The first recorded recipe for corn chowder was in 1884, written by Mary Johnson Bailey Lincoln of the Boston Cooking School. This was a sister-recipe to the classic Boston Chowder that was influenced by settlers from France and Canada. Fresh ingredients went into both original clam chowder and corn chowder. It was not long after this being published that the recipe started moving in a westerly and southerly direction in the country. It had been revamped by Fannie Farmer not long after which changed the original format. Since the late 1800's, corn chowder has taken on many approaches to being made, by many different regions. And, had drastically changed once processed convenience items became available. My recipe is not only gluten-free, contains no roux or slurry, but is achieved by making this as a lighter version than the old-school approach, and we stick to the roots of freshness, the way Mary J.B. Lincoln kept it. With farm-fresh produce, local meats and seafood, this will definitely hit the spot! This is perfect if you have leftover sausages to use up. Crawfish is optional but, the flavors are a perfect pairing with farm-fresh corn!
Key note: A proper chowder is not thick. When the original chowders of the 1800's were introduced by settlers, they did not use flour or starch-derivatives. In this recipe, the use of half-and-half and fresh grated parmesan should come close to 36% fat being added. Heavy cream at the local grocery level of retail runs at about 36% fat. So, this is how I achieved the same mouth-feel. Hope you enjoy!
©2004-2026 Konky’s Creative Kitchen, All rights reserved.
INGREDIENTS:
1 QT Half-and-Half 1 QT Chicken, Pork, or Vegetable stock 2 lbs Corn, cut off the cob (or frozen corn) 8 oz Sausages, cooked, quartered and diced 8 oz Crawfish, precooked 6 oz Red Onion, finely diced 6 oz Zucchini, sliced 6 oz Summer Squash, sliced 1 Red Bell Pepper, finely diced 2 oz Garlic, fresh minced Thyme bundle 2 oz Parmesan, freshly grated
2oz Butter Olive oil
Black Pepper to taste 1.) Medium-heat: In a medium-sized pot, add some olive oil, your butter, your thyme bundle, and a couple pinches of black pepper.Stir this around as the thyme starts to "pop" in the hot oil and butter. Toss around for about a minute.
2.) Add ALL of your corn, vegetables,garlic, and sausage to the pot and begin tossing around. The key is to bring everything up to temperature. This should take about five minutes.
3.) Add your chicken stock. Bring this back up to temperature again for another five to seven minutes.
4.) Add your half-and-half to the pot. You will see some butter come to the top of the pot and that is normal. Let this warm up again and you will eventually see the butter disappear as it melts back into the base. Remove your thyme bundle. The pot should start showing signs of coming together after about another five minutes. DO NOT let this boil. 5.) Add your parmesan and begin stirring this in. Again, do NOT let your chowder boil as you risk breaking the dairy. As the parmesan melts, the chowder base will start to slightly thicken. Vigorously stir your chowder for a couple of minutes and then shut the heat off. Take the pot off the burner.
6.) Optional - add your crawfish in now as it does not take long to heat up. Or, just use crawfish tail meat and add them when you remove the pot from the stove.
Serve up with oyster crackers, fresh bread, garlic bread, or fresh baked rolls with butter.
©2004-2026 Konky’s Creative Kitchen, All rights reserved.
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