What is Roasted Corn Chowder?
It is a thick, hearty soup made primarily from corn kernels. The corn kernels are roasted (cooked until charred), which gives the soup a slight toasty flavor. Some of the kernels are blended after cooking, which gives the soup thickness and body.
Why I Made It
I wanted to make a soup that was fitting for the summer weather. Being a fan of thicker soups, I thought something like a chowder was the obvious choice.
Ingredients You Need to Make It
You’ll need corn kernels, some form of fat, flour, broth and yogurt. Most of the ingredient requirements are pretty loose, but there are some things to consider.
For the corn, I recommend either good fresh corn or name-brand frozen corn. I like frozen since it’s much easier to work with. I wouldn’t use cheap corn since I find the quality quickly drops off, and corn quality really matters here.
The recipe calls for both olive oil and butter, but you can use all of either. This is already vegetarian, but if you want to make this vegan, I talk about possible solutions below.
I recommend using whole milk and yogurt, but you can use low-fat or fat-free as well.
Can I Make This Vegan?
If you don’t mind something different-but-still-good, then yes.
You can use something like oat milk instead of cow’s milk, and all oil with no butter. The yogurt is only there for a hint of acidity, so you can probably skip it altogether.
Why You Should Make It
This soup is easy, healthy, vegetarian (and potentially vegan,) and is a great way to utilize summer vegetables.
Best Practices for Blending the Corn
If you want to enjoy this just after making it, you’ll need to blend the corn while it’s hot. Unfortunately, this can be a bit hazardous. Thankfully, there are some simple precautions you can take.
Firstly, if you’re using a countertop blender, don’t just blend the hot soup like usual. Instead, screw off the top middle part of the lid and cover the opening with a folded dish towel.
With your hand pressed firmly down on the towel, blend as usual. This lets the heat energy from the soup escape more easily, minimizing potential incidents.
If you’re using an immersion blender, keep the head of the blender under the surface of the soup. Trying to use it half-submerged will fling hot soup everywhere, which is both messy and dangerous.
If nothing else, you can also wait until the soup has cooled down, and then blend it. This is an especially good idea if you’re wanting a smoother soup that requires more blending.
How to Make the Soup Thicker/Thinner
If you want the soup to be thinner, you’ll want to use more liquid. For a thicker soup, use less liquid.
Similarly, you can make the soup more or less smooth as well. The soup pictured above is quite chunky, which is what I prefer. However, you can make it very smooth by blending all of the corn down to a liquid.
For extra smoothness, run the pureed corn through a fine-mesh strainer.
What to Serve With Roasted Corn Chowder
Any kind of salad featuring other summer vegetables would be great with this. If you have this as a side, an entree like baked salmon sounds nice as well.
If you want to double-down on the summer motif, I recommend a nice, cold glass of iced tea.
Conclusion and Recipe
Below I’ve listed the ingredients, ingredient amounts and steps to make this roasted corn chowder. If you like this recipe, consider following me on WordPress or Pinterest.
If you’re interested in other soup recipes, check out my recipe for sopa de lima.
Ingredients
2 10-oz bags of frozen corn, thawed, 566 grams
2 Tbsps olive oil, 28 grams
2 Tbsps unsalted butter, 29 grams
2 Tbsps flour, 16 grams
1 cup whole milk, 227g
1 cup vegetable broth, 227g
1/4 cup plain yogurt*, 62 grams
2/3 tsp kosher salt, 4 grams
1/2 tsp black pepper, 2 grams
Makes three modest bowls of soup
Preparation
Add the corn and oil to a sauce pan set over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the corn is dark and charred.
Add the butter, allow it to melt, then add the flour**. Cook for 1-2 minutes, then add the milk, broth, salt and pepper.
Continue cooking and stirring until thickened***, then turn off the heat. Puree the soup with a countertop blender or immersion blender.
Once you’re happy with the consistency, stir in the yogurt and serve.
Notes
* I recommend using “normal” yogurt, but Greek would also work.
** If the pan seems dry, add a splash of water with the flour.
*** This should only take a few minutes. It won’t thicken a ton, but it should become noticeably less watery.
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