This light and easy fresh corn soup tastes creamy but it is completely dairy-free and vegan! A great way to enjoy Summer’s sweet corn.
This fresh corn soup recipe makes the most of summer’s plentiful and flavourful sweet field corn, with lovely Summer tomatoes and basil, as well. While this fresh corn soup tastes creamy, it doesn’t have any added milk or cream, instead using corn “milk” and a bit of potato to add a creamy texture. So this corn soup is vegetarian, vegan-friendly and gluten-free!
I love to serve this soup as a meal with a side salad and sometimes, with warm homemade buttermilk biscuits sprinkled with a little Fleur de Sel (Yes, my meal did get a little less healthy there :) This soup would also be great as a starter soup for summer entertaining.
Ingredients and substitutions
Corn – as this soup uses the natural “milk” from the corn cobs, you will need to start with fresh cobs of corn.
Recipe tips!
- If your soup ends up too thick, simply thin it with a little water.
- If you are not wanting to keep this soup strictly vegan, you can top this one with a dollop of sour creme, creme fraiche, or my personal favourite, goat feta cheese crumbles.
- You can serve this soup hot, warm or at room temperature. I prefer it just slightly warmed or at room temperature, depending on how hot the day is.
Making ahead, storing and freezing
This soup can be made ahead and reheated. Store leftovers in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.
Since this soup contains no cream, it freezes well. Freeze for up to 3 months.
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Get the Recipe: Fresh Corn Soup
Ingredients
- 4 cups fresh sweet corn kernels, from about 5 ears of fresh corn, shucked and silks removed
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup onion, diced
- 1/2 cup celery, diced
- 1 medium potato, cut into 1-inch cubes
- 3 sprigs fresh marjoram, or 1/2 tsp. dried marjoram (or a pinch of oregano and a pinch of thyme)
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Pinch cayenne
- 1/2 cup finely diced fresh tomatoes, for garnish
- 1/4 cup thinly sliced fresh basil, for garnish
Instructions
- With a sharp knife, cut the kernels off the fresh ears of corn into a large bowl. You don't need to cut too close to the base of the kernels, as you want to leave a bit for the next step. You'll need about 3-1/2 to 4 cups of kernels for this soup. Set corn kernels aside.
- After the kernels have been cut off, stand one cob on end in a shallow dish and use the back edge of the knife to scrape the cobs and extract as much "milk" and solids as you can. Set this corn milk mixture aside as well.
- Break the cobs in half and put them in a heavy, large pot. Add 6 cups water and 1 tsp. salt and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium low and cover. Simmer for 30 minutes. Remove from heat and discard the cobs. Pour the corn stock into a bowl and set aside.
- Set the same pot back on the stove-top over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil. When it's hot, add in the onion and cook, stirring, until translucent. Reduce the heat to medium and add the celery a pinch of salt and stir to combine. Cover the pot and cook until the vegetables start to soften, stirring occasionally to prevent them from browning, about 3-4 minutes. Add the potatoes, marjoram, black pepper and cayenne and stir. Add the corn stock and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cover the pot and lower the heat to medium low. Simmer until the vegetables are tender, about 20 to 30 minutes. Add most of the corn kernels, reserving about 1 cup. Simmer the soup for another 10 minutes.
- Puree the soup in the pot with an immersion blender or in small batches in a blender (be careful to fill the blender no more than one-third full and hold a towel over the lid while you turn it on). Put the pureed soup back in the pot. Taste for seasoning and add more salt or pepper if necessary. Add the reserved corn kernels and corn "milk". Turn the heat off under the pot after adding corn/corn milk and let stand 5 minutes, so the hot soup cooks it slightly. Serve hot, warm, or at room temperature, garnished with chopped tomatoes and basil.
Notes
- If your soup ends up too thick, simply thin it with a little water.
- If you are not wanting to keep this soup strictly vegan, you can top this one with a dollop of sour creme, creme fraiche, or my personal favourite, goat feta cheese crumbles.
- You can serve this soup hot, warm or at room temperature. I prefer it just slightly warmed or at room temperature, depending on how hot the day is.
More fresh corn recipes to love!
Hi! I’m Jennifer, a home cook schooled by trial and error and almost 40 years of getting dinner on the table! I love to share my favourite recipes, both old and new, together with lots of tips and tricks to hopefully help make your home cooking enjoyable, stress free, rewarding and of course, delicious!
I made this soup which came out surprisingly more corn tasting than I thought it would!
I went ahead with some modifications to the recipe to go with what I had already: I used my Instant Pot rather than a regular pot. Boiled the corn cobs with chicken stock (note: this makes the final stock brown, so if colour is of utmost importance, I would use broth or water as suggested) for 30 minutes on high pressure. I used carrot instead of celery and skipped the marjoram. Then I added the stock back and half of the corn before pressure-cooking it on high for twenty minutes. When it was done, I added the rest of the corn and let it sit for five minutes.
Worth a try when corn in plentiful and sweet on its own.
So glad you enjoyed it, June and yes, it is very much a corn soup :) Thanks so much!
I love this recipe! Thanks so much for it!
Glad to hear, Aileen :) Thanks!