Easy corn chowder with potatoes and bacon is hearty, creamy and perfectly seasoned. This comforting classic is great for summertime, holidays or special meals.

This post is sponsored by the American Dairy Association Mideast. As always, as thoughts and opinions are my own.

And they're off... my kiddos started back to school earlier this week, and I can't believe we're in 2nd and 5th grade this year.

Thankfully, they both have amazing teachers, a close friend in their class, and a wonderful year to look forward to at school. I know they are in such good hands, and that really helps.

Plus, it's nice to have a little quiet around the house during the day while I'm working.

OK, let's move along to the food.

I’ve been making today’s recipe on repeat this summer!

This easy corn chowder is creamy, well seasoned, and a little bit savory and a little bit sweet.

It’s absolutely loaded with bright, sweet corn kernels and also has plenty of chunks of potatoes throughout.

This corn chowder is seriously satisfying.

It’s perfect for summertime, too, when the corn is erupting all around us, but you can totally use frozen corn, so this recipe works all year long.

And it’s just some simple ingredients and everything cooks in one pan. Gotta love that!

Pro move: We’re cooking the bacon in the pot first, then using the bacon grease to sauté the onion and build the chowder. Adds so much extra flavor!

Plus of course, the salty, crumbled, crunchy bacon served on top of this corn chowder just takes it over the top.

This corn chowder tastes just like the classic version I remember, and I think you’re going to love it too.

You can also check out my chicken corn chowder if you want more of a main dish meal.

(Speaking of classics and corn love, check out this corn pudding that's a Thanksgiving and holiday side dish favorite.)

Also, I’m so happy to be partnering with the American Dairy Association Mideast again to share some healthy, veggie-focused recipes this year.

Earlier this year I shared my veggie lovers quiche, which is loaded with fresh veggies, milk and cheese in a pie crust for a yummy breakfast or brunch.

I shared Greek yogurt dips and bean and rice burritos previously as well.

Today’s chowder is celebrating the wholesome goodness of milk.

I firmly believe that milk, and other dairy products, are so important not just for our growing children, but also for us adults.

Milk contains 13 essential nutrients and it’s one of the most affordable - and accessible - ways to get calcium, vitamin D and potassium. Those are three of the four critical nutrients that are most often lacking in diets of Americans.

So drink up! Or, per today’s recipe, slurp it up!

OK, let’s get to cooking. (You can also check out my Google web story for this corn chowder recipe.)

Now, I’ve got some notes and substitutions and tips coming up below on how to make corn chowder. Just tryin’ to be helpful.

I’ve made this recipe lots of times and tested it in several different ways, so I want to share what I’ve learned.

If you want to jump on down to the recipe, simply scroll right on through the rest of the text. The recipe card is near the bottom of the page, above the comments section.

Ingredient Notes:

Corn: I find it really easy and convenient to use a couple of bags of frozen corn for this recipe. (You don’t even have to thaw them.) But you can substitute fresh corn if you’d like. You’ll need about 5-6 cups total.
Potatoes: Russet potatoes help give the starchiness and texture to this chowder. You could try it with another type of potato, like Yukons, but I’m not sure how it might change the chowder.
Milk: My preference is to use 2% milk for this recipe. I’ve tried it with skim and it just seemed a bit more watery and less rich.
Lactaid: I have also tested this recipe with a 2% Lactaid milk and that worked great. So that’s a good option if you or someone you’re serving has lactose intolerance. (If you need to skip the butter for that reason, you can certainly try it, but I haven't tested it without butter.)
Bacon: We’re using the bacon in two ways. The grease from cooking it is what we sauté the onion in, and then we serve the chowder with the cooked, crumbled bacon pieces. This is a must for me.
Vegetarian: If you want to make a vegetarian version of this corn chowder, use oil and butter to sauté the onion and skip the bacon. (Insert sad face from me.)
Spicy: You can add a jalapeño to sauté along with the onion if you want to add some spice to this. You can also serve it with hot sauce (which is what I do to keep it mild for my kids).

The only part of this recipe that is a tiny bit fussy is the potatoes.

First, you need to peel the potatoes.

I love a rustic look on potatoes as much as the next person, but those peels will come right off and float around in your chowder after you blend them down. (Cause I tried it.)

That’s not great for the flavor or the appearance. So peel ‘em first.

Next, as I just mentioned, you need to partially blend or mash the potatoes to break them down a bit.

They don’t need to be completely broken down to mush — I like having some intact potato chunks — but you want to give them a good mashing. This helps thicken the chowder and give it the right texture. (See the photo above a little ways up with the other in-process shots.)

I use and love my immersion blender for this.

