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This savory, velvety, and sweet Corn Bisque is seasoned with a New Orleans flavor profile, but it also has a dairy-free twist so everyone can enjoy this fantastic creamy soup.
Here are some recipes to sop up the bisque with: Buttermilk Biscuits, Garlic Chive Cheddar Biscuits, and Sweet Southern Cornbread.
Recipe Video:
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Why Is It Called a Bisque?
The classic bisque origin is French, a pureed crawfish soup cooked with a consommé, onions, carrots, and celery thickened with rice or bread fried in butter. Then, it was strained and finished with cream to give this soup its rich and creamy texture.
However, once the Cajuns and Creoles got their hands on it, they thickened it with a dark brown roux, the most common style in Southern Louisiana today.
I wanted to do something lighter and healthier. That's why I made this creamy corn soup vegan. I start by cooking onions, fresh corn, celery, bell pepper, and mushrooms (the mushrooms provide the same texture as crab in crab and corn bisque). It's thickened with a roux in traditional Creole cuisine faire, but I finish it with homemade cashew cream. I then garnished the soup with sweet corn, green onion, and parsley.
Key Ingredients
You'll need the following ingredients to make this rich and creamy soup.
Fresh Sweet Corn
In today's market, you can find corn year-round, but frozen corn will do the job if you cannot. Make sure to buy fresh ears of corn that have a bright light green colored husk. Also, open it up and ensure the corn kernels are not dried out.
Vegetables
I used the holy trinity of celery, onions, and bell pepper. I wanted to use a red bell pepper to give the final presentation a pop of color. Also, get some portobello or oyster mushrooms to provide the same texture crab would in a traditional crab and corn bisque recipe.
Vegetable Stock
I like using a low-sodium stock because I will season everything up well! Use chicken broth or stock if you do not want a vegan version.
Flour
Flour is a key ingredient used in a roux. I also chose to use oil instead of vegan butter for the fat. All vegan butter isn't made equally; most are oil-based anyway.
Herbs and Spices
Because I'm from New Orleans, you may expect creole or cajun seasoning. You can use my homemade creole seasoning blend, but I kept it simple with salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, white pepper, and dried thyme.
Cashew Cream
Cashew cream is an excellent substitute for any recipe for heavy cream. It's effortless to make. It just takes an entire workday (8 hours) to allow the cashews to get soft enough to blitz to a creamy texture in a food blender or food processor.
How To Make Corn Bisque
The key to this delicious corn bisque recipe lies in using fresh ingredients and layering the seasonings so every bite pops with flavor.
Corn Bisque:
Heat oil in a 5-quart Dutch oven or soup pot over medium heat; once the oil shimmers, add onion, mushrooms, and corn kernels, and cook for 3 minutes. Add celery and bell pepper and cook for 2 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 15 seconds. Add flour, stirring to make sure vegetables are evenly coated. Stir in kosher salt, black pepper, cayenne, white pepper, and dried thyme. Turn the fire to medium-high heat.
Gradually add the vegetable stock and bring it to a boil, then reduce it to a simmer, cover it, and cook it for 15 minutes.
Add cashew cream, half the green onions, and half the parsley; cook for 3 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning. Add 2-3 cups of the bisque to a food blender and blitz on high for 30 seconds until completely smooth; pour puree bisque back into the pot and bring to a boil until it thickens.
Sautéed Corn Garnish:
While the corn bisque cooks, heat a small skillet over medium heat; add oil and corn kernel, kosher salt, black pepper, and sugar. Cook for 2 minutes or until corn gets slightly brown.
To serve, pour soup into individual bowls, garnish with green onion, parsley, and sautéed corn, and serve hot with buttermilk biscuits or warm crusty bread.
How To Store Corn Bisque
After the bisque cools, transfer to an airtight container. Keep in the fridge for 7 days. The soup will taste even better the next day. If you want to freeze it, transfer it to a freezer-safe container and freeze it for 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator 24-48 hours before you plan on enjoying. Reheat corn bisque in a medium pot over medium heat until the mixture boils slightly.
