Jalapeno Corn Chowder
Love jalapeno poppers but don’t have time to make them for dinner? Marrying jalapenos, bacon, and cheese with sweet corn in this creamy Jalapeno Corn Chowder solves that problem and allows you to have dinner on the table in under 45 minutes.
I think Mother Nature is teasing us.
After multiple feet of snow and ice, it finally warmed up last week. I finally have a sidewalk again! (for the longest time the snow bank completely covered that up).
Short sleeves, walks at lunch time, no winter coat. I sure did miss those days. But after several days of being spoiled with temperatures in the 60s, the weather dropped back down into the 20s.
We just can’t win, can we?
I can tell you what I am winning with – this Jalapeno Popper Corn Chowder. Reminiscent of those spicy appetizers you often see at restaurants, this creamy soup is full of spice and flavor.
The best part is it can be ready in 45 minutes, making it the perfect dinner for Weekday Supper.
Putting jalapenos in soup form is nothing new to me; after all, one of the best soups in the world is my Roasted Jalapeno Soup.
To be honest, I’m not sure where I made the connection between jalapeno poppers and corn chowder.
Was it in a dream? Was it because I was tired of winter and needed new soup ideas? Or was it because I was hungry?
Sweet corn reminds me of summer. There are plenty of farms out here that sell fresh corn (PSA – never, ever buy “fresh” corn from the grocery store. Ever. Once you’ve had corn from a farmer, you’ll never go back to store bought).
However, since it’s not even spring yet, I used frozen sweet corn. Whether you use fresh, frozen, or even canned, this soup has a nice kick without breaking your budget.
Enjoyed this recipe? Check out my jalapeno popper cheese ball and jalapeno popper dip.
Jalapeno Corn Chowder
Love jalapeno poppers but don't have time to make them for dinner? Marrying jalapenos, bacon, and cheese with sweet corn in this creamy Jalapeno Popper Corn Chowder solves that problem and allows you to have dinner on the table in under 45 minutes.
Ingredients
- 2 strips uncooked bacon
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 4 jalapenos, diced (about 1 cup)
- 1/2 cup diced white or yellow onion
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt plus more to taste, preferably kosher
- 3 cups chicken broth or stock
- 2 cups fresh or frozen sweet corn kernels
- 1/2 cup whole milk, room temperature
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Add bacon to a cold large pot or Dutch oven and turn the heat on to medium. Once the bacon starts cooking, cook on one side for a few minutes until crispy then flip and finish cooking the other side. Remove the bacon and place on a plate lined with a paper towel; pat off as much grease as you can. When cool enough to handle, crumble bacon. Leave the bacon drippings in the pot.
- Melt the butter in with the drippings. Add the jalapeno, onion, and a big pinch of salt. Cook until softened and brown, about 3-5 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute.
- Stir in the flour and salt until everything is coated. Slowly whisk
- in the broth, add the corn, then bring to a boil.
- Once boiling, turn the heat down to simmer and cook until slightly thickened, about 3-5 minutes.
- Remove from the heat then stir in the milk and cheese until melted. Stir in crumbled bacon. Taste and adjust for salt.
Notes
- The heat mainly comes from the seeds and membrane of the jalapenos. If you don't want it super spicy, discard them.
- To make this chowder vegetarian-friendly, omit the bacon and use vegetable broth.
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If you enjoyed this Jalapeno Popper Corn Chowder, you may also like these delicious soup recipes:
Sweet Potato and Corn Clam Chowder
Baked Potato Soup (ready in 45 minutes)
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Oh my Carla! I could eat a whole vat of this soup.
I like everything about this except you know the jalapenos. I just can’t take the heat! I know, takes away from the the entire soup. Also those bowls and plates, i’ve been searching for ones like them, you have to tell me where you got them!
If you don’t add any of the seeds or membrane, it’s barely spicy. The plates and bowls I bought as a set on eBay. I think I searched for Queen Anne pewter plates. Most are expensive but I found a really good deal with mine.
I love a good corn chowder! This definitely makes me think of summer :)
What a spicy, wonderful soup of deliciousness, Carla! I sure could use a bowl up here in Michigan this week!
Gooood idea! The popper flavors and corn seem like a natural pair. How great would this be with “truly” fresh (read: farmstand) corn? Yum!
Yes, I’m definitely recreating this in the summer with farmstand corn and then jalapenos from my garden!