(It’s also great to have for single serving smoothies, salad dressings, sauces and more besides just soups.)

If you don’t have a hand blender and you don’t want to fuss with transferring this to a regular blender, you can use a potato masher and just partially mash all of the potatoes.

I tried skipping this step once to keep the recipe even simpler, but it just didn’t taste as good. It was too soupy. So I highly recommend you take the few minutes to break down the potatoes.

OK, let’s get ready to eat!

Now of course, you are serving this corn chowder with the reserved bacon that’s part of this recipe. And that’s the ultimate topping here and included below.

But I’ve got a few other ideas if you want to dress this up and give it some extra oomph.

Toppings for corn chowder:

Cooked, crumbled bacon
Chopped fresh chives
Cracked black pepper
A few dashes of hot sauce
Oyster crackers

Pick your favorites!

Finally, let’s talk about what to do with any leftovers.

This recipe makes a lot, so you may have some extra on hand.

Storing and Reheating Tips:

- Leftover corn chowder, once cooled, can be stored in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

- Reheat over medium low heat on the stove until warmed through.

- I don’t recommend freezing the leftovers. The potatoes and texture don’t stand up well to freezing and thawing.

Also, you can halve the recipe if you are serving a smaller group and don’t want leftovers. The recipe is easily halved and would work great as a side for a family of four.

Summer, fall, winter or spring, I think you are going to love this creamy, flavorful corn chowder. I hope you give it a try soon.

Enjoy!

XO,

Kathryn

P.S. If you are a corn lover like me, check out this summer corn salad, skillet chicken with creamed corn and rice with bacon and corn.

Corn chowder topped with chives and bacon in a white soup bowl.

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4.34 from 3 votes

Easy Corn Chowder

Easy corn chowder with potatoes and bacon is hearty, creamy and perfectly seasoned. This comforting classic is perfect for summertime, holidays or special meals.

Prep Time5

Cook Time35

Total Time40

Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients

5-6 slices of bacon, chopped
1 large onion, diced
3 medium russet potatoes, peeled and diced in ½ inch pieces
1 cup water
3 cups 2% milk (see notes)
2 (10 oz.) packages frozen corn (or 5-6 cups fresh corn)
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
¼ cup unsalted butter
2 ½ teaspoons salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper

For serving (optional):

Chopped chives, black pepper, hot sauce

Instructions

Heat a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook, stirring occasionally, until well cooked on all sides. (Reduce the heat if yours starts to blacken.) Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside on a paper towel.
Add the chopped onion to the bacon grease and sauté over medium heat until tender, about 5 minutes.
And the diced potatoes and water. Cover the pot and cook for 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are fork tender.
Add 1 ½ cups of the milk then carefully use an immersion blender to lightly blend the soup and break down the potatoes. They don’t need to be pureed and it’s OK to have some chunks, but you want them broken down a bit to help with the texture of the chowder. (Alternatively, you could transfer the mixture to a regular blender and pulse to break them down. Or use a potato masher and roughly mash the potatoes to break them down.)
Add the remaining 1 ½ cups of milk, the corn, sugar, butter, salt and pepper. Bring the chowder to a low simmer then reduce the heat and cook over low heat for 5-10 minutes, until warmed through.
Serve the chowder topped with the reserved bacon and any desired toppings. Enjoy!

Notes

Corn: I find it really easy and convenient to use a couple of bags of frozen corn for this recipe. (You don’t even have to thaw them.) But you can substitute fresh corn if you’d like. You’ll need about 5-6 cups total.

Potatoes: Russet potatoes help give the starchiness and texture to this chowder. You could try it with another type of potato, like Yukons, but I’m not sure how it might change the chowder.

Milk: My preference is to use 2% milk for this recipe. I’ve tried it with skim and it just seemed a bit more watery and less rich.

Lactaid: I have also tested it with a 2% Lactaid milk and that worked great. So that’s a good option if you or someone you’re serving has lactose intolerance.

Bacon: We’re using the bacon in two ways. The grease from cooking it is what we sauté the onion in, and then we serve the chowder with the cooked, crumbled bacon pieces. This is a must for me.

Vegetarian: If you want to make a vegetarian version of this corn chowder, use oil and butter to sauté the onion and skip the bacon.

Spicy: You can add a jalapeño to sauté along with the onion if you want to add some spice to this. You can also serve it with hot sauce (which is what I do to keep it mild for my kids.)

Storing and reheating leftovers:

- Leftover corn chowder, once cooled, can be stored in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

- Reheat over medium low heat on the stove until warmed through.

- I don’t recommend freezing the leftovers. The potatoes and texture don’t stand up well to freezing and thawing.

Video

Nutrition

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