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Smoky Vegan Corn Chowder with Potatoes

4.99 from 59 votes
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Servings 4 -6
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Ingredients

  • 6 cobs corn (about 5 cups kernels total)
  • 5-6 cups vegetable stock
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 medium-large sweet onion, small dice
  • 1 stick celery, small dice
  • 1 small red bell pepper, small dice
  • sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste
  • ¼ cup finely chopped sun dried tomatoes (the ones packed in oil)
  • 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, minced
  • 1 ½ teaspoons smoked paprika
  • ½ teaspoon chili flakes or ground chillies (optional)
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 lb Yukon gold potatoes, chopped
  • ¾ cup unsweetened non-dairy milk
  • 2 teaspoons light miso
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • chopped chives or parsley, for garnish

Instructions

Optional Cob Stock Step

  • Cut the corn kernels off of the cobs and place the shaved cobs in a large pot. Pour 5 cups of the vegetable stock into the pot, and place it on the stove over high heat. Once the stock is boiling, lower the heat to a simmer and let it go for 20 minutes, covered. After 20 minutes, remove the cobs and set the stock aside.

For the Chowder

  • Heat a large pot over medium heat. Once it’s hot, pour in the olive oil and swirl it around. Add the onions, celery, and red bell pepper all at once. Sauté until onions are translucent and vegetables are quite soft, about 10 full minutes. If the vegetables are browning too fast, lower the heat. Season with salt and pepper.
  • Add the sun dried tomatoes, thyme, smoked paprika, chili flakes, and garlic to the pot. Stir until very fragrant, about 1 minute.
  • Add the potatoes and corn to the pot and stir. Season generously with salt and pepper. Pour in 5 cups of vegetable stock and stir. Bring the pot up to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Simmer, covered, until the potatoes are quite tender, about 25 minutes.
  • Remove about a ⅓ of the soup and place it in an upright blender. Add the non-dairy milk and miso to the blender as well and then blend this mixture on high until completely smooth. Pour the puréed potion of chowder back into the pot and stir, bringing it back up to a simmer.
  • At this point, if the chowder is too thick for your liking, add some more vegetable stock to loosen it up. Stir in the lemon juice.
  • Check the chowder for seasoning and adjust to suit your taste (more salt, pepper, chili, lemon etc). Serve the corn chowder hot with chopped chives/parsley on top and extra black pepper.

Equipment

Recipe Notes

  • Simmering the vegetable stock with the shaved corn cobs for about 20 minutes. really helps to bump up the corn flavor overall. Of course, if you’re pressed for time, you can skip this step and it will still be quite good.
  • For the non-dairy milk, I prefer a rich option like cashew or soy.
  • If using frozen corn, you’ll need 5 cups of corn kernels total.
My smoky vegan corn chowder is a cozy dinner that's robustly flavoured with thyme, smoked paprika, garlic, and lemon. Silky and lush, this stovetop vegan soup is hearty with Yukon Gold potatoes and fresh corn.