Corn Soup Recipes For The Family Dinner Table

Corn soups have been a long time favorite amongst food lovers. With these corn soup recipes, you can make each bowl of corn soup your serve, taste like a bowl of a different culture!

Corn soup is the soup children finish. Naturally sweet, creamy, and forgiving of whatever else you throw in. It’s also one of the handiest recipes a parent can own: cheap, fast, freezable, and adaptable from a baby’s first purée right up to a bacon-loaded chowder for the grown-ups. Here are two to keep: an everyday Chinese-style one you can make in fifteen minutes, and a chunkier chowder for a proper meal.

One safety note before the recipes: whole corn kernels are a choking hazard for children under about four: round, firm and exactly the wrong size. For young children, blend the soup smooth or make sure the kernels are well softened and, ideally, lightly crushed. Creamed corn sidesteps the problem entirely, which is one reason it features below.

Everyday Chinese sweet corn & egg-drop soup

Serves 4, about 15 minutes. The weeknight default.

1 can creamed corn (about 400g)
1 cup sweetcorn kernels (fresh, frozen or canned)
1 litre chicken or vegetable stock
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tbsp cornstarch mixed with 2 tbsp cold water
Optional: shredded cooked chicken, a little sesame oil, spring onion, white pepper

Bring the stock, creamed corn and kernels to a gentle boil.
Stir in the cornstarch slurry and simmer 2–3 minutes until slightly thickened.
Turn the heat to low. Pour the beaten egg in a thin stream while stirring slowly in one direction. That’s what makes the silky egg ribbons.
Add chicken if using, finish with a few drops of sesame oil, spring onion and white pepper. Season carefully.

For a baby, ladle out a portion before seasoning and blend it smooth. Salt and stock shouldn’t feature for under-ones, but plain blended corn is a lovely early food.

Chunky corn chowder

Serves a hungry family, about 40 minutes. A meal in a bowl, adapted from the recipe this page has long carried.

2 tbsp butter (and a little diced bacon, if you like)
1 large onion and 1 red pepper, diced
2 potatoes, peeled and cubed
3 cups sweetcorn kernels
4 cups stock, 1 cup milk (or evaporated milk for richness)
1 tbsp cornstarch in a little cold water; salt, pepper, a pinch of cumin or thyme

Soften the onion (and bacon) in the butter; add pepper and potato and cook a few minutes.
Add stock and corn, simmer until the potato is tender (about 20 minutes).
For a smoother chowder, blend half and return it. Add milk, thicken with the cornstarch slurry, season.

Blend the whole pot for young children and check the temperature: thick soups hold heat far longer than they look.

Why corn soup earns its keep

Beyond the taste children rarely argue with, corn brings fibre and some B vitamins, and the soup is a stealthy vehicle for whatever else needs using up: leftover chicken, a handful of spinach, yesterday’s rice. It freezes well (the egg-drop version less so; freeze it before adding egg), reheats fast, and scales from one fussy toddler to a table of ten. Keep a can of creamed corn in the cupboard and dinner’s fifteen minutes away on the worst evenings.

Frequently asked questions

Can babies eat corn soup?

Yes. Blend a portion smooth before adding salt or stock, since those aren’t for under-ones. Plain blended sweetcorn is a good early food. Whole kernels are a choking hazard under about four, so blend or crush them for young children.

How do I make the silky egg ribbons in corn soup?

Turn the heat to low, then pour the beaten egg in a slow thin stream while stirring gently in one direction. High heat or fast stirring scrambles it instead of forming ribbons.

Can I freeze corn soup?

Yes, both versions freeze well. For the egg-drop soup, freeze it before adding the egg and stir a fresh beaten egg in when you reheat, as egg can go rubbery frozen.

How do I make corn soup healthier?

Use milk or evaporated milk instead of cream, lean on the natural sweetness of the corn instead of adding sugar, go easy on salt (especially for children), and bulk it with vegetables. It’s already a fairly wholesome soup; these keep it that way.

What to remember

Two corn soups to keep: a 15-minute Chinese egg-drop version for weeknights, and a chunky chowder for a proper meal. Both freeze, both scale, both adapt down to a baby’s blended portion. Just blend or crush the kernels for under-fours, and pull a baby’s serving before you season.