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A simple Zucchini Corn Chowder loaded with fresh produce! Diced potatoes, zucchini, and fresh corn all together in a luxuriously creamy soup base!
Sipping on summer corn chowder.
Okay, but not really.
Though this delicious Zucchini Corn chowder has all of summers best bounties, it’s one of those recipes that you can truly make all year long. All you need is a little crusty bread to pair alongside a bowl of this and maybe an side salad. It’s honestly such a flavorful bowl.
And let’s also talk about the abundance of veggies here: potatoes, onions, celery, and carrots, garlic, and jalapeños — yes JALAPEÑOS that go into this chowder. When do we ever do boring, bland, or tasteless food around here? What you’re getting in this one bowl is veggies up the wazoo.
The key to making a perfect corn chowder is the balance of creamed veggies and chunky bites. I like to purée about half of the soup in a food processor before adding in the half and half so that some of the veggies are whole while others blend completely to make the perfect silky chowder texture.
Last note, the jalapeños I used are completely option, for a milder zucchini corn chowder, just leave them out. But we love a little southern style kick so I highly urge you to give it a go with the peppers!
This is my favorite new soup! Uses up the zucchini in my garden in a new and tasty way. I’m made it for many different people and its always a winner!
Ingredients for Zucchini Corn Chowder
- Butter: just a few tablespoons to saute the veggies in the pot.
- Yellow onions: we’ll a saute the onions and vegetables in the pot as the base.
- Carrots: you’ll need diced carrots for this
- Celery: I use finely chopped onions, carrots, and celery as the base of this recipe.
- Garlic: adds the perfect amount of flavor
- Jalapeno: give this a little southern kick!
- Gold Potatoes: Yukon gold potatoes are my favorite for this, but feel free to use russets too. We don’t need flour to make a roux, as the natural starch in the potatoes will help thicken the chowder.
- Chicken Broth:vegetable broth works equally well here to make this vegetarian-friendly!
- Fresh Zucchini:
- Herbs and seasonings: you’ll need kosher salt, as well as a bay leaf, some dried thyme, and some fresh parsley to finish the soup. I always finish my bowl with
- Fresh Corn Kernels: When in season, I’ll use fresh corn sliced off the cob, but you can also use defrosted corn here if you’re making this in the winter months!
- Half and Half: if you don’t have half and half, simply use ½ cup milk and ½ cup of heavy cream here instead.
- To finish: I always finish my bowl with a little black pepper and some crisped up turkey bacon!
How to Make Corn Zucchini Chowder recipe
- Saute the aromatics. Start by adding the butter to a large dutch oven. Once melted, add the onions, carrots and celery. Stir often and cook until the vegetables soften. Add the garlic and jalapenos with the potatoes and cook until the garlic is no longer raw.
- Simmer the soup. Pour the broth, and all the dried herbs. Then bring to a boil and simmer until the potatoes are half done.
- Adds veggies. Then stir in the zucchini and corn and cook until the potatoes are cooked through.
- Blend it up. Transfer half the chowder to a high-speed blender and blend until smooth. If you have an immersion blender, you can also just pulse it in the soup pot to help thicken.
- Serve it up. Heat the soup then add half and half and let it simmer until it thickens bit. Serve topped with fresh parley and some black pepper!
If you like this recipe, you might also like
- Seattle Style Smoked Salmon Chowder
- Shrimp and Corn Chowder
- Blushing Tomato Crab Bisque
- Secret Ingredient Tomato Basil Soup
- Comforting Red Lentil Soup
Fresh Corn Zucchini Chowder
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1¼ cup yellow onions diced
- ½ cup carrots diced
- ½ cup celery diced
- 4 teaspoons garlic minced
- 1 jalapeńo diced, remove seeds/ribs before to control spice
- ¾ lb. yukon gold potatoes diced
- 4 cups chicken broth low sodium, vegetable broth works too
- 1 bay leaf
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 large zucchini diced
- 2½ cups corn kernels fresh or frozen
- 1 cup half and half or heavy cream
- fresh parsley black pepper, and bacon bits, for garnish
Instructions
- SAUTE: In a large dutch oven, heat the butter over medium high heat. Add the onions, carrots, and celery and cook for 4-5 minutes or until the vegetables soften. Add the garlic, jalapenos, and potatoes and cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring so the veggies don't stick to the pot.
- SIMMER: Add the broth, bay leaf, and thyme, bring to a boil. Cover, lower the heat and let simmer for 8-10 minutes or until the potatoes are half way cooked.
