If you’re looking for a new soup to add to your rotation, then this vegan corn chowder is going to far exceed your expectations. It’s easy, creamy, flavorful, and oh so comforting!
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If you’re like me, then chowder has always been a funny word to say. What’s not funny about it though, is the comforting, delicious flavor and this vegan corn chowder is going to be the best ever! This isn’t your typical basic chowder, it’s creamy, decadent, and will have you not only wanting seconds, but thirds!
If you’re looking for a meal prep friendly soup, whether it’s summer time when corn is in season, or during those cold winter months, this vegan potato and corn chowder will hit the spot every single time.
You may be thinking that it’s impossible to make a vegan soup creamy; however, I’m here to tell you that’s far from the truth. This vegetarian corn chowder is still creamy and delicious and hits all the comfort vibes that you need it too with every single bite, while being a healthy version of the traditional way to make it.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Easy – There’s no obscure ingredients and most things are pantry staples, so it’s the perfect, easy recipe to make year round.
- Meal Prep Friendly – this recipe only gets better as it sits and allows the flavors to merry together.
- Freezable – Want to really prep this ahead? Let it cool and you can store in individual pre-portioned containers in the freezer for up to 6 months in advance. It’s a great way to make use of in season corn, but not eat until winter.
Ingredients and Substitutions:
Gather your ingredients! See my recipe card below for a complete list of the ingredients with measurements.
- Corn – in season, fresh, corn on the cob will give you the freshest tasting corn chowder. While yellow corn is preferred, white or bicolored corn works just as great
- Substitute: Canned (drained and rinsed) corn or frozen corn also works great in this recipe if you are making this in the winter or cannot access fresh corn on the cob.
- Potatoes – Yukon gold potatoes are our preferred potato variety for this soup because of the slightly nutty and buttery taste and texture
- Substitute: Any potato variety will work – like russets or reds.
- Tip: Try making this a sweet potato corn chowder by subbing the potatoes with sweet potatoes. It will add some sweetness and color to the dish that you don’t get otherwise and is a great variation
- Aromatics – We’re using garlic, sweet onions, bell pepper, carrot and celery for the base flavor of the dish. These help deepen the flavor of the dish and add complexity.
- Onion substitute: you can use yellow onions or shallots instead of sweet
- Pepper substitute: Want to kick up the spice a bit? Try swapping out the pepper for a poblano pepper for this chowder.
- Vegetable Stock – we like using a low sodium vegetable stock so that we can control the sodium level inside of our soup
- Coconut Milk – We use canned coconut milk for this recipe. It has the ability to mimic heavy cream well. While most people are worried about a strong coconut taste in their soup, don’t worry, there’s no. It does not overpower the dish
- Sun dried tomatoes – while not always an ingredient inside of chowders, we love the depth of flavor that sun dried tomatoes gives, while also transforming this to a more orange hued soup.
- Spices – we’re using old bay seasoning, smoked paprika, red pepper flakes, dried thyme, dried chives, garlic powder, celery salt, coriander, and bay leaf.
- Old Bay substitute: If you don’t know what old bay is, it’s a popular seasoning blend to Maryland. Some substitutes would be cajun seasoning with a bit of celery salt or you can do equal parts paprika and celery salt with another bay leaf.
- Sherry Vinegar – this sweet vinegar balances out the other flavors in a subtle but needed way
- Substitute: dry white wine, rice vinegar, or red wine vinegar could all be used instead
- Lime Juice – This is added at the very end just as a burst of flavor and brightness. Careful not to add too much! About ½ a lime for the whole batch is all that’s needed.
Other must try vegan soups:
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Vegan Corn Chowder
Ingredients
- 6-7 cups vegetable stock (1440-1680g)
- 5 cups corn kernels (825g or about 6 cobs)
- 2 tablespoon vegan butter, sub with olive oil or stock
- 1 ½ teaspoon old bay seasoning
- 1 ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional, more or less to taste
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon dried chives
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon celery salt
- ¼ teaspoon coriander
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 sweet onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 lb Yukon gold potatoes, cubed (450g)
- 1 stick celery, chopped
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 1 carrot, diced
- ¼ cup sun dried tomatoes in oil, chopped
- ⅔ cup coconut milk (160g)
- 1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
- fresh lime juice, to taste
Instructions
- In a dutch oven or large soup stock pot, add 6 cups vegetable stock and bring to a boil. Once boiling, add 5 cups corn kernels and let cook for 15 minutes while prepping your other ingredients. Remove stock from the pot and reserve.
