Shrimp and Corn Chowder

Summer soups were made to be light and lovely and this Shrimp and Corn Chowder is perfect for any summer meal. A delectable combination of fresh, crisp corn kernels and their cobs lend a deep, sweet flavor to the broth. Paired with tender shrimp, aromatic vegetables like onions, leeks, and red bell peppers, and thickened with creamy Yukon potatoes, this chowder is a celebration of seasonal ingredients. Whether you’re looking for a comforting meal to end your day or a sunshiny summer soup to serve at your next gathering, this corn chowder promises deliciousness in every spoonful.

Why I love this soup … and hope you will, too!

Growing up in the Midwest, I’ve always had access to the most delicious locally-grown corn in the entire nation. Our climate and soil is particularly sugar-corn friendly, and small farmers across the region devote much of their acreage to growing this prolific crop.

I’ve written about this before. Cincinnati might be nationally famous (infamous? lol) for its chili spaghetti, but the foodies here who cook know the true jewel in our Queen City crown is the corn produced by the tri-state area (Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana).

One of the delights of summer eating is using our sweet, sweet corn to the absolute max, from soup to gazpacho to hummus to tomato corn pies to sweet and crunchy corn salads. I’ll also add corn to just about anything in the summer, including pasta salads and green salads.

Today’s soup gives me another excuse to combine two of my favorite things — sweet corn and soup (of course) — in a dish that’s savory, sweet, crunchy, smooth, and highlighted juicy, plump shrimp and lots of aromatic veggies.

Ingredients, Prep Notes and Substitutions

First, some notes about the main ingredients in this soup, plus suggested substitutions where practical.

• Corn — Fresh corn is the star of this corn chowder, of course, and I created this soup with summer’s tastiest crops in mind. I photographed my soup today with sweet yellow corn (because I’m making it off-season ahead of summer), which is why the soup is very yellow. If you have a choice, I recommend sweet bi-color corn, which is a hybrid mixture of very sweet white and yellow corn. The white corn is sugary, while the yellow corn is starchy, and the two together make a lovely-eating ear of corn. If you don’t have access to fresh ears of corn, I would recommend frozen corn over canned, as it’s usually sweeter and crunchier. Save the cobs once you remove the corn! We’ll be using the cobs to infuse the soup with extra corn flavor.
• Shrimp — Use peeled, deveined, tails-off shrimp for this recipe. I prefer the “medium” size shrimp (often labeled “31/35” on the packaging, meaning there are 31 to 35 shrimp per pound). This size fits nicely on the spoon with some room for corn and soup liquids. You can use fresh or frozen shrimp, it doesn’t matter. Just make sure the frozen is thawed first.
• Aromatics — Onions, leeks, and red bell peppers provide a tasty base to the soup broth. I love leeks in soup and use them whenever possible. Leeks are very tasty in corn soups.
• Yukon gold potatoes — Potatoes are used in this soup as a thickener, instead of flour or cornstarch. Potatoes are a common ingredient in corn chowders as a chunky texture addition, but I’m strictly using them to add body to the soup by whirring them up with an immersion blender.

How to Make Shrimp and Corn Chowder, with Photos

Ready to make the recipe? Skip to the recipe card now to get the full ingredient list, quantities, cooking times and instructions. Or, keeping scrolling for a visual walk-thru of making this soup.

Step 1: Prepare the corn and saute the aromatics

Slice the corn kernels from cobs and scrape some of the “milk” from the cobs into the kernels. You’ll have about 5 cups of kernels. Scoop out and set aside one cup of corn kernels.

Cook the onions, leeks, and bell peppers in oil in a soup pot until soft but not browned.

Step 2: Cook the potatoes with the corn cobs and broth

Add the potatoes to the pot and nestle the bare corn cobs amongst the vegetables. Depending on the size of your pot, you might have to snap the cobs in halves or thirds so they’ll fit in a single layer. Make a shallow cut into the cob with a knife and then snap along that score line.

Add 3 to 4 cups of the broth, until the cobs are mostly covered. It’s okay if you don’t use the full 4 cups; the soup will be thicker that way. Simmer for 10 minutes. The corn cobs will infuse the broth with extra corn flavor.

At the end of 10 minutes — make sure the potato chunks are fully cooked; test by smashing one on the side of the pot with a fork. It should yield easily — reduce heat and remove and discard the corn cobs.

Step 3: Blend the soup

Add the corn kernels to the pot — keep that extra cup of kernels reserved. Use an immersion blender to smooth out part or all of the soup. I like to leave some texture, as you can see in the photos in this recipe post, so I don’t fully blend the soup. Focus on blending the chunks of potatoes, as their purpose in this soup is to thicken it.

Taste the soup, and add more salt as needed. Remember that you’ll be adding cream at the end, and dairy can dull the saltiness of a soup. Don’t oversalt, but don’t undersalt, either.

Step 4: Finish the soup

Adjust the heat so that the soup is at a gentle simmer, with light bubbling or burbling. Add the reserved corn kernels and the raw shrimp. Let the soup continue to cook for 5 more minutes, until the shrimp are plump, pink, and opaque.

Stir in the cream. Taste the soup once more, and add more salt and black pepper to your liking, finishing with the green onions.

Serve with your favorite toppings.

