Creamy Corn Chowder

It may seem a little strange to be making soup when it is steaming hot outside, however, I felt the urge to make some chowder the other day.

Made from simple ingredients that are easy to obtain, even the novice cook can master this recipe in a heartbeat. I will not poo-poo those who choose to use frozen corn, or store-bought stock because that's what I did. Good frozen corn does the job for soup and the turkey stock is organic...SO THERE! Besides, who wants to make stock from scratch in the middle of the summer?

For those of you who are non-meat eaters, I invite you to use your favorite veggie stock and omit the bacon - you may just need to add a little more salt. Here's an idea - roast some red peppers, peel the skins and dice finely. That should bolster the overall flavor of the soup for you.

Enjoy!

Creamy Corn Chowder

2 tbsp olive oil
400ml can Thai Kitchen lite coconut milk
4 cups turkey broth
3tsp cornstarch + 3tsp water
1 large sweet onion, finely chopped
6-8 rashers of bacon cut into lardons
3 cups frozen corn, thawed
sea salt to taste

Heat olive oil in a large stockpot, add the onions and season with salt. Cook over medium heat until the onions are soft and translucent.

In a separate pan, cook the bacon until it is still soft but has begun to release most of the fat and drain. Add to the onions in the stockpot and cook for a few minutes to begin mingling the flavors. Add the thawed corn and cover with turkey broth and coconut milk. Season with salt again and let simmer for 40 minutes.

At this stage, depending on the texture you would like, you can use an immersion blender to partially puree the soup. This is what I did, but still left nice whole bits of corn. In a small container, make a slurry by combining the cornstarch and water. Whisk this into the soup to prevent lumps from forming. Simmer for another 5 minutes. Lower the heat to let it cool down a little and check how thick your soup is. If it is still too runny, make another slurry and repeat the steps above.