Make restaurant-quality corn chowder with your handy dandy slow cooker! This recipe uses fire-roasted corn, bacon, and heavy cream; what can be better?
Sometimes you need something heartier than soup for dinner; that’s why we love a good chowder! Try my Slow Cooker Clam Chowder or my Slow Cooker Leftover Turkey Chowder next!
Why this recipe works
Making corn chowder doesn’t need to be complicated! Just add a few ingredients to your slow cooker for the BEST and EASIEST corn chowder you will ever have. The slow cooker will soften the vegetables, and while it simmers all day, the flavors meld together.
Recipe Ingredients
- Corn – To make this recipe special, use canned fire-roasted corn! You can find this at most supermarkets.
- Other vegetables – Peeled russet potatoes, onion, shallots and cayenne peppers. If you can’t find the cayenne peppers, use 1/4 cup poblano peppers or one red bell pepper.
- Vegetable Broth – This is the liquid for the soup, you can use water if desired.
- Seasonings – I use salt, black pepper and paprika. The paprika not only adds flavor it makes the soup a pretty color.
- Heavy Cream – This will make the soup creamy and decadent, wait to add the cream until the end of the cooking time.
- Bacon – Bacon goes wonderful with corn and cream, so naturally you’ll see bacon in corn chowder recipes.
Step-by-Step Directions
Step One – Add the corn, vegetable broth, seasonings, HALF of the cooked bacon, to the slow cooker. Stir. WAIT TO ADD THE CREAM.
Step Two – Cook on LOW for 7 hours or HIGH for 4 hours without opening the lid during the cooking time, for that will let out heat and slow the cooking process.
Step Three – After the cooking time is done, add the heavy cream and cook for 30 more minutes on LOW.
Step Four – Serve with the remaining bacon, you can put it on top of each bowl or stir into the finished soup.
Variations
- Less Spicy – Instead of adding hot chile peppers, use 1 sweet red bell pepper.
- Creamed Corn – Use one can of creamed corn in place of the whole kernel corn for a big punch of corn flavor.
- Mexican Style – Add a can of black beans and a can of rotel tomoates for Mexican corn chowder.
How to serve
- Serve with saltine crackers.
- Top with cheese and freshly ground black pepper
- Cornbread is a wonderful side for chowder.
Recipe FAQs
You can but will have a thinner soup. We prefer a heavy cream so the soup has some texture.
To flavor your soup, you can use diced ham, cooked turkey bacon, or cooked and crumbled sausage (such as Jimmy Dean).
Yes, add just one pound of boneless skinless chicken breasts to this recipe at the beginning of cooking. Shred right before serving.
Place in freezer containers or freezer ziplock bags and freeze for up to three months. Thaw in the fridge for about 24 hours before needing it. Warm in the microwave or stovetop.
Yes! You can use 3 cups of freshly cut corn instead of canned to make your corn chowder.
Add two tablespoons of cold water with two tablespoons of cornstarch. Stir into the finished soup and let cook for an additional 15 minutes.
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Slow Cooker Corn Chowder
Equipment Needed:
Ingredients:
- 32 oz. vegetable broth or chicken broth
- 30 oz. fire-roasted corn drained
- 4 cups diced and peeled russet potatoes (about 1 pound)
- 1/2 cup diced white onion
- 2 shallots sliced
- 1-2 cayenne chiles sliced (can use a 1/4 cup poblano pepper or a red bell pepper instead)
- 16 oz. bacon sliced, cooked and drained – DIVIDED
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. black pepper
- 1/2 tsp. paprika
WAIT TO ADD
- 1 cup cream ADD AT THE END
Instructions:
- Add the vegetable broth, vegetables, seasonings, and HALF of the bacon to the slow cooker. WAIT TO ADD THE CREAM
- Place the lid on the slow cooker. Cook on HIGH for 4 hours or LOW for 7 hours.
- When the cooking time is done, stir in the cream. Cook for an additional 30 minutes to heat through.
- Serve with the remaining bacon, you can stir it in, or serve on top of each bowl.
Recipe Notes:
- Ham
- Turkey bacon
- Ground sausage
- Yes, place in freezer containers or in freezer ziplock bags.
- Freeze for up to three months.
- Thaw in the fridge for about 24 hours before needing it.
- Warm in the microwave or stovetop.
Nutrition Information:
Nutrition info is auto-generated. This information is an estimate; if you are on a special diet, please use your own calculations.
I noticed this recipe has changed. Do you have a link or access to the old recipe?
Hi! I did update the recipe, here is the old version. https://web.archive.org/web/20200404184907/https://www.themagicalslowcooker.com/maine-corn-chowder/
I made this using fire roasted corn and it was absolutely delicious! Thank you for sharing your recipes with us. I have made several from your site over the years and know they will always turn out great!
Absolutely delicious! I did add sliced fresh mushrooms. Campbells soup used to make a wonderful Mushroom Chicken Chowder that I couldn’t get enough of and why it was discontinued I will never know but this recipe is so close to it that my heart and stomach is happy again!
My favorite soup recipe ever! This is so delicious. I make it all the time. I recently had 10 family members staying with me for the weekend and made a batch of this to serve with sandwiches at lunch and everyone died over this soup. Perfect combination of flavors and creaminess. One question – is a serving size 2 cups? Thank you! I am going to check out your other soup recipes.
Hi! I’m unsure how much a serving size is. I usually guestimate how many it serves after I feed my family.
Can frozen potatoes be used in this receipe?
I think they should do fine.
I was thinking of using using sliced sausage. Do you think I should cook it beforehand like you did the bacon?
Could I leave the cream out?
Would red or russet potatoes be okay to use instead of the yukon gold?
Yes, russet will work great.
I am using Red today and will let you know how it turns out
can you use chicken instead of bacon? or will it change the taste?
It will be different for sure, you can do it though!
This is a delicious chowder! I’ve made it twice now and the leftovers. taste wonderful too.
Do I drain the can of whole kernel corn? Recipe doesn’t say this, but the photo looks like it.
Yes, drain it. I will add that to the recipe.
Hi Sarah, this chowder comes out thin for me, is there any way to thicken it up just a little? Thanks!!
The potatoes won’t turn to mush being in the crockpot for 8 hours?
Not at all. They are just getting done getting tender at 8 hours.
We can’t get creamed corn in Denmark – how can I substitute it?
Hi Maria, could you blend up a can of corn slightly? With a splash of the liquid from the can. That would work fine.
Yes I could easily do that!