Let your slow cooker do the work for you with this creamy, comforting Corn & Potato Chowder, loaded with sweet corn, hearty potatoes, and flavorful ham.
Winter is about to wear me out, y'all. One day (today), it's 30°. By the weekend, it's supposed to get up to 80°. Every time we get a taste of spring it freezes again, and every time we resolve ourselves to more winter weather, warm temperatures and sunny skies tease us, if only for a few days.
On the upside, the indecisive weather at least means that we can still enjoy soup in good conscience, which in turn means that I can keep it on the menu rotation for the time being. Because let's be real here...there's not much easier than throwing some ingredients into a pot and walking away for awhile. If that pot happens to be a crock pot, well, even better. Let it do its thing all day long and, as an added bonus, your house will smell divine in the meantime.
This is an incarnation of a soup I've been throwing together for years depending on what ingredients I happen to have on hand. Sayyy...leftover ham. This meal is always a hit with the whole family, so I decided to measure out everything for a change and write it all down in order to share the recipe today. I almost hesitate to call it a 'recipe,' because it's embarrassingly easy. But that's my favorite category of recipe, and I imagine you don't mind quick and effortless-to-assemble dinners either, right?
If you're in a really big hurry to get it going, you can even make this chowder with frozen potatoes, like diced or shredded hash browns. Depending on how decadent you prefer the final result, feel free to add milk, half-and-half, or heavy cream to achieve that creamy broth. Just before serving, I like to scoop out a few ladles of potatoes onto a plate and gently mash them with a fork before stirring them back into the soup (it's okay if you accidentally scoop up some corn and ham, too, as those will hold their shape through the mashing). This serves to slightly thicken up the soup while retaining the various textures of the different ingredients. Finally, you can eat this soup as-is, or jazz it up with shredded cheddar on top and crackers on the side. It's equally yummy plain or embellished.
So while we wait for the groundhog to emerge for good, let's at least take advantage of the dwindling days of soup season, shall we? I don't know about you, but with a chowder like this to keep me cozy, I think I might just be able to endure a few more weeks of winter.
Slow Cooker Corn & Potato Chowder with Ham Recipe
Slow Cooker Corn and Potato Chowder with Ham
Ingredients
- 2 pounds potatoes, peeled & diced into ½-inch cubes
- 1 (16-ounce bag) frozen corn, about 3 ½ cups
- 1 ½ cups diced ham
- 1 tablespoon fresh minced garlic
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme, OR 1 ½ teaspoons fresh thyme
- 4 cups chicken broth OR stock
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 to 2 cups half-and-half
Instructions
- Place potatoes, corn, ham, garlic, and thyme in slow cooker. Pour chicken broth over ingredients, season with freshly ground black pepper, and stir. Cover and cook on low for 6 to 7 hours or until potatoes are tender.
- About 20 minutes before serving, scoop out 2 to 3 ladles full of potatoes onto a plate (it's okay if you scoop out a bit of corn and ham, too). Thoroughly mash potatoes with a fork and return to the crock pot, stirring them in to thicken the broth. Stir in the half-and-half, cover, and cook chowder for 15 more minutes or until heated through.
EQUIPMENT NEEDED
Notes
- Adjust the ingredients to your liking! My family loves garlic, so I actually end up using more garlic when I make this. You may use more or less ham depending on your preference, or leave it out altogether. You may use milk instead of half-and-half for a lighter soup or heavy cream for a richer final result. (And if you don't have half-and-half on hand, it's the same thing as using half milk and half cream.)
- This recipe can also be made in a large pot on the stove. Saute minced garlic in 1 Tablespoon olive oil over medium heat for 1 minute or until fragrant. Add broth, diced potatoes, corn, thyme, and pepper to the pot. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer, cooking for 15-20 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Remove 2-3 ladles of potatoes to a plate, mash, and stir back into the soup along with the diced ham and half-and-half. Additional broth may also be added, if desired. Cook over low for 5 more minutes or until heated through.
Nadine
If I use canned potatoes, do I still cook it for 6 to 7 hours in the crockpot or can the time be shortened? Thanks!
Samantha Skaggs
Since canned potatoes are already tender, you can definitely shorten the time! You basically just need to cook the soup until heated through, which will probably only take a couple hours depending on the strength of your slow cooker. (Or you can quickly stir together the ingredients in a pot on the stove and have your soup ready even faster!) If you do cook it in the crock pot for a short amount of time, however, I'd consider reducing the garlic since it won't have a long, slow cooking time to "mellow." Hope that helps and hope you enjoy! 🙂
Priscilla
Hi Samantha- thank you so much for this recipe. I had some leftover mash potatoes just waiting to thicken the broth. Super yummy. It’s a very cold and rainy day here in south Texas. Which is very unusual 🙂
This soup is simmering away in the crockpot, and will warm my family’s tummy tonight.
Happy Holidays!
Samantha at Five Heart Home
I hope your family enjoyed this one, Priscilla! Stay warm and happy holidays to you, too! 🙂
Megan
This is great! It wasn't creamy or potatoey enough for our tastes, so before serving (while it was heating through the last 15 minutes with the heavy cream), I added some cheese and a bag of instant potatoes (Betty crocker brand - four cheese 100% real potatoes) and it was perfect! Gave it that creamier, thicker consistency we love.
Samantha at Five Heart Home
That's a great idea, Megan...thanks for sharing! I'm glad that this soup was a hit with your family! 🙂
Megan
My picky eater loved it so thank you for posting this! 🙂 great use for leftover Christmas ham!
