crockpot?
Hi, I havenโt tired it so I canโt say for sure.
This soup is AMAZING! SO SO SO GOOD! So colorful, so flavorful, I canโt say enough good things about it. Definitely a keeper!
Iโm glad you loved it, Chele! Thank you for your review.
Hi Kate,
how big are your cups?in ml or grams?
Thanks!
Kata
Hi Kata, I donโt provide metric conversions. Sorry!
Yum! Made for dinner last night with quesadillas. Cozy post holiday supper. Thank you.
Youโre welcome, Susan!
Going to try this for my vegetarian dairy free daughter this weekend! Using frozen sweet corn and potatoes from my garden and homemade veg stock! Looking for cashew sour cream to use instead of dairy! Excited to try! Serving with homemade tortilla chips and guacamole!
I hope itโs a hit!
I made this chowder tonight without the poblano pepper but I upped the amount of chili powder. My husband and I loved it!
We do have a lot left over so I was wondering whether it can be frozen. I have frozen your vegetable soup (my husbandโs favorite!) with no adverse effects so I think it should be ok. I would appreciate your thoughts.
Thanks,
Kathy
Wonderful to hear, Kathy! Thank you for your review.
Iโve made maybe 10 of your soup recipes, and even with canned corn (I know!), this is right up there at the top! It ties with your peanut soup recipe for 1st place in our home. Sooo delicious. I canโt wait to make it exactly as written with fresh corn this summer! Thank you thank you for making cooking good food so easy and approachable. Your recipes are always winners.
This soup is amazing! Soooooooo delicious & quite simple to make. Itโs great with or without the lime, the coriander and the yoghurt. I made it with one potato & one sweet potato (thatโs all I had on hand). I also used a long red chilli. I feel itโs a very flexible soup to make that tastes fabulous!
Iโm glad you loved it, Linda! I appreciate your review.
I made exactly as written using frozen corn except for replacing cilantro with parsley. Maybe fresh corn would make it better, but I found the corn very chewy and the soup very bland. After reading other reviews I added some cumin and more Chili powder as well as some taco seasoning. As one other reviewer did I added a heaping spoon of brown sugar. I also purรฉed almost all of it to break up the corn. I served it topped with grated cheddar/Monterey Jack blend. It was okay, but wouldnโt make it again.
Iโm sorry to hear that!
We had my 77 year old grandmother over for dinner and made this recipe for the first time. She loves all C&K recipes so she was excited to try it. It was a total crowd pleaser and not too hot with the addition of the poblano! Will definitely be adding this recipe to the regular soup rotation!
Great to hear, Daria!
I rarely comment but this was awesome. I used jalapeรฑo instead of pablano and sweet potato instead of regular potato. Subbed carrots for bell pepper. Just what I had on hand. Used greek yogurt. Instead of veggie stock I just simmered the soup with the corn cobs for over an hour. Added kale. This recipe is versatile and delish!
Iโm glad you loved it, Kel!
The easiest way to cut corn is to use a Bundt or angel food pan. Stand the corn pointy side into the hole and then cut down. The kernels land in the bowl- no mess!
Easy and so yummy.. my family just loved itโฆ Perfect for dinner and next day lunch
Delicious!!
Great to hear, April! Thank you for your review.
Great recipe. I added a pinch of smoked paprika and turmeric for flavour and colour. Brocolli stem and flowers instead of celery. Small carrot. Parsley stem. Bit of margarine dash of soy milk and sugar. My 10 yr old loved it. Delicious.
Iโm glad you love it, Russell!
Iโve made this 4 times already this summer, itโs so good. I follow the instructions exactly and it comes out perfect every time. The only additional thing I do is to take the spent cobs and make corn stock for the next batch so nothing goes to waste.
