Slow Cooker Creamy Corn Chowder

Slow Cooker Creamy Corn Chowder

The Spruce / Diana Chistruga

Prep: 20 mins
Cook: 8 hrs
Total: 8 hrs 20 mins
Servings: 6 to 8 servings

Corn chowder is one of those soups you can eat year round—it is comforting on a cold day, but also highlights one of the summer's best crops. It is a versatile recipe, allowing for additions (like bacon and chopped red pepper), as well as alterations (like keeping it chunky or puréeing half of the mixture). Corn chowder is also easily made vegetarian by swapping out the chicken broth for vegetable broth.

What makes this recipe even more appealing is that it is cooked in a crock pot instead of on the stove. You can start the soup in the morning, and then finish it off an hour or so before dinnertime. And because it is filling and nutritious, all you need alongside are biscuits or crackers and a simple salad.

Ingredients

  • 32 ounces corn (2 16-ounce cans, drained)

  • 3 medium potatoes (Yukon Gold or red-skinned)

  • 1 medium onion

  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (or to taste)

  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper (or to taste)

  • 2 cups chicken broth

  • 2 cups whole milk (or half-and-half)

  • 1 tablespoon butter

  • 2 strips bacon (cooked and crumbled, or chopped chives or parsley), optional, garnish

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Slow Cooker Creamy Corn Chowder ingredients

    The Spruce / Diana Chistruga

  2. Combine the corn, potatoes, onion, salt, pepper, and chicken broth in a slow cooker.

    corn, potatoes, onion, salt, pepper, and chicken broth in a slow cooker

    The Spruce / Diana Chistruga

  3. Cover and cook on low for 7 to 9 hours.

    potato and corn mixture cooking in a slow cooker

    The Spruce / Diana Chistruga

  4. Purée in a blender or food processor, or using an immersion blender, if desired, then return to the pot.

    blended potato and corn mixture in a slow cooker

    The Spruce / Diana Chistruga

  5. Stir in milk and butter; cover and cook on high about 30 to 60 minutes more.

    cream and butter added to the corn mixture in the slow cooker

    The Spruce / Diana Chistruga

  6. Garnish with crumbled bacon and/or chopped chives, if desired.

    Slow Cooker Creamy Corn Chowder with bacon and chives on top

    The Spruce / Diana Chistruga

Use Caution When Blending Hot Ingredients

Steam expands quickly in a blender, and can cause ingredients to splatter everywhere or cause burns. To prevent this, fill the blender only one-third of the way up, vent the top, and cover with a folded kitchen towel while blending.

Tip

  • This recipe calls for canned corn, but you can use frozen kernels if you like. And if you are making this in summer when the corn is at its peak, by all means, use fresh ears (about 6 ears) of corn. To make removing the kernels from the ears easier and less messy, place the ear of corn on the center of a Bundt or tube pan, sticking the point of the ear in the hole a bit. Using a serrated knife, slice down the ear, rotating around, allowing the kernels to fall into the base of the cake pan.

Recipe Variation

  • Add some protein to the soup if you like. Ham, shrimp, lobster, and bacon are excellent choices. Cook the meat or shellfish and add them to the soup shortly before it's ready. If using shellfish, replace the chicken stock with clam juice or broth.
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
228 Calories
5g Fat
42g Carbs
8g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 6 to 8
Amount per serving
Calories 228
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 5g 7%
Saturated Fat 2g 12%
Cholesterol 11mg 4%
Sodium 355mg 15%
Total Carbohydrate 42g 15%
Dietary Fiber 4g 15%
Total Sugars 10g
Protein 8g
Vitamin C 13mg 65%
Calcium 88mg 7%
Iron 1mg 7%
Potassium 707mg 15%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)