The Very Best Corn Chowder
Savoring summer’s bumper crop in the soup pot
Issue 48: From Dana
It comes fast, the corn harvest, and it’s always a bit bittersweet because it means the end of summer is near. If you live around cornfields, like I do in upstate New York, you’ve been watching them sprout up all season, waiting until the corn is as high as an elephant’s eye so that the markets and honor system veg stands are full of ears for the taking.
For me, this time of year is all about the quest for “THE corn” – the sweetest, plumpest, best. Among friends and neighbors, there’s a lot of chatter about which farm’s corn is king this year, who’s growing a special variety we have to try. When you find it, all you want to do is boil it and slather it in good butter, and that’s the way we eat it for weeks: for dinner with grilled chicken and sauteed greens, at barbecues with burgers and dogs, butter and sweet corn juices running down our wrists as we bite in.
But there’s only so much corn on the cob a person can eat. At some point—which hit me this week—the novelty wears off and it’s time to embrace the vegetable’s wider charms. Which isn’t hard because, as we know, corn is one of the world’s most amazing superfoods and there’s so much you can do with it. (For a deep dive into its agricultural and anthropological importance, check out Betty Fussell’s 1992 classic “The Story of Corn”) .
I make elote, the mayo-slathered grilled cobs with lime zest, queso, cumin and cilantro popular at street carts in Mexico; corn-scallion-tomato salads with lots of citrus and herbs; pizza or galettes with corn, baby tomatoes and feta; risotto with caramelized onion, bacon and corn.
But, if you ask me, the meal that celebrates all corn’s got to give is a summery, satisfying chowder with lots of toppings. For the past few years when we were teaching summer camp online, it’s been the celebratory meal students make for lunch for their families on the last day, and we always get rave reviews. (Just yesterday, one parent wrote to request the recipe again and called it the “best corn chowder we ever ate.”) High praise!
It can go rustic with oyster crackers, or fancy with poached shrimp or lobster and avocado, or somewhere in between with sliced scallions, hot peppers, cilantro, hot sauce and crema. It’s versatile that way. And it’s a great recipe to make with the kids because there are so many lessons that will stick with them when working with corn in the future. A few highlights:
Cutting kernels off the cob: once you know this hack, you’ll never go back. Slicing down on the cob on top of an inverted bowl nestled inside a larger bowl collects all the corn and milky juices. Here’s my former Food & Wine colleague, Justin Chapple, showing us how it’s done:
Enriching broth with cobs: Don’t toss them! The flavor inside those cobs is sweet, rich and corny so when we make chowder (or risotto), we always steep the cobs in water or stock to draw that flavor out and into the dish.
Using the blender: whether you want to leave your chowder chunky, or take it in a velvety pureed soup direction, this recipe teaches you how to get comfortable with the blender – and have fun with it!
And sometimes, when I find THE corn, I make an even simpler 3-ingredient version I featured in The New York Times years ago that I learned from the talented veg-driven chef Colin Alevras. When I make this soup, I don’t even serve it as a meal: it stays in my fridge and I sip on it, savoring the taste of summer, until it’s gone.
Fresh Corn Chowder
Serves 4-6
6 ears corn, shucked (or 6 cups kernels, frozen and thawed or canned and drained)
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 small yellow onion, diced (about 1 cup)
1 rib celery, chopped (use the leaves, too, if you have them)
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and diced
12 ounces Yukon gold or red potatoes, chopped into 1-inch pieces
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
5 sprigs fresh thyme, plus more for garnish
1 cup whole milk
Toppings: chopped fresh herbs (scallions, chives, basil, parsley), bacon bits, thinly sliced jalapenos or radishes, and toasted pepitas
To remove the kernels from the cob, place a small bowl upside down inside a large bowl. Working with one cob at a time, place the pointy side on top of the small bowl. Hold the handle end with one hand and with the other, use a chef's knife to cut the kernels so they fall off into the bowl. You should have about 6 cups. Using the dull, back side of the blade, scrape all the juice out of the cob and into the bowl. Snap the cobs into three pieces and place them in a stock pot with 6 cups of water and the bay leaf. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce to medium and simmer for 10-15 minutes while making the rest of the chowder.
Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large soup pot or Dutch oven (at least 7 quart) over medium heat. Add the onions, celery and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are translucent, 2-3 minutes. Add the peppers and potatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables start to soften, about 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Using a slotted spoon or strainer, remove the cobs from the broth and pour the broth (you should have about 1 quart) into the chowder pot. Add the reserved corn kernels and their juices to the pot and bring to a boil, stirring and mashing the kernels against the side of the pot. Strip the leaves from the thyme stems and add to the pot. Reduce the heat to medium, add the milk, and simmer for 15-20 minutes, until the potatoes are tender. If you prefer a thicker, less chunky broth, use an immersion blender to partially puree the chowder, or transfer 1-2 cups of the chowder to a blender or food processor, puree until smooth, and return to the pot. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
To serve, ladle into bowls and garnish with more thyme leaves and your choice of toppings.