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A bowl of shrimp corn chowder on the table with a spoon and napkin to the right and fresh ingredients around the bowl.
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4.83 from 23 votes

Shrimp and Corn Chowder

A deliciously rich, light Shrimp and Corn Chowder brings all the taste of Southern comfort food creating a bowl of soup that's hearty, satisfying, but won't weigh you down.
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Total Time35 minutes
Course: Soup
Cuisine: Southern
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 289kcal

Ingredients

  • 1 lb unshelled large shrimp 21/25 count, peeled and deveined, shells reserved
  • 1 sweet onion coarsely chopped
  • 1 carrot coarsely chopped
  • Scraped kernels from 4 ears fresh sweet corn about 2 cups, cobs reserved and halved
  • 2 cups water
  • 2 tsp pure olive oil
  • 1 poblano chile cored seeded and chopped
  • 3 stalks celery chopped
  • 1 sweet onion chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves chopped
  • 1 large russet potato cut into 1/2 inch cubes (about 6 ounces)
  • 3 springs fresh thyme leaves only
  • 2 bay leaves preferably fresh
  • Coarse kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 2 tbsp unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 2 cups 2% milk
  • 12 grape tomatoes quartered, or 1 ripe tomato, cored and chopped
  • ¼ cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
  • Smoked paprika for garnish

Instructions

  • Put the shrimp shells in a medium pot and add the coarsely chopped onion, carrot, and halved corn cobs. (It's all about building layers of flavor.) Top with 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and decrease the heat to simmer. Cook until the broth is slightly colored and smells lightly sweet, about 5 minutes. Strain into a bowl, discarding the solids, and set aside.
  • Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Stir in the poblano, celery, chopped onion, garlic, potato, and reserved corn kernels. Add the thyme, bay leaves, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and a few grinds of pepper and cook, stirring, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in the flour until incorporated, about 2 minutes. Stir in the shrimp stock and milk, then cover and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Uncover, decrease the heat to medium-low, and gently simmer until the vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes. Remove from the heat. Discard the thyme sprigs and bay leaves.
  • To finish the soup, in the stockpot, using an immersion blender, puree the soup. Or, ladle the soup into a blender and puree until smooth, a little at a time. Leave it coarse and chunky if you prefer a more rustic soup or puree until smooth for a more elegant soup. Taste and adjust for seasoning with salt and pepper. If needed, rewarm the soup over medium-low heat. Stir in the reserved shrimp and tomato; cook until the shrimp are opaque, about 2 minutes. Add the parsley and taste and adjust for seasoning with salt and pepper. Divide among warmed bowls and sprinkle with paprika. Serve immediately.

Notes

  • Use the Freshest Corn You Can Find. When possible get it from the Farmer's market. Then make sure you refrigerate it when you bring it home and use it as soon as you can to make your pot of soup.
  • Scrape the Corn Kernels Into a Bowl. This way you will also catch the corn milk as well which you want to use in chowder for even more flavor.
  • Cooking the Soup. Keep a close eye on the temperature so that it doesn't boil over. This easily happens with milk based soups and makes a mess on the stove you don't want to have to cleanup.
  • Using a Blender. If you don't have an immersion blender use caution ladling the soup into your blender especially if it's hot. I like to let the soup cool a bit when I have to use a regular blender so I don't end up with any burns.

Nutrition

Calories: 289kcal | Carbohydrates: 40g | Protein: 23g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 196mg | Sodium: 667mg | Potassium: 883mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 2595IU | Vitamin C: 41.2mg | Calcium: 261mg | Iron: 3.2mg