Corn Chowder Au Pistou

Corn Chowder au Pistou is a Provençal take on a very American soup. In fact, for the French people, corn is considered animal feed and serving it to guests is not what is done in a French kitchen.

For the record, I have to admit that I have already stated that corn is enough starch for one soup (see 22 August 2010) and have avoided recipes with corn and potatoes. Nevertheless, here is a spicy recipe with an unusual flavor that uses both corn and potatoes. One thing to watch out for is that the soup has the right consistency: not as sludgy as hot cereal (in restaurants this is usually caused by the addition of flour as a thickener), and not too thin. This can be adjusted at the end by the addition of the cream/milk.

As in many chowders, bacon is called for to give flavor because the vegetables are cooked in the fat. However, as in most recipes calling for bacon, we substitute the Italian version: Pancetta. This is much less salty, a big goal in our kitchen, but Pancetta is delicate, and takes watching as it browns so that there is something left to crumble up at the end. It also gives off only a small amount of fat, so when cooking the vegetables keep the top on the pot to keep in liquid.

You may want to wear gloves when preparing the chilies, but in any case, keep your hands away from your eyes.

Ingredients

10 cups water

6 ears of corn, shucked

¼ pound pancetta, coarsely chopped

2 leeks, white and green parts chopped and well washed

½ pound potatoes, peeled and diced

1 red bell pepper, chopped

2 jalapeños chilies, finely chopped

¼ to 1 cup half-and-half or low fat condensed evaporated milk

Pistou

4 cups basil leaves, rinsed

2 cloves garlic

¼ cup olive oil

¼ cup grated Parmesan

 To prepare: puree all ingredients in food processor until blended.

Directions

1. Bring water to a boil in a soup pot. Add shucked corn. Cook for 10 minutes.
2. Take corn out and cool sufficiently to handle. SAVE COOKING WATER.
3. Cut corn off cobs.
4. Cook the pancetta in the soup pot until just beginning to turn crisp. Remove to paper towel.
5. Add leeks to pot and cook covered 5 minutes. Add potatoes. Cook covered 10 minutes.
6. Add corn, pepper, chilies and the cooking water from corn. Cook for 1 hour.
7. Remove 3 cups of soup and puree in blender. Return to pot.
8. Add cream/milk to achieve desired consistency.
9. Add Pistou to pot and stir to blend.
10. Add crumbled Pancetta.