Rustic Creamy Corn and Potato Soup

For those chilly days when you want a delicious, hearty soup that warms you from the inside out this soup is for you! It’s like a hug in a bowl!

This soup has been on my mind for, what seems like, ever. I’m a huge fan of soups whether they are creamy or light but in the winter, I’m all about hearty soups.

 

The looming question though is this a soup or a chowder?

So it’s kind of both. A Chowder is a thicker version of a soup that is cream-based while the soup is thinner and has broth.  This has a little bit of cream/milk plus lots of broth. And the beurre manié.

*shrugs*… I just call it really damn good stuff!

Let’s make this Rustic Creamy Corn and Potato Soup

So what makes this rustic?  Well, the potatoes still have the skin on and they aren’t uniformly cut.

Now granted you want them semi the same size but you’ll see some pieces are a little bigger than the other.

• Potatoes – I highly recommend making this with skin on Yukon gold, Yellow or Red potatoes
• Corn – Fresh off the cob is best but if you can’t find it (or it’s not in season), go with frozen (thawed) corn
• Veggies – Shaved carrot, minced onion
• Beurre Manié – to give you that creamy, thick, luscious taste and mouthfeel
• Chicken Stock – The stock gives it that homey taste. If you don’t have really good homemade stock, go with these Knorr Homestyle Stock cubes
• Seasoning – The usual suspects – kosher salt, black pepper, and fresh thyme
• Milk Slurry – The milk slurry (milk and cornstarch) helps to give this recipe richness
• *Cheese – This is completely optional to add. You can add some freshly shredded cheddar when the soup is off the heat or as a topping when serving

How to make Rustic Creamy Potato & Corn Soup

This is a one-pot recipe which is something we all love. Fewer dishes means more time with the family and eating!

1. Sauté – In a large heavy, bottom pot, sauté up the onions and carrots until softened. Add in the stock (it can be chicken or vegetable) and bring it to a boil.
2. Add the potatoes and seasonings – To the boiling liquid, carefully add in the cut potatoes, fresh corn and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for about 10 minutes or just until the potatoes are fork-tender but not mushy.
3. Beurre Manié – Add in the butter-flour paste slowly and stir gently until it’s all melted and combined. Bring to a gentle boil.
4. Slurry – Whisk together the milk and cornstarch and pour it into the soup. If using frozen (thawed) corn add it now  Stir and bring back to a light boil. The soup will thicken up upon cooling.
5. Taste – Remove from the heat, taste for seasonings and add cheese if desired.

Beurre Manié – the best secret to thicken soups

Most folks rely on a roux when it comes to thickening up sauces. A roux and beurre manié are identical in the fact that they are both equal parts fat (butter) and flour.

A roux is where the butter is added to a warm pan, and once melted, the flour is whisked in until smooth.

A beurre manié, in my opinion, is a better way to thicken a sauce or soup.  It’s made into a paste or kneaded dough of sorts that is then dropped in small pieces to a hot liquid.

How to make a Beurre Manié

1. Place equal parts of softened butter and flour into a bowl.
2. Knead the flour into the butter to make a thickened past or a very soft dough.
3. To the hot liquid add small pieces of the dough/thickened paste slowly stirring or whisking it in.

What happens is the butter-coated flour bits will melt quickly into the liquid thus avoiding clumping. You’ll end up with a luxurious sauce that has a sheen or luster on it that is just so smooth and silky.

Slow Cooker Instructions

My personal preference is I, 99.9% of the time, make thicker soups and chowders on the stovetop as slow cookers do not really allow for moisture to evaporate so it can be tough to get soups to truly thicken.

1. To a 6-qrt slow cooker add the potatoes, onions, carrots, stock, and seasonings.
2. Cover and cook on high heat for 3-4 hours or 7-8 hours*.
3. 30-45 minutes before the soup is done, add in the beurre manié (stir gently) and the slurry. Stir, replace the lid.
4. Optional, prop the lid open to help with moisture evaporation. Using things like skewers or chopsticks between the lid and the slow cooker helps.

*The cooking time will depend on how thick/big your potatoes are cut

How to store this soup

Since this does have dairy (milk) and potatoes, it is highly advised to NOT freeze this.

Soups that are cream or dairy-based do not fair well when frozen and reheated. The soup will separate.

Potatoes tend to turn grainy and mealy when frozen.

My advice is to put the soup in the fridge for up to a week or share it with family/friends. 

Recipe Additions  

This is one of those soups that, if Mom had extra something in the kitchen, she’d add it to the soup to give it more depth and flavor.

On its own, the soup is AMAZING and perfect as written but when you can add little things to it to dress it up, why wouldn’t you? I mean if you could upgrade your outfit by wearing a 10k diamond necklace for free, wouldn’t you? LOL

• Crispy Bacon – Crisp & dice up 4 strips of bacon reserving 2 tablespoon of the bacon grease. Add the bacon grease to the onions while they are rendering down. When you’re ready to serve the soup, stir in bacon reserving a few pinches for garnish
• Shredded Cheddar – When the soup is cooked through and off the heat, stir in 2 cups of freshly grated cheddar slowly. *bonus points add in the bacon WITH the cheddar!
• Shredded Chicken – Cook up some chicken breast, shred it and add the chicken right before you add in the beurre manié
• Seafood – This was a suggestion by Kirk (a TKW Family member) and it sounds AMAZING! Add in jumbo lump crab (picked through) or cooked chopped shrimp. Add it in after the beurre manié and stir gently.
• Green Chilies – give your soup a southwestern flair and add in a can of diced green chilis when you add in the potatoes and corn.

Check out these other soup recipes!

• Nonna Approved Authentic Italian Wedding Soup
• Instant Pot Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
• Grandma’s Southern Style Chicken & Dumplings
• Double Chicken and Power Greens Soup
• The Ultimate Chicken & Gnocchi Soup

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