Creamy chicken and corn chowder made with tender chicken, hearty potatoes, and crispy bacon. This easy dairy-free chowder recipe is so easy to make and comes together in around thirty minutes. This cozy weeknight dinner is a dish that the whole family will love.
The Best Creamy Chicken and Corn Chowder with Bacon
Hearty soups and stews are some of my very favorite recipes to make for dinner. They usually only require one pot, have a combination of proteins, carbohydrates, and healthy fats, and usually make plenty so there are leftovers available the next day.
This creamy chicken and corn chowder is no exception! It is filled with tender chicken, hearty potatoes, yellow corn, and crisp bacon. Not only is it delicious, this chowder is also completely dairy-free and made with only real food ingredients.
Healthy Chicken and Corn Chowder Ingredients
Boneless, Skinless Chicken Thighs: My preference for this recipe is boneless, skinless chicken thighs. They remain tender even after simmering for a bit which is why they are my first choice.
Bacon: The smokey flavor works great in the chowder and the crispy bacon bits are perfect for serving on top.
Celery and Onion: The base of any good soup or chowder.
Yellow Potatoes: These creamy potatoes are perfect to use in the chowder.
Green Chiles: You can leave these out if you prefer but they add great flavor.
Yellow Corn: Feel free to use white corn instead if that is all you have
Full Fat Coconut Milk: The secret to a creamy chowder that is still dairy free is full-fat coconut milk. This coconut milk is shelf-stable and sold in a can.
Dried Herbs and Spices: Plenty of dried herbs and spices give this soup tremendous flavor.
Step One: Heat a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the bacon to the pot. Cook for four to six minutes until the bacon is crisp.
Step Two: Next, add the diced chicken thighs to the pot. Cook for four to six minutes until the chicken has browned.
Step Three: After the chicken has cooked, add the diced onion, diced celery, and garlic to the pot. Let everything cook for a few minutes until the onion starts to become translucent.
Step Four: Add diced potatoes, dried oregano, green chiles, bay leaves, dried parsley, cumin, salt, and pepper to the pot and stir until well combined.
Step Five: Pour in the full fat coconut milk and chicken broth. Stir until well combined, and bring the soup to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer. Let the chowder simmer for twenty to twenty-five minutes until the potatoes are fork tender.
Step Six: Once the potatoes are tender, add in the corn and stir until well combined. Next, sprinkle in the arrowroot starch and stir until well combined. The chowder should thicken as the arrowroot starch is stirred in. Once the chowder has thickened to your liking, stir in three-fourths of the cooked bacon and one-fourth a cup of green onion.
Step Seven: Give the chowder a taste and season with more salt and pepper, if needed. Serve the chowder in bowls and topped with sliced green onion and the remaining crispy bacon.
Can I Use Frozen Corn In This Chowder?
Yes! If you do not have fresh corn you can use frozen corn. Just add the frozen corn in at the end and let it heat through.
How to Serve
This hearty chowder is great on it’s own and topped with bacon and green onions. If you want to add a little extra to the chowder, you can also top your chowder with a dollop of sour cream or shredded cheddar cheese.
Can I Make This Recipe Whole30 Compliant or Paleo Friendly?
Yes! This soup would be entirely Whole30 compliant and Paleo-friendly if you use a Whole30 compliant bacon and omit the corn.
Tips, Tricks, and FAQs
I recommend using low-sodium chicken broth to better to control the amount of salt in the dish.
As I mentioned before, I love using chicken thighs in this recipe but feel free to use boneless, skinless chicken breast if you prefer.
Don’t have yellow potatoes? This recipe will also work with diced russet potatoes as well.
Two tablespoons of arrowroot starch should thicken the chowder nicely, however if you prefer your chowder on the thicker side, feel free to add more arrowroot starch to the chowder one teaspoon at a time until it has reached your desired consistency.
Dice the potatoes roughly the same size so that they cook evenly.
I hope you love this hearty chicken and corn chowder! I know it will quickly become a favorite. If you make this recipe, please leave a review and rate the recipe below so others know how you liked it!
Heat a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the bacon lardons to the pot. Cook the bacon for four to six minutes until crisp and then remove from the pot.
Add the diced chicken thighs to the pot. Cook for four to six minutes until the chicken has browned.
Add the diced onion, diced celery, and garlic to the pot. Cook for two to three minutes until the onions begin to become translucent.
