Mark Bittmans Summer Corn Chowder Recipes

SUMMER CORN CHOWDER

Steps:

• Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and bacon and cook, stirring frequently, until onion has softened and just starting to brown around edges, about 8 - 10 minutes.
• Add in the flour and garlic and cook 1 1/2 minutes. While whisking, slowly pour in 5 cups water or broth.
• Bring mixture to a boil, stirring constantly, then stir in corn kernels and potatoes. Add in thyme and bay leaf and season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Bring to a light boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and allow to simmer, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes.
• Remove bay leave then transfer 2 1/2 cups of the chowder to a blender and blend until smooth.
• Stir the mixture back into the pot then stir in half and half and honey. Sprinkle each serving with chives and optional cheddar.

SUMMER CORN CHOWDER

Steps:

• Heat olive oil and butter in a Dutch oven over low heat. Add onion; cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle flour over onion; cook and stir until onion is coated, about 5 minutes.
• Stir vegetable broth and potatoes into the onion mixture; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium; cook partially covered until potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes. Add corn, red pepper, green pepper, half-and-half, ground black pepper, and salt. Reduce heat to low; cook and stir until corn is softened, about 8 minutes.

BASIC CORN CHOWDER

Steps:

• Shuck corn, and use a paring knife to strip kernels into a bowl. Put cobs in a pot with 4 cups water; bring to a boil, cover and simmer while you continue.
• Put butter or oil in a saucepan, and turn heat to medium-high. When butter melts or oil is hot, add onion and potatoes, along with a sprinkling of salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion softens, about 5 minutes; add tomatoes and cook, stirring, for another minute or two.
• After corncobs have cooked at least 10 minutes, strain liquid into onion-potato mixture; bring to a boil, then lower heat to a simmer. When potatoes are tender, add corn kernels and milk, and heat through. Taste, and adjust seasonings. Garnish with the parsley, and serve.

CORN, TOMATO AND BASIL CHOWDER

Steps:

• Slice corn kernels off cob and place in a bowl. Run back of a knife along each cob to remove additional corn pulp. Add pulp to bowl; reserve cobs.
• In a medium soup pot or Dutch oven, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in onion, shallot and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes.
• Add broth, reserved cobs, 1 cup water and 1 teaspoon salt to pot. Bring to a boil over high heat. Immediately reduce heat to medium and simmer for 10 minutes. Add potatoes and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes longer. Remove cobs and discard.
• Stir in corn kernels and pulp, tomatoes, remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper. Simmer for 20 minutes more. Stir in the basil and lime juice. Turn off heat and let soup cool for at least 15 minutes before serving. Serve warm with a dollop of crème fraîche or sour cream, if using.

CORN AND GREEN CHILE SOUP

Steps:

• Remove the kernels from the ears of corn and set aside.
• Place the 4 stripped corn cobs in 6 cups water in a large pot. Bring to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes, then remove.
• In a skillet, heat a few glugs of olive oil. Add the chopped scallions and green chiles and sauté. Add 1/4 cup cornmeal and cook, stirring, about 5 minutes.
• Add the scallion-and-chili mixture to broth along with the corn kernels and 2 chopped potatoes. Cook until soft. Garnish with crema or sour cream, if you'd like, and the sliced scallions.

MARK BITTMAN'S SUMMER CORN CHOWDER

Steps:

• 1. Shuck the corn, then stand each ear up in a bowl and use a knife to scrape off the kernels; set aside. Put the cobs, 1 cup water, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper in a 4-qt. pot with a tight-fitting lid over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat so the water bubbles gently, cover, and cook for 20 to 30 minutes. Leave the cobs in the pot until you are ready to make the soup, then discard them, reserving the corncob stock.
• 2. Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium heat, cook the bacon until it begins to render its fat and turn golden-brown, about 4 to 6 minutes. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, another 5 minutes or so.
• 3. Add the milk, reserved corn kernels, and bacon and onion to the stock, and bring to a boil; lower the heat so that the soup bubbles gently. Cook, uncovered, stirring frequently to prevent scorching, until the corn is tender, about 10 minutes.
• 4. Whisk the cornstarch in a small bowl with 2 Tbs. water until smooth. Add to the soup, stirring until the soup thickens, about a minute. Taste, adjust the seasoning, garnish with parsley, and serve.

THE MINIMALIST'S CORN CHOWDER

Steps:

• 1. Shuck the corn and use a paring knife to strip the kernels into a bowl. Put the cobs in a pot with 4 cups water; bring to a boil, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes.
• 2. Meanwhile, put the butter or oil in a saucepan and turn the heat to medium-high. When the butter melts or the oil is hot, add the onion and potatoes, along with a sprinkling of salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion softens, about 5 minutes; add the tomatoes if you're using them and cook, stirring, for another minute or two.
• 3. After the corn cobs have cooked for at least 10 minutes, strain the liquid into the onion-potato mixture. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat down so the mixture simmers. When the potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes, add the corn kernels and milk and heat through. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary, garnish with the parsley, and serve.
• Keys To Success
• STRIP THE KERNELS from the cob with a sharp knife, and make sure to catch any liquid that seeps out during the process.
• TO MINIMIZE COOKING TIME, chop the potatoes into 1/4-inch pieces. Leave them larger if you're not in a hurry.
• AS LONG AS your corn is young and tender, the kind you can just about eat raw, the kernels should be held out of the mix until the chowder is just about ready, so they don't overcook. But the new supersweet hybrids, which retain much of their flavor in the refrigerator for a few days, are not as tender, and their kernels should be cooked for a few minutes at least. Just keep tasting and stop cooking when the texture seems right.

SUMMER CORN CHOWDER

Steps:

• In a large bowl, remove corn kernels from cob using a small knife. Set aside. In heavy pot saute onion in olive oil. Add garlic and red pepper. Stir. Season with salt, pepper and cayenne. Cook until vegetables are soft. Add corn and chicken stock. Add potatoes. Cover and simmer until potatoes are tender. Remove 2-3 ladles of soup to a blender and puree. Pour puree back in soup and stir. Serve hot with a dash of Tabasco.

SPICY CORN AND COCONUT SOUP

Steps:

• Cut the corn kernels off the cobs and transfer to a bowl. Using the back of a butter knife, scrape the cobs so that all of the milky juices collect in the bowl and the cobs look completely dry, like wrung-out sponges. Set aside. (If using frozen kernels, skip this step.)
• In a large stockpot over medium heat, heat olive oil. Add shallots, garlic, ginger and chile, and sauté, stirring occasionally, until soft and fragrant, 3 to 5 minutes. Add corn kernels and juices to the pot, and sauté until the corn is softer and brighter, about 3 minutes more.
• Add potato pieces, and stir to coat, 1 to 2 minutes.
• Now, pour in the vegetable broth and coconut milk. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, until the potatoes are tender all the way through.
• Use an immersion blender to roughly purée the soup, so that it's creamy with some kernels of corn, chunks of potato, and chile flecks remaining. (Alternatively, ladle about half of the soup into a blender, blend until smooth, and return to the pot.) Season with lime juice and salt, and mix to combine. Ladle soup into bowls and garnish with toppings of your choice.