Pro Recipe Substitutions, Tips and Tricks
This yummy corn soup's best practices, techniques, substitutes, and flavor builders are here.
- You can make your vegetable stock using vegetable scraps, a bay leaf, and water; use the same amount needed for the stock/broth and simmer it for 20 minutes. On the other hand, you can use chicken broth instead of vegetable stock.
- Make sure you put some color on your vegetables; it brings out the natural sweetness and provides depth of flavor.
- The best way to cut corn is to lay it flat on a cutting board and cut the kernels off. If your knife gets stuck in the cob, remove it and try again a few centimeters to the right. This way will keep the corn from rolling all over the cutting board.
- Adding corn milk to your cooking is an old trick to get more corn flavor. Scrape the cob with the back of your knife after you cut off the corn kernels.
- To make 1 cup of cashew cream. Soak 1 cup of cashews in 1 ¼ cup water for 2 hours-24 hours. Add to a food blender and blitz on high until smooth. Use coconut milk or another non-dairy cream.
- Feel free to use heavy cream or half and half instead of the cashew cream.
- 10 oz. frozen corn is a good substitute if you cannot find fresh corn. I do not recommend using canned corn because the texture is too mushy.
- Make your bisque gluten-free by using a gluten-free flour for the roux.
- Try using a different mix of mushrooms to create a unique flavor, or omit it entirely if you're not a mushroom fan.
- You can use an immersion blender or food processor instead of a food blender.
- If you want to use crab, stir some jumbo lump (remove any shells) before you serve it, or use it as a garnish.
FAQ
Here are readers' top questions about making sweet corn bisque at home
What makes a soup into a bisque?
The term "bisque" has been extended to include smooth, creamy soups made with vegetables, such as tomato bisque. But technically, an authentic bisque should contain shellfish.
A traditional bisque is made with crustaceans like lobster, crab, shrimp, or crawfish. The shells are first sautéed lightly in butter or oil, smashed to release their natural liquids, and then simmered in water with scraps to make a seafood stock.
The creaminess is typically achieved by puréeing the soup after the ingredients have been cooked. Heavy cream is often added to give the bisque a rich, velvety texture.
What is the key ingredient in bisque?
The key ingredient in a traditional bisque is shellfish, typically lobster, crab, shrimp, or crawfish. The shells of these crustaceans are used to create a rich and flavorful broth which forms the base of the soup. However, in modern usage, the term "bisque" can also refer to creamy soups made from pureed vegetables.
What is the difference between bisque and broth?
Bisque and broth play distinct roles in soups. A bisque is a luscious and velvety soup developed from a foundation of shellfish or vegetables. Crab, shrimp, or lobster shells are typically simmered with water and vegetable scraps to produce a flavorful shellfish broth.
On the other hand, broth is a versatile culinary ingredient made from vegetable scraps, lobster (or other shellfish) shells, fish scraps, beef bones, veal bones, or chicken bones. It's a culinary workhorse that can be used as a base in sauces, gravies, and soups.
Does bisque always have cream?
Traditionally, a bisque contains cream that contributes to its rich, smooth texture. However, not all bisques must have cream. It's possible to make a bisque without cream and still achieve a creamy consistency using ingredients like pureed vegetables or roux (a mixture of fat and flour). But in the classic sense, most bisques include cream as a key ingredient.
More Corn Recipes
Here are a few more corn recipes to sink your teeth in.
- Mexican Street Corn Pizza
- Grilled Salmon with Corn Salad
- Corn Pudding
- Grilled Corn with Chipotle Butter
- Sweet Potato Cornbread
- Corn Maque Choux
Before You Begin
Before getting started, here are the steps I use to get organized.
Step 1: Read the recipe once before you begin.
Step 2: Measure everything out into individual bowls.
Step 3: Start following the recipe and get ready for the best corn bisque recipe you've ever made.