I mostly love your recipes, which is why I came here looking for a corn chowder. Butโฆ you can do better than this. You should cook the onions in oil, then add the garlic, and while that cooks you can chop up the rest of the veggies and throw them in when the onionโs mostly done. If you put them in first, the onion just sits in a pile of warmish veggies while potato starch ends up sticking to the bottom of the pan. To make a half-batch, I used half the corn and potatoes, just 3c stock (but no water), and changed the spices to 1 tablespoon of chili, 1 tablespoon of black pepper, and 1 tablespoon of cumin. Thatโs about 12 times your proportions, and my spices are fresh. And even so, it was about the level of spiciness one expects in clam chowder. I confess, as I tasted it while cooking, I cooked up two strips of bacon to crumble on top, and even added a tablespoon of bacon fat to the soup itself.
I know a ton of other folks loved it, but โฆ well, I was surprised at how disappointed I was by (a) the blandness, and (b) the peculiar cooking directions, esp. considering how much I like many of your recipes.
Iโm sorry you didnโt enjoy this recipe, John. I found this method to work the best after testing it a few different ways. I appreciate your feedback.
This is SO yummy! Made it while a summer thunderstorm was raging outside and it could not have been any cozier. Added a carrot, zucchini and some smoked paprika because I had it on hand. Water mixed with the vegetarian better than bouillon base (instead of broth) made it next level delicious. Thank you so much for this recipe!! A new keeper for sure!
Great to hear, Nathalie! I appreciate your review.
I made this as written, and itโs absolutely delicious!
Thatโs great to hear, K!
This corn chowder was excellent. I saw your post on Instagram and had to try it. I will be making it again.
Thanks Kate!
Hooray! Iโm glad that post inspired you. Thank you for sharing, Joan.
Mine came out very sweet (8 small ears of fresh sweet corn, not quite 5 cups of kernels). My poblano pepper was pretty tasteless (not sure if thatโs normal or not) so I added half a jalapeรฑoโshouldโve done the whole. Added more chili powder at the end too. I only did 1 cup of water but next time Iโd skip the water completely. I enjoyed it but it wasnโt what I was expecting. Still, a decent healthy soup that doesnโt weigh you down. :)
Accidentally forgot the butter but this was fresh, sweet deliciousness! We added lots of pepper, squeezes of lime, sour cream, and blue corn chips at the table. Thanks!
Youโre welcome, Emily!
This is delicious! Flavorful and not too heavy. I used a few different peppers and did one can of creamed corn in addition to the fresh corn.
Iโm glad you loved it, Jay! I appreciate your review.
Whenever I sliced kernels off the cob, there were always some that scattered/sprayed onto the counter top. A โcleanโ trick I use when cutting fresh corn off the cob is to stand it upright in a large bowl, stem base down and then slice away! All the kernels as well as the would-be renegades stay in the bowl- no mess!
Then itโs a simple thing to just empty the bowl of kernels and rinse out.
Thank you for sharing, Susan!
Kate your soups are the foundation of soups I make and bring to convalescing friends and neighbors. More more more great recipes for chunky yummy soups!! I make your recipes constantly to rave reviews!!
This is the 4th soup Iโve made from your site and another winner! I did not add cream or yogurt because I tend to like more broth based soups and it was still delicious! My toddler loved it as well. Thanks Kate for all the great recipes
Youโre welcome, Elizabeth!
Great recipe! I used frozen fire-roasted corn.
Loved it! I used frozen corn and followed the recipe as written. Makes a lot. A definite repeat.
Great recipe! Iโm curious if anyone has tried subbing coconut milk for the cream fraiche/sour cream/greek yogurt? Itโs delicious as-is but to make it dairy-free, I think I will try that next time :)
I have loved every recipe Ive tried in your cookbook. I was just browsing your site today for dinner ideas and after reading the reviews canโt wait to try it tomorrow eveningโฆ thanks!
Thatโs wonderful! Thank you for your review, Marian.
Fantastic recipe! The flavor and consistency were top-notch. I love every single one of Kateโs recipes that I try!
Wow! Another great recipe! Loved it
Thank you, Jennifer!
Do you have nutrition info for this one on hand?
Hi Kristine, The nutrition information is below the notes section of the recipe.
Great southwest corn chowder recipe . Omitted butter and oil still tasted great grilled a poblano and Anaheim Pepper added to mix thanks Paul