- ADD: the zucchini and corn kernels and continue to cook for an additional 5-7 minutes or until the potatoes are cooked through. You can check the doneness by gently piercing with the tip of a knife.
- BLEND: Remove the bay leaf, transfer 2 cups or more (see notes) into a food processor and process until smooth. Pour the blended mixture back into the pot. Alternately, you can use an immersion blender and pulse it in the soup pot until it reaches your desired consistency.
- SERVE: Heat the soup over medium high heat, add the half and half and let come to a gentle simmer. Serve topped with fresh parsley, black pepper bacon bits, and smoked paprika if desired.
Notes
- You can blend all or none of the chowder as well. This is completely to your preference! Use more or less jalapeños to preference too!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like This? Leave a comment & rating below!
Made this soup today. Absolutely delicious!! I did add additional herbs: Italian seasoning, and basil. Used a very spicy Serrano pepper which totally suited out Indian tastes. The smoked paprika at the end was classic! Thank you.
My husband and I love all the recipes we have made from your website.
I made this recipe with just a couple of slight tweaks! I sauteed onion, carrots and celery in olive oil rather than butter.
I went with the vegetable broth. And I substituted the heavy cream/half and half for milk with a little cornstarch to reduce the fat.
There were NO LEFTOVERS it was a keeper!
Wonderful recipe!! Was searching for some way to use my garden squash & jalapeños. I substituted coconut cream instead of the half and half and it was perfection! Thank you!
Came across your recipe on Pinterest, since I had some of these veggies on hand, I decided to make your recipe. It was so good, I skipped the Jalapeno since my mom doesn’t do hot/spicy. I used an immersion blender and blender more than directed. We both loved this chowder, will definitely make again.
Made this soup and it was great. Added some diced linguica that Ipan-fried and it was good, just another level of taste and texture. Great recipe.
This looks great! If using frozen corn, do you thaw it first before adding or put it right in frozen? Thank you!
This recipe is amazing! So flavorful and fresh
Made this and it turned out fantastic! I didn’t have thyme, so I used a few shakes of dried oregano, basil and rosemary. I sprinkled shaved Parmesan cheese on top just before eating. Yum.
This looks delicious!! Any changes if I make this early in the day for dinner later?
Really Awesome base for a hearty soup! But there was ZERO salt in the recipe. Was that on purpose? All those veggies need some salt.
Oh my goodness. I love this chowder. Have given recipe to so many people and everyone raves about it.
I put in purple garlic, so good. Be careful 1 – toe is plenty. I put in 3 and had to add 10 more cup of broth/milk which wasn’t terrible ..gave me more yummy soup.
So happy to hear you enjoyed it, Sharon! Appreciate you sharing the recipe with friends and family! 🙂
Hi thanks for this recipe. This is my third summer making it. I tweaked it a bit used sweet potatoes after my second try and only make it that way now. The taste is amazing. I did not use the half and half, just blended half of the soup which is so creamy it didn’t need it. I freeze it in individual containers and eat it for lunch at work. This time I used a scotch bonnet pepper because I didn’t have jalapeños but made a double batch. I’m hoping it’s not too spicy.
Yum! Thanks for sharing!
I made this for my kids and I. It was delicious and super tasty. I didn’t blend it this but next time I make it I will.
I’m so glad it was enjoyed, Nessa! Appreciate you taking the time to come back and leave a comment 🙂
Hi Marzia,
I was wondering if you peeled the potatoes and carrots before adding to the soup?
Thanks
Yolanda
Added a couple extra jalapenos and some cayenne for flavor. We used canned corn and increased the amount of each veggie just because we wanted a chunkier chowder. It was decent soup but after letting it warm an extra hour in the hot dutch oven it was delicious! It was even better the second day (even cold)! I would recommend letting it hang out for an extra 1-2 hours to let it thicken and allow the flavors to come together even more.
Really this is a great base recipe to play around with! It would be good with kale, cauliflower, parsnip, winter squashes, asparagus, whatever veg you’re feeling!
Made this recipe for a cold a rainy Sunday today and it was delicious. Veganized the recipe using vegan butter and substituting the half & half with an unsweetened almond creamer. I used an immersion tool to blend the whole pot and this soup turned out to be a winner at the dinner table. In fact my son served himself seconds! Thanks for sharing your recipe?
Thanks for sharing! Does it freeze well?
This looks so good! What a great way to use up a bunch of good summer veggies!
I made this tonight – it is amazing! I put 3 soup ladles into my blender to thicken and it was perfect. Thank you!
AMAZING – – I only had canned corn and it was still BOMB!!