With the sweet crunch of fresh corn kernels, the rich creaminess that only a bisque can provide, and the comforting warmth of a homemade soup, this Sweet Corn Bisque recipe is a culinary adventure you won't want to miss. Don't just take my word for it - try it yourself and experience the explosion of flavor in every spoonful!
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📖 Recipe
Sweet Corn Bisque
Ingredients
Corn Bisque:
- 4 tablespoons avocado oil 1 medium onion chopped medium
- 8 oz. baby portobello mushrooms washed, sliced 2 ears cut corn or ½ cup frozen corn
- 2 stalks celery chopped medium
- 1 red bell pepper chopped medium
- 6 garlic cloves chopped fine 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons black pepper ½ teaspoon cayenne ¼ teaspoon white pepper ½ teaspoon dry thyme
- 2 quarts low sodium vegetable stock 1 cup cashew cream
Sautéed Corn Garnish:
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil
- 1 ear cut corn
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon granulated sugar ½ bunch green onions sliced thin
- ½ bunch Italian parsley chopped fine
Instructions
Corn Bisque:
- Heat oil in a 5-quart Dutch oven or soup pot over medium heat; once the oil shimmers, add onion, mushrooms, and corn kernels, and cook for 3 minutes. Add celery and bell pepper and cook for 2 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 15 seconds. Add flour, stirring to make sure vegetables are evenly coated. Stir in kosher salt, black pepper, cayenne, white pepper, and dried thyme. Turn the fire to medium-high heat.
- Gradually add the vegetable stock and bring it to a boil, then reduce it to a simmer, cover it, and cook it for 15 minutes.
- Add cashew cream, half the green onions, and half the parsley; cook for 3 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning. Add 2-3 cups of the bisque to a food blender and blitz on high for 30 seconds until completely smooth; pour puree bisque back into the pot and bring to a boil until it thickens.
Sautéed Corn Garnish:
- While the corn bisque cooks, heat a small skillet over medium heat; add oil and corn kernel, kosher salt, black pepper, and sugar. Cook for 2 minutes or until corn gets slightly brown.
- To serve, pour soup into individual bowls, garnish with green onion, parsley, and sautéed corn, and serve hot with buttermilk biscuits or warm crusty bread.
Video
Notes
- You can make your vegetable stock using vegetable scraps, a bay leaf, and water; use the same amount needed for the stock/broth and simmer it for 20 minutes. On the other hand, you can use chicken broth instead of vegetable stock.
- Make sure you put some color on your vegetables; it brings out the natural sweetness and provides depth of flavor.
- The best way to cut corn is to lay it flat on a cutting board and cut the kernels off. If your knife gets stuck in the cob, remove it and try again a few centimeters to the right. This way will keep the corn from rolling all over the cutting board.
- Adding corn milk to your cooking is an old trick to get more corn flavor. Scrape the cob with the back of your knife after you cut off the corn kernels.
- To make 1 cup of cashew cream. Soak 1 cup of cashews in 1 ¼ cup water for 2 hours-24 hours. Add to a food blender and blitz on high until smooth. Use coconut milk or another non-dairy cream.
- Feel free to use heavy cream or half and half instead of the cashew cream.
- 10 oz. frozen corn is a good substitute if you cannot find fresh corn. I do not recommend using canned corn because the texture is too mushy.
- Make your bisque gluten-free by using a gluten-free flour for the roux.
- Try using a different mix of mushrooms to create a unique flavor, or omit it entirely if you're not a mushroom fan.
- You can use an immersion blender or food processor instead of a food blender.
- If you want to use crab, stir some jumbo lump (remove any shells) before you serve it, or use it as a garnish.
Vonda says
This is delicious!!! Thanks so much for lending your culinary skills to us!! The most time consuming thing was the veggie prep, but very easy to follow.
Tamica Coleman says
I made this recipe while doing a 30 day began challenge. I’m not vegan but we now have this on a regular basis. It was sooo good. My mom went to the grocery store the next day and bought more corn so I could make it again. Thank you for this deliciousness!!!