Chowder is a delightfully creamy way to use up vegetables and experiment with different flavours. If I have potatoes, I will usually add dill from my garden. If I have chicken, I will add black beans and cumin. There really is endless possibilities when it comes to soup, and especially chowders. If you live where seafood is plentiful, by all means go to town and make a big batch of Seafood Chowder and invite some friends over to watch the game.
Today, I began by assessing what I had on hand, to determine what kind of flavour combo I was going for. I found 2 cans of corn, 1 carrot, 2 stalks of celery, a large yellow onion, and some fresh garlic kicking around my kitchen. I just got my hands on some derby bacon today (which is 5 kg boxes that the local Roller Derby girls sells to raise money). Its local and freaking delicious!
Once I gathered my ingredients I got to it, chopping and dicing my bacon, celery and onions. I grated the carrot so it would cook faster and minced my garlic. With that all ready, I put a pot on the stove and emptied a carton of chicken broth into it along with the 2 cans of corn, undrained. Bring that to a boil and then drop the temp down to a simmer. While thats working, fry up the bacon in a soup pot until its nice and crisp. Once its ready, remove it with a slotted spoon and drain on some paper towel. If there's a lot of bacon grease at this point, you can drain some out of the pot, but anything around 2-3 Tbsp of bacon fat is perfect to start sauteeing your onions in. You want to keep all that flavour in what you're cooking! When the onions start to soften, add the carrots, celery, and garlic.
Once the veggies are nice and tender, you can add your seasonings. I added some dried thyme, American Paprika (I like it better than Hungarian, go figure), a dash of cayenne pepper, 2 bay leaves, salt & pepper. Now, this is the hard part for some people. You have to make a roux. Its a fancy word that basically means you're making your own thickening agent in the pan with all the yummy flavours going on. So I add 1-2 Tbsp. of butter, let that melt, then add 2 Tbsp. of all purpose flour, stir until it looks like a big gooey mess, thats good, and don't let it burn! Keep stirring it on low heat for about a minute.
Here comes the fun part. Ladle scoops of the hot broth thats been bubbling away very gently with the corn and whisk it into the veggie/flour mixture. Whisk well after each ladlefull. Let that come to a boil and add 1 tsp. of white wine vinegar. This sounds odd, but I find it helps balance out the sweetness of the corn and the smokiness of the bacon. Then add a cup of heavy cream. I like to use table cream, but anything above 10% will do. Now add the bacon back in and let it simmer until you are ready to serve. This is a huge hit at my house! Let me know how your family enjoys it.
Smoky Bacon Corn Chowder
Serves 4
1 quart chicken broth
2 cans whole corn, undrained
8 slices of thick bacon, chopped
1 carrot, grated
2 stalks celery, diced
1 large yellow onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. dried thyme
1/4 tsp. American Paprika
dash of cayenne pepper
2 bay leaves
Salt and Pepper, to taste
2 Tbsp. butter
2 Tbsp. flour
1 tsp.white wine vinegar
1 cup heavy cream
Directions:
In a medium saucepan, over high heat, bring the chicken broth to a boil and add the 2 cans of corn. Reduce heat to simmer. In a medium soup pot, add the bacon and cook until crispy. Remove bacon to drain on paper towel and add chopped onion to the pot. Cook, stirring for about 3-4 minutes, then add the carrots, celery, and garlic. Cook for 3-4 more minutes and add the seasonings (thyme, paprika, cayenne pepper, bay leaves, salt, and pepper). Make a roux by melting the butter into the cooked veggies and add the flour. Stir constantly and add the hot broth and corn in, whisking well after each ladlefull. Add the vinegar; stir. Add the cream, mix well to combine. Finally, add the bacon back in and keep it on a low simmer until ready to serve.
Note: remove and discard bay leaves before serving. I would also like to state that fresh corn on the cob would taste even more fantastic in this recipe! I would shuck the corn off the cobs and put the corn AND the cobs into the broth to boil. Don't forget to remove and discard the cobs before adding the broth to your roux. Also kick it up a notch by using fresh herbs, if they are in season.
Let me know in the comments if you tried this recipe and what you think about it.
~*~ Delilah ~*~