- With the corn still in the pot, over medium heat, add 2 tablespoon vegan butter, 1 ½ teaspoon each old bay seasoning and smoked paprika, ½ teaspoon each red pepper flakes (optional), dried thyme, dried chives, and ¼ teaspoon each garlic powder, celery salt, coriander, and 1 bay leaf. Stir together and allow corn to get some brown bits on it.
- Add 1 large diced onion and 3 cloves minced garlic and allow to cook, stirring occasionally, for 2-3 minutes. Add in the 1lb cubed potatoes, 1 stick chopped celery, 1 diced red bell pepper, 1 diced carrot, and ¼ cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes and stir together for 2-3 minutes allowing everything to come together.
- Add in the stock and make sure everything is covered under the stock (adding in the additional 1 cup if needed). Add a little bit more stock if needed to cover. Reduce heat to simmer and allow to cook for 20-25 minutes.
- Add about ⅓ of the soup to a blender with ⅔ cup coconut milk and 1 tablespoon sherry vinegar. Blend until smooth.
- Add blended mixture back into your soup pot and stir together. Taste and adjust any seasonings if desired. Top with lime juice to taste and stir together, then serve.
Notes
Video
Nutrition
Frequently Asked Questions:
Yes! Let cool completely and then store in freezer safe bags or containers. Store in the freezer for up to 6 months.
Yes! Use a soy free vegan butter and for the coconut milk use a safe for you creamy non-dairy milk. Soy or cashew are the next best choices, but a creamy oat milk hits the spot!
Yes! Either of these will work. The truth is that canned and frozen corn are still picked and packaged usually at the peak time of the season which still make them a great option. If choosing canned, try to pick a no added salt version if possible so you can control the sodium.
If you’re looking to bulk up the chowder, you can do chickpeas, black beans, or a white bean like great northern or butter beans.
A delicious salad is the perfect start for this creamy vegan soup and then pair it with either vegan breadsticks or our fav vegan garlic knots!
Another winner!!!!!
I wasn’t in the mood for coconut so I used extra creamy oat instead. That, along with your technique for adding the milk, really took this to my happy place.
Thanks much
Thank you so much! So happy to enjoyed it!
So delicious!! This will be added to the rotation.
Love that!
A complete hit on the Christmas Eve dinner table! My daughter requested crammed corn, and I did not want to make it. Served this corn chowder and she LOVED it. We all loved it! You may be interested to know that everyone at the table, but me is an omnivore – – and they loved it.
Thank you for sharing your experience with the Vegan Corn Chowder! We are thrilled to hear that it was a complete hit on your Christmas Eve dinner table and that your daughter loved it. It is especially wonderful to know that even the omnivores at the table enjoyed it!
This soup is so good, truly a family favorite.
Thank you!!
Just made this today. It’s SO delicious. Will definitely put this in the rotation!
So happy you enjoyed it!
I really enjoyed this chowder. Most of flavors work really nicely, and it promises to be, with one tweak next time I make it, the best corn chowder I’ve had, vegan or not. My only change will be to use a different non-dairy milk next time. Perhaps it was the brand I used that made the coconut flavor particularly pronounced. Even for me, as a lover of coconut soups, that flavor just seemed out of place here.
Another note, as an accomplished home cook with restaurant experience, this recipe took me much longer than the recipe estimates. It was worth it, and I’ll plan ahead for 1 hour plus next time.
*Inspiration hit before I hit “submit” — I may also try keeping the coconut milk, but swapping all the dry spices out for red curry paste, and maybe omit the celery. Both adjustments are promising enough that I’ll plan to try both. They’ll be very different soups from the same base recipe.
Thank you so much for your feedback.
Update: I made this recipe again with cashew cream instead of coconut milk. I also pureed a can of white beans in with the cashews for a little extra protein. Delicious! My 7-year-old is on his fourth serving and counting. For whatever reason, the coconut just didn’t work for me the first time I made it. If anyone else has that issue or just doesn’t like coconut, I can heartily recommend cashew cream as a substitute.
This is amazing! Thank you so much for sharing your experience here with us as we’re positive that others will find your advice helpful. Love the added protein from the beans you incorporated as well (Brilliant!). We’re so glad you and your son enjoyed the recipe!
I LOVE this recipe!!! It’s so delicious and so easy to make. I get so happy when I make something vegan that my friends and family love. They’re not vegan like I am so it’s important for me to make something that everyone will love!
I totally get this! Glad it was enjoyed