Summer Corn and Basil “Chowder” topped with pan-seared white fish- a light and fresh summery dinner that can be made in under 30 minutes. Use halibut, cod, or sea bass!
There is something utterly magical that happens when fresh summer corn and basil come together. Here’s a simple, light, 30 minute dinner, quick and easy enough for a weeknight meal, yet special enough for Sunday supper – Summer Corn Chowder with Basil and White Fish. Seasoned simply and minimally, the fresh summer flavors really shine here.
The corn “chowder” can be made with or without dairy- and perhaps a better way to think of this, is more like a flavorful vegetable base for the fish, rather than a soup or stew. It’s very light, fresh and summery- not heavy or rich like a real chowder, what-so-ever. Hopefully this makes sense.
In the photo above I added a splash of half and half, and in the photo below, I left it out completely for a cleaner, leaner version. Both were good.
This week I partnered with heart healthy, gluten-free, highly nutritious, Idaho Potatoes, and featured their new crop Idaho yellow potatoes in the recipe.
So….it starts with fresh sweet, summer corn, new crop Idaho yellow potatoes, shallots and fresh basil.
This is sautéed in a large skillet, then covered and steamed.
While this is cooking, sear the fish. Here I’ve used Alaskan Cod, but salmon, sea bass, black cod, halibut or even shrimp or scallops would work well too.
This recipe makes two hearty portions.
The fresh corn “chowder” is so light and healthy and together with the basil, it’s so delicious!
Give it a whirl this weekend, I think you will love how easy it is to make, and how adaptable it is – use any fish or seafood you like or have on hand in your freezer.
To me, the combination of fresh basil and sweet corn is nothing short of heavenly. Happy summering!
s.
PrintSummer Corn Chowder with White fish
A summery, fresh and light Corn and Basil Chowder topped with seared Whitefish ( or scallops, shrimp or salmon) and can be made in 30 minutes!
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 20
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 2 1x
- Category: Main
- Method: Saute
- Cuisine: Northwest
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ cup diced white or yellow onion (or sub 1 large shallot)
- 8 ounces new potatoes ( new crop Idaho yellow potatoes potatoes, red, yukon, any with thin skin) – cut into small dice ( no bigger than ½ inch thick- the smaller you cut them, the faster they will cook)
- 1 ear of fresh corn- kernels sliced off
- 1 cup stock ( veggie, chicken or fish) or sub water- or use corn stock (see notes)
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- Pepper to taste
- ⅛ cup fresh basil leaves – cut into ribbons or torn
- Optional 2–3 tablespoon half and half
- 8 ounces fish- halibut, sea bass, wild alaskan cod, haddock, salmon, black cod, shrimp, scallops
- olive oil for searing
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until fragrant about 3 minutes. Add potatoes and corn. Saute 2- 3 minutes, add water or stock, salt and pepper and bring to a simmer. Cover, turn heat down to low and simmer 10 minutes, or until potatoes are fork tender.
While the potatoes are simmering, heat oil in another skillet. Season fish with salt and pepper and sear each side over medium high heat. Lower heat and cook to your desired doneness. Set aside.
When the potatoes are fork tender, uncover and cook off a little of the liquid. At this point you could add a few tablespoons half and half or soy milk for a little extra creaminess ( cook it for a minute or two to thicken) or simply leave it out.
Stir in half of the basil. Taste, adjust salt.
Right before serving, stir in the remaining basil, saving a little for the top. Dish up the sweet corn”chowder” and top with the seared fish and basil.
Notes
For even more corn flavor, scrape the cobs with the end of a knife and gather the “milk”. Place this along with the cobs ( you an cut them smaller) into a pan or pot, covered with water, and simmer on low heat for 30 minutes to make corn stock. Reduce to one cup.
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Hi Sylvia,
Should I use fish stock or veg stock?
Either would work great!
I don’t see the basil quantity in the ingedients list.
Sorry about that …⅛ a cup fresh basil, and thanks for letting me know…. I fixed the recipe.
Love the fresh corn and basil in this delicious looking recipe. And that it can be made so quickly is another plus
This looks great. Going to try it. But I’ll delete the extra salt. 735 mg looks awfully high for a dish that otherwise appears so healthful !
Hi Sylvia,
Another great recipe to play with. I wanted some color so I used purple potatoes and topped the chowder with your tea smoked 5 spice salmon. I let the salmon marinate for about 6 hours. After that it only took 30 minutes to have this dish on the table ready to eat. Came out great. thanks
★★★★★
I LOVE this recipe! I’ve done it twice, I’m still trying to get the perfect taste and creaminess. How much water do you put in? I think I may add too much. The other thing I want to improve is the taste of basil (not present enough to my opinion), perhaps I add it too early and the taste just fade out…
Anyway, thanks for the recipe 🙂
★★★★★
Divide the basil and add some fresh right before serving. Sometime basil tastes different from variety to variety. 🙂