Put all of that fresh produce to good use in this summer corn and zucchini chowder. It’s thick, creamy and full of veggies!
Soup isn’t the first thing I think of when it comes to summer, but since the weather cooled off a bit I thought it was the perfect time to whip up a big pot of this hearty, veggie-packed chowder.
I’m kind of the odd man out in our family. I absolutely LOVE soup. Everyone else is on the fence. It’s not like they hate it, but they definitely have their favorites like this spicy sausage and lentil soup, homemade chicken noodle soup and beef and vegetable stew. When I introduce new stews, chowders our soups, they’re always a bit skeptical, but usually end up loving them!
This soup is one I really loved, and so did our kids! It’s made with chunks of potatoes, fresh corn, zucchini and yellow squash and of course, BACON! You can’t go wrong when bacon is involved, right?
First you’ll cut up the bacon into pea-size bits, render the fat and then sauté the veggies in it until they’re nice and tender. Add the broth + seasonings, then simmer the potatoes and squash until they’re cooked throughout. Now comes the fun part! Transfer 2 cups of the chowder to a food processor or blender and puree until it’s silky smooth. This will help thicken the chowder without having to add a bunch of heavy cream. Pour it back in, add the half & half (or whole milk) and then stir it together.
Remove the pot from the heat and allow the chowder to sit for 10 minutes before serving it. This thick, creamy & hearty chowder goes great with grilled cheese, crusty bread, or soft & fully dinner rolls. Enjoy!
Summer Corn and Zucchini Chowder Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 strips bacon - cooked, chopped into bits
- 1/2 large yellow onion - diced
- 2 ribs celery - finely diced
- 5 ears corn - cut off from the cob
- 4 cloves garlic - minced
- 5 cup chicken broth - low sodium
- 2 russet potatoes - peeled and cut into 1/4-inch cubes
- 1 1/4 tsp kosher sea salt
- 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp dried parsley
- 1/4 tsp thyme
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 large zucchini - cut into quarters lengthwise, then sliced
- 1 large yellow squash - cut into quarters lengthwise, then sliced
- 2 cup half and half - or whole milk
Instructions
- Set a large Dutch oven or stock pot over medium heat. Add bacon and cook crisp, about 5 minutes.
- Add onion and celery, cook for 3 minutes, then add corn and continue cooking for an additional 4 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Pour in chicken broth and turn heat up to medium-high. Once the mixture is simmering, add the potatoes along with the salt, pepper, paprika, parsley, thyme and cayenne. Reduce heat to medium and cook for 10 minutes before adding the zucchini.
- Once the zucchini has been added, cook until the potatoes are fork tender and the zucchini is fully cooked, about 10-12 minutes.
- Transfer 2 cups of chowder to a food processor or blender. Puree until silky smooth, about 1-2 minutes. Return the mixture to the pot and add the half and half. Stir to combine, then remove from the heat.
- Let the chowder sit for 10 minutes before serving.
hey girl- this soup looks amazing!
Just made this, pretty much exactly as written. It is FANTASTIC!! I ate three bowls back to back!
Made and LOVED this. One note: The recipe as pictured shows the blended chowder with intact (un-blended) corn, zucchini, squash, potato, onion, and bacon mixed in. I think this is the best way to enjoy a chowder like this. However, the recipe as written directs you to blend everything, leaving no intact veggies for you to stir in. I’d love to see an adjustment to the procedure so that the soup can be enjoyed as pictured.
Hi Megan, it states to blend 2 cups of the soup and then pour it back into the pot and stir it all together. That way you have some creaminess along with chunks. Hope that helps 🙂
Natalie! This soup is amazing. I made it twice in one week because the family ate it so fast and I still wanted more. Thank you for sharing!
Oooohhhh so yummy. Easy and quick dinner
Glad you think so 🙂 Thank you!
Just made this and all I can say is yummy in my tummy!!! I did add carrot and jalapeno but followed recipe as written. Thank you!
Ooooh, I love the addition of jalapeño!
Could this be frozen?
Honestly, I have not tried, but I don’t see why not 🙂
This is absolutely AMAZING! Do you think I could use coconut milk (in the can) instead of half + half or milk? I am a coconut milk FREAK LOL 🙂
Going to try it in my instant pot!! 😁 Any tips or suggestions?? Elizabet
Can you name a substitute for zucchini?????
Thank you.
Do you drain the grease from the bacon?