Add the diced potatoes, dried oregano, green chiles, bay leaves, dried parsley, cumin, salt, and pepper to the pot and stir until well combined.
Pour in the full fat coconut milk and chicken broth. Stir until combined and bring the soup to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer and cover. Let the chowder simmer for twenty to twenty-five minutes until the potatoes are fork tender. Add in the corn and cook for one minute to heat it through.
Add the arrowroot starch and stir until well combined. The chowder should thicken as the arrowroot starch is stirred in.
Finally, stir in three-fourths of the cooked bacon and sliced green onion.
Give the chowder a taste and season with more salt and pepper, if needed. Serve the chowder in bowls topped with sliced green onion and the remaining crispy bacon.
Notes
!!
Add more arrowroot starch, one teaspoon at a time, to thicken the chowder even more if you prefer.
You can use boneless, skinless chicken breast if you prefer.
Delicious, and a family favorite! We’ve made it a few times and I made a double batch this year for a ski trip. After a fantastic and hearty dinner, my teenaged boys enjoyed it for lunches too. I highly recommend this! It’s hearty and filling without being heavy. Perfect fall or winter meal!
This was an ABSOLUTE HIT for my family. My folks are kind of picky eaters when it comes to “alternative” eating and this dish knocked the socks off of them! The only tweaks I did was I added about a half cup of yellow carrots and half cup of green peas because I just needed to get them cooked. Haha. Otherwise, followed the recipe to the letter!
Delish! Made this to celebrate the autumnal equinox; right on time we had a cold front move through with perfect chilly weather for a perfect chowder. Really enjoyed the coconut milk as well, just perfect and hearty.
Sooo good! I made a lazy version with rotisserie chicken and it was amazing! Both my husband and I went back for fourth helpings!! Added a little cayenne to give it a kick! Ashlea killed it as usual!!!
This was delicious and quick/ easy to make. I love the large number of dairy-free recipes on your site- I would never think to substitute a can of coconut milk on my own. Highly recommend- will definitely make again!
Excellent chowder!! I had to make a couple subs from what I had on hand (everyone searches the internet last minute for recipes at dinnertime, right?) , and it came out so delicious. Hubby loved it too. Will definitely be saving and making it again.
I made this recipe with what I had on hand (barely any onion, no celery and no green chilies) and it was absolutely delicious! I had a bunch of potatoes and corn to use up and this was perfect!
This is SO GOOD!!! I’m not normally a huge coconut milk fan, but it’s perfect in this (and not too “coconut-y”). It came together super quick and easily. Such a cozy healthful meal for colder weather. 🙂
My partner claimed he didn’t like soup, but this soup changed that opinion and now he asks for this on a regular basis. It is SO good – tasty and hearty yet healthy. And it’s great as leftovers! I almost liked it better next day when it thickened up a bit more 🙂
Wow! I made a double batch of this and am I ever glad I did because everyone LOVED it and at least I got 2 bowls full! So creamy and flavorful! YUM Many thanks and I can’t wait to try your Potato soup next!
I write this as I’m eating my 2nd bowl. It’s so dang good, y’all. The flavors are excellent and it came together pretty easily. Highly recommend – I will definitely be adding this into my regular rotation!
So delicious! Unfortunately I didn’t have the chiles on hand, but the chowder was still really tasty and flavourful. I will definitely be making this again!
This recipe was SO good! Whole family liked it (even though I forgot the onion and had to use tapioca instead of arrowroot, which I could not find easily). Served with crusty bread – delicious!
My husband has been so happy all night. This was a great recipe. I unfortunately forgot I used our bacon up but we had prosciutto and it worked great! Thank you
So good! And the little spice from the green chilies was a nice touch. I Used fresh corn and added it sooner than the recipe calls for. Kids liked it too and will be making it again! Thank you for another great recipe!
This was delicious! My husband and kids loved it too. I doubled everything so we would have leftovers. I added a splash of dry sherry to it…something I always do with corn chowders.
Such a great chowder! My husband and I often think soup recipes are under-seasoned and need tweaking but this one was PERFECT the first time. Will definitely be a regular favorite! Thank you!
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Delicious, and a family favorite! We’ve made it a few times and I made a double batch this year for a ski trip. After a fantastic and hearty dinner, my teenaged boys enjoyed it for lunches too. I highly recommend this! It’s hearty and filling without being heavy. Perfect fall or winter meal!