Samantha at Five Heart Home
I'm so happy to hear that this was a hit, Megan! Picky eaters can be tricky to please...score 1 for Mom! 😉
Jen
This looks delicious. Which size of slow cooker should I use? I have a 6Q and a 4Q.
Samantha at Five Heart Home
Hi Jen! I use a 6-quart crock pot for all of my recipes, so that's what I'd recommend. After making this soup the first time, you might be able to judge if it would fit in your 4-quart crock pot next time. But I haven't made this soup since last winter and I honestly can't remember how high up it goes in the crock pot, so your larger crock pot would probably be the safer bet. Enjoy!
Liz
All beautiful recipes Samantha. Thanks so much.
Samantha at Five Heart Home
Thank you, Liz! Hope you had a wonderful Labor Day weekend!
Candace
Would I be able to freeze this? Wondering how it would be after since it has potatoes and cream.
Samantha at Five Heart Home
Hi Candace! I'm so sorry, but I haven't tried freezing this soup before. I think the potatoes would be fine, and honestly, I bet the cream would, too. But if you are worried about it, you could always make the soup without adding the cream, freeze, and then thaw/reheat and add the cream before serving. After a quick search, I just found this article about freezing soup with some specific tips related to soups containing cream: http://www.soupchick.com/2011/09/how-to-freeze-and-reheat-soup.html
Hope that helps!
Christine
Well I certainly love chowder...how about some potato waffles to go with those?:p
Samantha at Five Heart Home
Ha, Christine...potato waffles are not a bad idea at all! Hope you enjoy this chowder, however you decide to eat it! 😉
Cindy @ Hun... What's for Dinner?
I'm always up for a big ol' bowl of deliciousness, like this chowder! I'd love for you to come link up at my Simple Supper Tuesday linky party.
Samantha at Five Heart Home
Thanks so much, Cindy, and I appreciate the invite to your party! It looks like I was too slow to link up to the most recent one, but I'll try to remember to check back this week. 🙂
Ashley @ 3littlegreenwoods
There is nothing like a large bowl of hot soup! It's the ultimate comfort food for me. I'm pinning and making this recipe. 😉
Samantha at Five Heart Home
Thanks, Ashley, and I appreciate the pin! I am totally with you...I love soup. It makes getting through the winter months a little more bearable for me. 😉 Thanks for stopping by...hope you have a great week!
Jennifer @ Crockpot Gourmet
Looks simple and delicious. I guess this would be perfect for this weekend since we are supposed to have snow. Again.
Samantha at Five Heart Home
So sorry about more snow, Jennifer...hopefully this will be the last of it! Everyone I know seems to be ready for spring. Have a great weekend and enjoy your chowder! 🙂
Amy | Club Narwhal
Samantha, this looks SO good! And I love your frozen potato short cut suggestion (this suddenly made all soups with potatoes seem even quicker to put together). I love a good chowder, especially on indecisive weather days. For instance, today I woke up to a snow storm that turned into heavy sleet and now it's perfectly sunny! Crazy...
Samantha at Five Heart Home
A snow storm and then sleet and then sunshine?! Are you sure you don't live in Texas? That sounds about how quickly the weather changes around here... 😉 I hope you enjoy this soup if you get to try it, Amy! And yes, the frozen potato shortcut is a total time saver when you have, like, 15 minutes to make dinner instead of 30. 🙂 Happy weekend!
Gina
The chowder- looks SO GOOD!!! The weather- oh what a roller coaster. Texas is so funny like that. I certainly don't miss 80's+ in the spring like we had when we were in NV. However- I will be happy to be out of our single digit temps here soon.
Samantha at Five Heart Home
Thanks, Gina! I can't even imagine the single digits you're enduring right now. I just hope that spring gets here soon for all of us! 🙂 Hope you have a great weekend!
Debbie Caraballo
LOVE a good, creamy soup or chowder. This fills the bill!
Texas has definitely had some crazy weather, pretty much the whole country has. We had a warm 'tease' (50s) last weekend, but it's 19 right now, and expecting a LOT more snow beginning Sunday. Brrrrr!! Hope the forecast doesn't pan out! Lol!
Thanks for a great post!
Deb
Samantha at Five Heart Home
Oh my goodness, Deb...I always feel bad complaining about our just-below-freezing temperatures when other parts of the country are so much colder...but this still feels cold to me! 😉 Hope your snow stays away, and hope this chowder helps keep you warm if it decides to head your way after all! Happy Friday! 🙂
Julie
I love a good corn chowder and this one looks so easy! Thanks!!
Samantha at Five Heart Home
It's good and easy, Julie, which means that it's on our dinner rotation quite often. 😉 Thanks for stopping by...hope you have a wonderful weekend!
Cindy Eikenberg
Samantha, this looks totally delicious! I really need to start using my slow cooker - can you believe I don't?? I think I'm afraid to leave it on when I'm not here (a weird, neurotic worrier, am I!) This would definitely be a dish my hubby would love! Thanks for sharing and pinning - enjoy your day!
Samantha at Five Heart Home
You should absolutely use your slow cooker, Cindy...it is so wonderful to come home to a dinner that's already cooked! And you could always give it a test run while you're home on the weekend if the thought of leaving the house with it plugged in makes you uneasy. 😉 Thanks for the pin and happy Friday!