No, you will add the other veggies to it. It adds yummy flavor 🙂
Can you use frozen corn? If so how much would you use?
I would think the corn from the cob would be anywhere from 1/2 cup to 1 cup, so I would probably use like 4 1/2-5 cups of corn. It is also a personal preference, so you can add more or less.
How many cups of zucchini? My large zucchini are enormous
I would say a large zucchini could get maybe 1 1/2-2 cups. It doesn’t have to be an exact amount. If you like zucchini, then I’d add the whole thing or you could always add less.
When do I add the squash ? With the potatoes or zucchini??
Yes, sorry with the zucchini 🙂 Enjoy!!
If using fresh corn do you blanch it first?
No, you do not need to 🙂 Enjoy!
I’m excited to try this tonight with my family! I made some cheesy corn bread to accompany the soup. I also decided to purée 4 cups instead of the two in the hopes that my toddler will get more veggies in 🤞Thanks so much it was exciting to use our garden veggies in this on a cool, rainy night when I can start to smell fall!
That sounds wonderful! How nice to use veggies from garden. Hope everyone liked it!
Can this be made with 1% milk?
I personally haven’t used it, but, yes, it could!
This was delicious! I had a huge zucchini I needed to use from my garden so I thought this recipe would help use that up. I also added in some mashed cauliflower and about 1 cup of heavy cream, and then whole milk. We are not big rhyme fans so I only added a sprinkle but this is a recipe I will be repeating. I’m hoping the leftovers will freeze well to enjoy once it’s cooler in the fall.
Sounds delicious! Thank you for sharing that! So happy you liked it!
Does not say when to add the corn?
Just realized when the corn is added…Sorry
No worries! Enjoy!!
How many servings is this recipe?
6-8 servings 🙂 Hope you like it!!
Made this chowder today with the fabulous Mirai sweet corn from Twin Garden Farms in Harvard, IL. So delicious. Despite the amount of time on the stove, the corn was nice and crunchy. Great flavors. A keeper for sure!
That corn sounds delish! I am glad you liked it! Thank you!!
This here is a keeper… had to make some minor mods, but will make again. Mods were instead of white onion (which i didnt have), i used a shallot. For the corn i used frozen corn (2 bags 12oz ea), used one cup of heavy cream & one cup whole milk instead of one or the other. And recipe calls for one large yellow squash and one large zucchini. Wasn’t sure what constituted as ‘large’ so i went with two of each at about 7”-8” long… worked fine.
I am so glad it’s a keeper!! I appreciate you sharing that! Thank you so much!
Could this be used with a milk alternative?? Like coconut milk or almond milk?
I have not personally tried, but I am sure it could 🙂
I just stumbled across this recipe and I know it is the dead of winter here in Pennsylvania and the ingredients will not be at their peak, as they would be from a farmer’s market, so I will certainly pin this recipe and save for the summer, but it really looks amazing! My family has been craving requesting soups a lot recently, so I have been attempting to find some good ones. Tonight I made loaded baked potato soup ~ unfortunately I did not see yours in time, as the one that I made did not get rave reviews. Many of the kids said that it was bland…I can see that yours has some paprika and some cayenne in it, which probably really makes a difference! We do like our food to have some punch to it, so I will pin your recipe for that too for next time. I am glad that I found your blog tonight…much of your posts look flavorful and delicious.
But now my mouth is watering thinking of fresh zucchini, squash, and that sweet local corn. Hurry up July!! 🙂
I am glad you found my site! I hope you find more recipes to try! Thank you so much!
Do you cook the corn first or just cut it off the rind raw?
You will add it fresh in step 2. By the end, it is cooked 🙂 Hope you like it!
This soup is delicious! I’m making it for the second time, two weeks in a row!! It’s so easy just to add extra veggies you have available. I added green and red pepper and a little carrot for my second batch. I used canned corn (3 cans) and it was fine – a real nice corn flavor.
Sounds delicious! Thank you for sharing what you did!
What an amazing soup!!! Easily adaptable to other vegetables and additions. I used canned corn, added 1 medium zucchini, 1 medium squash and 2 carrots. I stuck to 1 cup of heavy cream and I easily happy with the texture. Thank you for such a wonderful recipe!!!
You are very welcome! I am glad you shared what you added! That sound yummy! Thank you!
This was very delicious.. I just made it today, however mine was very thin, not chowder like. I did as you mentioned and blended two cups of it and added back in. I used Heavy Cream instead of half and half because that’s what I had..Would it make a difference to add less half and half next time?