★★★★★
This was an ABSOLUTE HIT for my family. My folks are kind of picky eaters when it comes to “alternative” eating and this dish knocked the socks off of them! The only tweaks I did was I added about a half cup of yellow carrots and half cup of green peas because I just needed to get them cooked. Haha. Otherwise, followed the recipe to the letter!
This is sure to be a family favorite for anyone!
★★★★★
So happy you loved it, Brittney!
Delish! Made this to celebrate the autumnal equinox; right on time we had a cold front move through with perfect chilly weather for a perfect chowder. Really enjoyed the coconut milk as well, just perfect and hearty.
★★★★★
Sooo good! I made a lazy version with rotisserie chicken and it was amazing! Both my husband and I went back for fourth helpings!! Added a little cayenne to give it a kick! Ashlea killed it as usual!!!
★★★★★
Yay! So glad you loved it, Paige! Thanks for leaving a review!
Very hearty and delicious. Comes together quickly so make sure you have everything prepped before starting!
★★★★★
Thanks for sharing, Stephanie! I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe!
This was delicious and quick/ easy to make. I love the large number of dairy-free recipes on your site- I would never think to substitute a can of coconut milk on my own. Highly recommend- will definitely make again!
★★★★★
Thanks for sharing, Heather! Glad you loved it!
Made this for my family last night and my dad said it’s one of the best soups he’s ever had!! Such an easy week night meal to quickly throw together.
★★★★★
Glad to hear you love it, Angela!!
Excellent chowder!! I had to make a couple subs from what I had on hand (everyone searches the internet last minute for recipes at dinnertime, right?) , and it came out so delicious. Hubby loved it too. Will definitely be saving and making it again.
So glad you were able to make it work with what you had, Kristen! Thank you for taking the time to leave a review!
Perfect for a cold day! This was delicious, and I loved the coconut milk broth. I will be making this again soon!
★★★★★
I made this recipe with what I had on hand (barely any onion, no celery and no green chilies) and it was absolutely delicious! I had a bunch of potatoes and corn to use up and this was perfect!
★★★★★
This is SO GOOD!!! I’m not normally a huge coconut milk fan, but it’s perfect in this (and not too “coconut-y”). It came together super quick and easily. Such a cozy healthful meal for colder weather. 🙂
★★★★★
My partner claimed he didn’t like soup, but this soup changed that opinion and now he asks for this on a regular basis. It is SO good – tasty and hearty yet healthy. And it’s great as leftovers! I almost liked it better next day when it thickened up a bit more 🙂
★★★★★
This was so delicious! Perfect as written. Quick and easy. I’ll definitely be adding to my faves! Thanks for the awesome recipes!
★★★★★
Wow! I made a double batch of this and am I ever glad I did because everyone LOVED it and at least I got 2 bowls full! So creamy and flavorful! YUM Many thanks and I can’t wait to try your Potato soup next!
★★★★★
This soup is delicious!! It comes together quickly and was perfect for this chilly fall day 🙂
★★★★★
I write this as I’m eating my 2nd bowl. It’s so dang good, y’all. The flavors are excellent and it came together pretty easily. Highly recommend – I will definitely be adding this into my regular rotation!
★★★★★
This soup is DELICIOUS! I’ll admit I was a little skeptical of the coconut milk, but it turned out so good. I will definitely be making again!
★★★★★
So delicious! Unfortunately I didn’t have the chiles on hand, but the chowder was still really tasty and flavourful. I will definitely be making this again!
★★★★★
This recipe was SO good! Whole family liked it (even though I forgot the onion and had to use tapioca instead of arrowroot, which I could not find easily). Served with crusty bread – delicious!
★★★★★
My husband has been so happy all night. This was a great recipe. I unfortunately forgot I used our bacon up but we had prosciutto and it worked great! Thank you
★★★★★
So good! And the little spice from the green chilies was a nice touch. I Used fresh corn and added it sooner than the recipe calls for. Kids liked it too and will be making it again! Thank you for another great recipe!
★★★★★
This was delicious! My husband and kids loved it too. I doubled everything so we would have leftovers. I added a splash of dry sherry to it…something I always do with corn chowders.
★★★★★
Such a great chowder! My husband and I often think soup recipes are under-seasoned and need tweaking but this one was PERFECT the first time. Will definitely be a regular favorite! Thank you!
★★★★★