Cook’s Notes

• Can you use canned or frozen corn? Technically, yes, of course you can. But, cooking the broth and potatoes along with the stripped cobs adds so much extra corn flavor. Especially with at-the-height-of-summer-corn. But, sometimes needs must: you’ll need about 5 cups of corn kernels, whatever type of corn you’re using.
• Can you make this recipe ahead of time? You can definitely do all of the chopping prep ahead of time, except for the potatoes (which should wait until you’re ready to cook). Ears of corn are sweetest when used as quickly as possible. While, safety-wise, you can make the soup ahead and refrigerate it, shrimp do not always remain at their best when reheated — they might probably will get weird and rubbery. You could make the soup ahead without the shrimp and store in the fridge. Then gently rewarm it (remember there’s dairy in the soup; you don’t want it to break the cream by boiling it). Cook the shrimp separately — maybe pan fry or do a quick boil — and then add, fully cooked, to the rewarmed soup.
• Controlling the texture — My goal with this recipe is a fairly thick broth with small chunks of corn and veggies throughout. I call for an immersion blender because it gives you great control over the smoothing-out process. The potatoes are only present in the soup to use as a thickener (as opposed to flour or a cornstarch slurry), so that’s why I mention going after the potato chunks primarily. The rest of the soup smooths out somewhat in the process.
• Can you consume raw corn? Yes, absolutely! Corn fresh off the cob does not need to be cooked, and is wonderfully sweet and crunchy. I reserve some of the corn fresh off the cob and add it with the shrimp to showcase that lovely texture.
• Can I use another dairy instead of heavy cream? Yes. You can step down the fat count by using a lighter dairy blend, such as half-and-half. If you want a similar creamy result in the soup as the photos, I wouldn’t go lower than whole milk.

Shrimp and Corn Chowder is a celebration of summer’s best flavors. It’s the perfect way to enjoy the season’s bounty, whether you’re sharing it with loved ones or making a comforting bowl for yourself. Be sure to stop at the farmers’ market, grab some fresh ears of corn, and let’s make some soup!

It makes a light and lovely dinner when it’s too hot to eat a big, stomach-busting meal. Serve with some garlic bread or cherry tomato bruschetta for a breezy summer meal.

Oh, also! Although the recipe instructions create a hot soup, it’s absolutely delicious chilled, so it’s the perfect take-to-lunch soup as it doesn’t need reheating out of the fridge.

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Shrimp and Corn Chowder Recipe

This Shrimp and Corn Chowder recipe is a celebration of summer’s finest ingredients. There’s no holding back on flavor either – use the corn cobs to create an incredibly flavorful broth that’ll make this your new favorite chowder.

Prep Time20 minutes mins

Cook Time30 minutes mins

Total Time50 minutes mins

Course: Soup

Cuisine: American

Keyword: corn chowder, shrimp and corn chowder

Servings: 4

Author: Karen Gibson

Ingredients

• 4 ears corn, shucked (yields about 5 cups of corn kernels)
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 small or medium leek, chopped (white and light green parts only)
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 small red bell pepper, diced
• 3 or 4 medium yukon gold potatoes, peeled and diced
• 3 to 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 12-16 ounces medium raw shrimp (peeled, tails off)
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• 1 green onion, sliced thinly
• Kosher salt and black pepper

Suggested toppings:

• Sour cream
• Smoked or sweet paprika
• Crumbled bacon
• Grated parmesan or crumbled goat cheese
• A few shakes of hot sauce
• Chopped chives

Instructions

• Cut the corn kernels from the cobs, and then scrape off some of the corn milk, too, by dragging the edge of your knife firmly down the cob over the kernel holes. Reserve the cobs, and scoop out and set aside 1 cup of the kernels.
• Heat the oil over medium in a 4 qt soup pot or Dutch oven until the surface of the oil shimmers.
• Add the leeks, onions, and peppers, and saute until soft (but not browning), about 5 minutes. Sprinkle a big pinch of salt and pepper over the veggies.
• Add potatoes to the pot and nestle the bare corn cobs into the vegetables. Depending on the size of your soup pot, you might have to break the corn cobs in half so they’ll fit. Cover with chicken broth, making sure the cobs are mostly submerged. You’ll use between 3 and 4 cups of broth, depending on the shape of your cooking vessel.
• Turn heat to high and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to maintain an active, bubbling simmer. Cook for 10 minutes, or until the potatoes are easily smooshed against the side of the pot with a fork.
• Remove and discard the corn cobs. Add the corn kernels (except for the reserved cup), and reduce heat to medium or medium low. Use an immersion/hand-held blender to blend part or all of the soup, focusing on the potato chunks, which are used here to thicken the soup. I prefer to leave a few chunks, but a completely smooth soup is delightful, too.
• Add the reserved corn and raw shrimp, and let cook through, about 5 minutes, until the shrimp are pink, plump, and opaque. Turn off the heat.
• Pour in the heavy cream and mix well. Taste, and season further with salt and black pepper, as needed. Sprinkle the green onions over the top before serving with your favorite soup toppings.

Nutritional information, if shown, is provided as a courtesy only, and is not to be taken as medical information or advice. The nutritional values of your preparation of this recipe are impacted by several factors, including, but not limited to, the ingredient brands you use, any substitutions or measurement changes you make, and measuring accuracy.