Glad you liked it! I am not sure if using the heavy cream made the difference or not. I personally have not used it, so it’s hard to say if that would have changed the recipe. And, you used the 5 cups of broth? I wish I knew for sure.
Just made this for dinner. it was incredible!! I added diced white chicken breasts for my protein eating son but I loved it just as it was with a little cheddar cheese sprinkled in my bowl. I printed off several copies of the recipe for my mom and soup loving friends! I would give this a 6 if I could!!
You have made my day! Thank you for sharing the recipe 🙂
Can’t wait to make this tonight! Quick question- after I cook the bacon am I removing it to be added in the end? Or does it remain cooking with all of the other ingredients?
I keep it in there with the other ingredients, though I like to set aside some, to top the soup with.
I realized that I had pinned this recipe 3x and it was about time that I make it! It turned out delicious! I used 6 pieces of bacon because extra bacon is always welcome and I left out the parsley because I discovered I was out and didn’t want to go back to the store. Definitely a keeper!
So glad you think it’s a keeper 🙂 Thank you for letting me know!
This was amazing!!!!!! Will definitely make again. I didn’t have any thyme and I didn’t have time to go to the store so I subbed a couple capfuls of mrs dash cause that’s usually what we use anyways. I did add a can of corn cause my ears were kind of small. I out about half of it through the blender and what a great idea! I may have added too much broth cause after the milk it was not chowder like. I added half a box of dry stove top stuffing to thicken it up and it turned out nice and thick and delicious. Next time I will pay more attention to how much broth I add. Thanks for the fabulous recipe!
You are welcome! That sounds perfect! Thank you for letting me know 😉
This was DELICIOUS!!! I’ve made it twice now (in less than 2 weeks!). The second time I made it, I added some Ditalini pasta, as I tried it more as a broth-y soup versus a thicker chowder….still great!! This is definitely a keeper!
So happy to hear that! Great idea about adding pasta. Thank you!
Hi,
Is it necessary to add the potatoes? Trying to keep out some of the starch. Will that change the consistency of the soup?
Without the potatoes the chowder won’t be as thick in it’s consistency. The step of transferring the 2 cups of the chowder to a food processor or blender and pureeing it to help thicken the chowder is where the lack of potatoes would make a difference in the thickness. You could try turnips as a substitute for the potatoes. They hold their form well but will blend nicely in a food processor as well. This will help the soup’s consistency. Hope this helps!
Do you think you could get away with not adding the bacon? I’m vegetarian and this soup sounds amazing but I’m not sure how important the bacon flavour is to making it all work.
Absolutely! You can also replace the chicken stock for vegetable stock.
Amazing! And so easy to make!
Easy recipe for the win!
Tasty with a little zing aftertaste
I’m glad you enjoyed this recipe!
Flavourful soup, but followed the directions to a t and it was not thick at all. I definitely would not call it a chowder. I love my soups thick so I was disappointed.
I’m sorry it was thinner than you prefer. In the future you can cut back on some of the chicken broth or you can cook it a little longer to reduce the liquid. Adding a cornstarch slurry for the last bit of cooking time is another trick to thicken soups to your liking.
My husband Loved it!!!
Yay!
Delicious!! Will absolutely make again, great use for summer squash
Yes, soups are perfect for using up less than perfect produce.
Was delicious!!! What do you think about freezing leftovers?
You can store it in a freezer safe container for 1-2 months but expect some changes in the consistency of corn chowder especially due to the half and half since dairy can becomes grainy when frozen.
This is an amazing chowder. My only question is how do you prep this in 20 minutes? I love chopping and prep work but it took me a much longer time to prep this. It will not hold me back from making it again but I am interested in others experience and any suggestions for me. Thx
Multi-tasking is the fastest way for me. I would get all of the produce out first, start cooking the bacon and while it cooks I would then chop through all of the vegetables. But don’t worry, we all chop at different rates. Sometimes I take my time and at other times I blow through it quickly when I’m in a hurry.
Are the potato cubes really 1/4” big? Those are the tiniest diced potatoes I’ve ever experienced in my life if that’s the case!
They are tiny like the corn but feel free to chop them to whatever size you like. Be aware that they may need a little more time to cook if they are cut larger.
Really good; I added some more bacon and corn because I like mine a little thick. But it has great flavor.
Extra bacon is always a good idea.