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This Creamy Corn, Zucchini, and Bacon Chowder is one of the best late summer corn chowders. It’s easy to make and totally delicious! Just grab a few ears of sweet corn, garden fresh zucchini, garlic, butter, herbs, and sweet creamy gouda cheese. In less than an hour you can have the perfect, summery, yet cozy bowl of zucchini corn chowder. Tuesday night dinner just got so much better! Add a side salad for the perfect meal!
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We’re entering into the late summer days. And in looking at the calendar, I’m realizing that somehow, August 1st is already this Sunday! With all the travel and work that July brought, the month really flew by. And as sad as I am to say good bye to July for yet another year, I’m looking forward to all the August produce that’s coming.
August is typically the month when summer produce is at its best. The tomatoes are ripening, the corn is perfectly golden and sweet. And by this time, all the garden zucchini and herbs are growing like crazy!
And if you don’t have a garden, the stores are stocked full of all the same delicious produce. This sounds dorky to say, but it’s an exciting time!
I had the idea for the chowder before heading off to Alaska. But I decided to wait to share the recipe until this week, since we’re a bit closer to prime time corn season now.
I didn’t always love a bowl of corn chowder. But once I started making it I quickly learned why everyone loves this creamy delicious summer soup. It’s full of veggies, hearty and warming, but so summery at the same time.
I love making a really good creamy corn chowder on those stormy summer nights when you’re craving a cozier dinner, but still want it to be summery. This is the perfect soup!
This corn chowder is simple
Like most corn chowder recipes, mine is pretty simple to throw together. But I did add a few special touches that make it even more creamy and delicious.
Start with the bacon, which I think is the key to all really great corn chowders. Something about the flavor combination of corn and bacon is just so wonderful and delicious.
Crisp up the bacon, then you’ll want to add the onion and zucchini. I like to cook the zucchini together with a touch of butter to help make it even creamier. Since the soup is already so creamy, when adding the zucchini there’s no need for any thickening agent like flour.
Once you have the zucchini nice and soft, almost everything else goes into the pot to simmer along with the potatoes and corn. When the potatoes and corn are tender, puree about half of the soup using a food processor or immersion blender to make it creamy, keeping the other half of the soup on the chunky side.
I love the mix in textures!
Now finish it up!
Once the soup is combined, mix in a splash of cream, a touch of honey, and some gouda and cheddar cheese.
I know the honey may seem odd, but this is one of those times you really have to trust me. The sweetness of the corn and gouda cheese play off the red pepper flakes to balance the sweetness and create the perfect rich, creamy, and flavorful corn chowder.
It’s unique, but I’m telling you guys, it’s so delicious! Very savory, a little spicy, and extra cheesy.
As I mentioned above, this is really great served with a big summer salad. Right now my peach salad is my favorite, but any nice green salad with crusty bread would be great!
If you’ve got some extra ears of corn lying around, make this chowder. I promise, you and whomever you are serving, are going to love this. It’s a great dinner to serve from now through the early weeks of fall!
Looking for other corn recipes? Here are some favorites:
Honey Garlic Shrimp, Corn, and Avocado Bacon Salad
Garlic Herb Corn Carbonara with Burrata
Skillet Creamy Cajun Chicken Lazone with Herby Corn
Lastly, if you make this Creamy Corn, Zucchini, and Bacon Chowder, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Creamy Corn, Zucchini, and Bacon Chowder
Ingredients
- 5 strips thick cut bacon, chopped
- 2 tablespoons salted butter
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 1-2 medium zucchini or yellow squash, chopped, (about 2 cups chopped)
- 5 cups yellow corn kernels , (from about 4 ears corn)
- 3 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 tablespoons fresh thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- red pepper flakes, to your taste
- 2 medium russet potatoes, peeled and chopped, (about 2 cups chopped)
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 4 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1 cup whole milk or heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 cup shredded gouda cheese
- 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 2 tablespoons chopped chives
Instructions
- 1. In a large pot over medium heat, cook the bacon until crispy. Remove the bacon and reserve for topping. If there is an excess amount of bacon grease, remove all but 1 tablespoon of grease.2. To the pot, add the butter, onion, and zucchini and cook another 5 minutes or until fragrant. Add the corn, garlic, thyme, paprika, and a big pinch of red pepper flakes. Cook another 2 minutes. Add the potatoes and broth. Cover, and bring the soup to a boil, simmer 10-15 minutes, until the potato is soft.3. Transfer 1/2 of the chowder to a blender and blend until mostly smooth. Return to the pot. Stir in the cream, honey, and both cheeses, and cook 5 minutes or until the cheese has melted and the chowder thickens slightly. Stir in the chives and remove from the heat.4. Ladle the chowder into bowls and top with bacon, additional cheese, and any fresh herbs you love most. I use basil, thyme and oregano. Enjoy!
