So here’s the thing—I’ve been making this slow cooker chicken corn chowder for like three years now, and I still get excited every time I smell it cooking. Started making it on a random Tuesday when I had leftover corn and chicken breast that were gonna go bad, and honestly? Best kitchen accident ever.
My husband calls this “the soup that saved winter” because I made it during that crazy cold snap last January when nobody wanted to leave the house. We ate it three days straight and nobody complained. Well, my 10-year-old complained on day three, but he complains about everything, so that doesn’t count.
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Why This Crockpot Chicken Corn Chowder Works
Look, I’m gonna be honest with you. I’ve tried probably fifteen different chicken corn chowder recipes from Pinterest and random food blogs. Some were too thin and watery. Others were so thick you could stand a spoon in them (not in a good way). This one? It’s just right. Like Goldilocks level perfect.
The secret is—oh wait, I should mention—you barely do any work. That’s the beauty of slow cooker recipes. Throw everything in, go about your day, come home to something that smells like heaven. I’ve literally made this while binge-watching an entire season of that baking show. You know the one.
And the texture! Because you’re cooking everything low and slow, the potatoes get soft and creamy without turning into mush. The corn stays sweet. The chicken shreds perfectly. Chef’s kiss.
What Makes This the Best Chicken Corn Chowder
I think… no, I KNOW what makes this different is the cream-style corn. My mom always said using both regular corn and cream-style corn was the trick, and mom was right. (Don’t tell her I said that. She’ll never let me hear the end of it.)
Also, bacon. Because bacon makes everything better. That’s not even debatable.
My neighbor Sarah tried making this without bacon once because she was “being healthy” or whatever. She came back the next week asking for bacon. True story.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Main Stuff:
- 1½ pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts (or thighs if you prefer—I actually like thighs better but my husband insists on breasts)
- 4 cups chicken broth (I use the low sodium kind from Costco)
- 4 medium potatoes, diced into bite-sized pieces (red potatoes work great, but honestly I’ve used whatever was in my pantry)
- 1 can (15 oz) whole kernel corn, drained
- 1 can (15 oz) cream-style corn (this is KEY—don’t skip it)
- 1 medium onion, diced (yellow or white, doesn’t matter)
- 2 stalks celery, chopped
- 1 small red bell pepper, diced (adds nice color and sweetness)
- 3 cloves garlic, minced (or 1 tablespoon of the jarred stuff if you’re lazy like me sometimes)
- 6 strips bacon, cooked crispy and crumbled
- 1 cup heavy cream (half-and-half works too if you want it lighter)
- 1 tablespoon butter
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- Optional: 2-3 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with water for thickening
Speaking of potatoes—good luck finding decent ones this time of year. Last week I bought a bag that had like three sprouting ones in it. Just cut off the sprouts and keep going. We’re not fancy here.
How to Make Easy Slow Cooker Chicken Corn Chowder
Step 1: Prep Your Stuff
Dice up your potatoes, onion, celery, and bell pepper. Mince the garlic. I do this while drinking my morning coffee and it takes maybe 10 minutes. Sometimes 15 if I’m distracted by TikTok.
Cook your bacon until crispy—I do mine in the microwave between paper towels because I’m not trying to clean bacon grease off my stove at 7 AM. Judge me all you want, it works.
Step 2: Layer Everything in the Crockpot
Put the chicken breasts at the bottom of your slow cooker. Then add the potatoes, onion, celery, bell pepper, garlic, both cans of corn, thyme, paprika, salt, and pepper. Pour the chicken broth over everything.
Don’t stir it yet. Just dump it all in there in layers. Trust me on this.
Step 3: Let It Do Its Thing
Cover and cook on LOW for 6-7 hours or HIGH for 3-4 hours. I usually do it on low because I leave for work at 8 and get home around 4, so it works perfectly.
The house will smell AMAZING around hour 4. Your family will start circling the kitchen like sharks. This is normal.
Step 4: Shred the Chicken
Once the cooking time is up, take out the chicken breasts and shred them with two forks. They should basically fall apart. If they don’t, you didn’t cook it long enough (been there—just put them back in for another 30 minutes).
Return the shredded chicken to the slow cooker.
Step 5: Make It Creamy
This is where the magic happens. Stir in your heavy cream and most of the crumbled bacon (save some for topping because presentation matters, even on a Tuesday).
If you want it thicker—and I usually do—mix 2-3 tablespoons of cornstarch with about ¼ cup of water until smooth. Pour that in and stir well. Let it cook on high for another 15-20 minutes until it thickens up nicely.
Taste it. Add more salt and pepper if needed. I always need more salt because I apparently don’t season enough the first time around.
Tips That Actually Matter
Don’t use frozen chicken. I tried this once when I forgot to take chicken out of the freezer. Disaster. Complete disaster. The cooking times were all wrong and it turned out weird and rubbery.
The cream goes in at the end. If you add it at the beginning, it can curdle or separate during the long cooking time. Learned this the hard way on attempt number one.
Use red potatoes if you can. They hold their shape better than russet potatoes. Russets can get mushy and kind of dissolve into the soup. Still tastes good, but the texture is off.
An immersion blender is your friend. Some people like to blend half the soup to make it thicker and creamier. I’ve done this and it’s great, but I’m usually too lazy. Up to you.
This freezes really well! Make a double batch and freeze half. Future you will be SO grateful. Just don’t add the cream before freezing—add it when you reheat.
What to Serve With This Creamy Slow Cooker Chicken Corn Chowder
Crusty bread. Always crusty bread. I buy those partially baked baguettes from Trader Joe’s and finish them in the oven. Takes 10 minutes and everyone thinks I’m fancy.
Also good with crackers, cornbread, or those Ritz crackers if you’re being casual about it (which I usually am).
My kids like to dip grilled cheese sandwiches in it. Adults pretend this is weird but secretly everyone does it when no one’s looking.
Why This Is the Perfect Comfort Food
This hearty chicken corn chowder is one of those meals that just makes everything better. Bad day at work? This soup. Rainy Saturday? This soup. Tuesday? Also this soup.
It’s creamy but not too heavy. It’s filling but not in that “I need to unbutton my pants” way. And it’s got vegetables, so you can pretend you’re being healthy even though there’s bacon and heavy cream in it.
Plus—and this is important—it makes your house smell incredible. Like, candle companies should bottle this smell. “Slow Cooker Sunday” or something. I’d buy ten.
The Real Talk
Is this the healthiest thing you’ll ever eat? No. Can you make it healthier by using half-and-half instead of heavy cream and turkey bacon instead of regular bacon? Sure, but why would you do that to yourself?
Life’s too short for bland soup, people.
This recipe has gotten me through some rough winters. It’s been to potlucks where people asked for the recipe (and I felt like a Pinterest mom for exactly five minutes). It’s fed my family on busy weeknights when I had zero energy to actually cook.
And every single time, it delivers. The slow cooker does all the work. You just show up at the end and take the credit.
Make this. Seriously. Your family will thank you. Your house will smell amazing. And you’ll have leftovers for lunch tomorrow, which might be the best part of all.
Let me know how yours turns out! And if anyone has figured out how to make this even better, drop a comment because I’m always looking for new tricks. 😊