Just lovely. I especially love the addition of cream cheese. YUM!
What a delicious sounding soup. I love jalapeño poppers and am sure this soup is just perfect. Too bd so that my family does not eat any spice.
If you remove the seeds and membrane from the recipe completely, the spice level will be really low. I’m not sure if that will help your situation or not. If not, it still makes a great corn chowder without it ;)
MMMM! I am so on a soup kick lately. I figure get my fill now before we just skip spring all togdether and just go right to summer.
This sounds incredible! I love all the ingredients in this soup. I agree there is no going back to store bought corn.
This is perfect, I love appies for lunch/dinner and soup is a more “acceptable” way to make that happen :) Beautiful, and such a lovely place setting too!
Carla – this chowder looks beautiful! You take the most amazing photographs. Everything is placed so well – makes me want to eat soup right now and it’s 75 degrees here!
Wat a fabulous take on traditional corn chowder! I love it!
Oh yum. I love corn chowder and jalapenos so this sounds absolutely amazing.
I made this soup for dinner tonight and it was one of the BEST soups I have ever made!!! (And I make a lot of soup!) :-) I didn’t have jalapeños on hand, but I did have an 8 oz container of Philly jalapeño cream cheese so I added that for the jalapeños & cream cheese. It was simply divine! Will definitely be making this again and again and again……
Thanks for a fantastic recipe!
Oh you’re one smart cookie for using that jalapeno cream cheese! Glad you enjoyed it :)
What can I say about this…YUM YUM YUM ! -13 not counting 40 mph winds here tonight in Minnesota and wanted to try something different…this is fabulous ! I did make a couple of alterations to suit our taste though…we like spicy so I kept on the membranes and a good amount of seeds from the jalapeno, and since other half is a bacon lover I added two extra pieces of bacon, and cooked some potatoes for the carb lover (that would be me !!)…tossed on some goldfish for color, and it was great ! Thank you for the wonderful recipe – can’t wait to try more of your creations !
This soup looks AMAZING! I definitely want to try! Do you think it would work as well without the bacon? Or does that seem to be a key flavor component?
You can make it without the bacon. Add an extra 2 tablespoons of butter (so you have a 1:1 ratio when making the roux with the butter and flour). You might need to add some salt since bacon tends to be salty. Taste and adjust as needed. Enjoy!
I generally don’t post opinions but I just had to tell you my husband and I made this soup tonight and it was sooo good! We love poppers but they can be time consuming to make. This had all the flavor and was really quick, too. I think we both agreed that we like it better than an actual popper and he isn’t even that crazy about soups! We will definitely be making this again. Thanks so much for the recipe, the ratio was perfect and I didn’t need to change a thing (and I ALWAYS seem to have to fiddle with recipes) . :-)
Glad to hear the soup turned out delicious for you!
I am curious to know if anybody has attempted making this using pickled jalapeños. I run a a small bar and restaurant where I do a lot of scratch cooking, and this recipe sounds delicious! It would be one of those things that would also be dinner for at home that night, of course! Today would have been perfect for it because it is COLD out!
Anyhow I like to try to make use of ingredients I already have on hand and pickled jalapeños definitely fit that description. As much as I love fresh ingredients, the budget can be a bit of a challenge at home and at work alike sometimes.
I haven’t tried it with pickled jalapenos, but I don’t see why not!
I will let you know how it goes, I am giving it a shot in a week or so!
I am always on the hunt for new recipes, especially when it comes to soup… your blog is great, thanks for the inspiration!
I made this soup today with a few modifications and we could not stop sampling it! It was AMAZING! Thank you for the inspiration!
I am still learning how to take good food pictures, if it is not all gone tomorrow I will try to get a decent one to share to you on FB tomorrow.
I am always on the hunt for unique soup ideas, and this one was a gem!
Wonderful! Glad you enjoyed it. Did the pickled jalapenos work out?
It was very tasty, but I think using fresh would be a better way of controlling the heat.
Regardless, the soup sold out in two days, and it was a double batch. That is pretty impressive with as small of an operation we are and it being warm out now! This has definitely made the cut for going into our soup recipe rotation!
I think we are going to try your cheesy buffalo chicken soup recipe soon also.
Good to know on the pickled jalapenos as I haven’t tried it myself. I’m glad the recipe was such a hit for you!