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
OMG…fresh corn is on….I just made this 2 weeks ago and had to make it again today! So delicious!
Thank you so much for trying out this recipe! Have a lovely day! xT
Curious about a few ingredients:
– salted butter – unsalted is typically used in recipes so the cook.can control the salt. Any reason salted butter us used here (seems especially curious with the low sodium chicken broth)?
– salt & pepper are listed but the directions never mention them. Are they meant to be used at the end?
Thanks!
Hey Amy! I almost always use salted butter in my recipes, I just feel like it adds more flavor! Second, the salt and pepper are meant to be added in at the end and I didn’t add in a measurement so that you can control your own salt and pepper flavor to your liking! Hope this makes sense! xT
Hi! Do you cook the corn before adding it to the chowder?
Nope, I don’t! xT
I’ve made this at least 5 times. Everyone loves it !! So good.
Thank you so much! xT
Made this last night and it was soooo good! My husband had four bowls when he got home from playing in a soccer game. I love that you can personalize the toppings. He added a bit of avocado to his.
My soup consistency stayed a little gritty for some reason. It wasn’t a problem but I’m confused why it happened since I followed the recipe exactly. Perhaps it was my Ninja blender. I used an immersion blender after and that helped. I’ll see what happens next time since I’ll be making this again
Hmm I wonder if the gritty texture was from the cheese? Was it room temp when you added it? xT
Can you freeze this?
I haven’t ever tried that before so I’m not sure! xT
Making this for the second year in a row tonight. I made a double batch of last year towards the end of summer and gave some away, took it to work to share, and froze some for a quick meal over the winter. I, along with everyone else that tried it, loved it. It froze and reheated great.
I made some rosemary garlic Parmesan sourdough recently that I have in the freezer that I plan on serving with this. Thanks for another great recipe that’s officially on my annual rotation!
Thanks for giving the recipe a try! I’m so glad you enjoyed it! xT
First time having and making chowder; it was better than I imagined!! My brother’s friend could even smell it, as I was cooking, from the garage and he loved it too!
So glad you loved the recipe! Thanks so much for giving it a try! xT
Another delicious make again recipe. I am in South Jersey, and we have the BEST corn. I love the smoked paprika addition. I omitted the chili flakes since I have 3 young children. I also couldn’t get gouda, so I used all cheddar. We had crusty Italian bread with our chowder, and it hit the spot. Thanks for another amazing recipe.
Hey there! Thanks so much for trying out the recipe! I’m sooo glad you loved it! xT
Love all your recipes. I would make a small change to this – omit the honey. It was a bit too sweet for us. I think the bacon is a must to offset the sweetness. Otherwise delicious!
Thank you so so much! I appreciate the feedback! xT
How do you think this would do with a non-dairy milk instead of heavy cream or whole milk? Also, could this be done in a crockpot?
Hi! Yes, you could totally do this in a crockpot! Also, non dairy milk will work great! xT
Huge HalfBakedHarvest lover and this recipe has to be one of the all time best! So quick and easy and perfect for a rainy summer night!
Hey Grayson! Wow thank you so so much! So glad you’re loving this recipe. xT
I made this last night, but added roasted poblanos too. It was amazing! My family loved it!
Hi Leigh-Anne,
So glad to hear that this dish turned out well for you, thanks for making it! Have a great Saturday! xT
Just made this for dinner for tomorrow night and it is good! Relatively easy and was put together in no time. With summer’s fresh corn and zucchini it really ramped it up. Im going to nix the bacon to make it healthier. You really don’t need it . Yes, I know that everything taste better with bacon but trying to cut back a little. Great Recipe and thank you Tieghan!
Hey Sally,
Fantastic!! So glad to hear that this recipe was a hit, thanks for making it:)
Delicious! I followed the recipe exactly, other than frozen fresh corn from the summer garden. The best chowder recipe I’ve made.
Hey Cindy,
Awesome!! Love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it! xT
This was delicious. I used frozen corn but didn’t change anything otherwise. Will be adding this to our meal rotation!
Hey Cassie,
Happy Friday! ☃️ So glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, I appreciate you making it! xT
I made this in December just because I felt like some comfort food. And boy did it hit the spot! Wouldn’t change a thing! How does this soup freeze?
Hi Kelly,
Happy Monday!❄️🎄 I appreciate you making this recipe and sharing your review, so glad to hear it was enjoyed! You can totally freeze this! xT