Easy Chicken Corn Soup Recipe is a comforting soup that balances savory with a slightly sweet note from creamed corn. The soup is flavorful from tender chicken pieces, aromatic from a hint of ginger that lends warmth and depth, and velvety from the cornstarch slurry. It is enhanced with a swirl of egg ribbons, soy sauce, and chili sesame oil. This nourishing soup is garnished with a sprinkle of freshly cut scallions and pea shoots. You will love the taste of home in every spoonful of this rich and creamy soup!
Corn was introduced to China via the Columbian Exchange in the 1500s. But as one of the chefs told me, it was the introduction of the American canned corn that made this dish a “fast food”. I have read that the chicken in the Chicken Corn Soup was a variation of the traditional crab and corn soup.
Chicken Corn Soup is truly a global dish. So far, I have sampled the Pennsylvania Dutch version, the Mexican chowder, the Filipino version, the Italian variation, the Indo-Chinese version from my hometown, and of course, the Chinese version. My most memorable impression of this dish was in the Kowloon area in Hong Kong, where it is a staple. My subsequent visits to Hong Kong encouraged me to savor the Chicken Corn Soup, in addition to other Cantonese dishes.
My inspiration:
Anyone living in Boulder, Colorado can attest to experiencing all four seasons in a single day. So, it was no surprise that a day in April began warm and summery. By noon we had plowable hail, followed by a blustery afternoon that left most of us cold and wet. As a doctoral candidate at the University of Colorado at Boulder, the unpredictable weather of the Front Range was as much a topic as statistics in Political Science.
During one of these sudden outbursts, I made some lifelong friends over a bowl of Chicken Corn Soup. With the weather forecasts warning of stormy conditions, I spent that afternoon huddled in the cafeteria swapping stories with my friends. Thanks to the cafeteria’s staff, they had replenished the Chicken Corn Soup, and the smell was swirling around. The warmth of the company was heightened by the rich, silky soup topped with fried onions and scallions. This starkly contrasted with the tableau of a wintry and windswept parking lot.
While I have tried Chicken Corn Soup for many years, my warm memory and experience at the university cafeteria in Boulder have inspired me to craft this dish. The rich broth tasted so yummy and comfortingly warm while I waited with my friends for the skies to clear. After the storm cleared, the drive home was time-consuming as I cautiously navigated the black ice-inflicted roads. Ever since I have made this soup using this recipe more often at home for several years now.
Difference between Chicken Corn Soup and Egg Drop Soup:
There is a real debate about whether the recipe for this simple Chicken Corn Soup is the same as the Egg-Drop or egg-flower soup because they both contain swirls of beaten egg. The answer is a definitive maybe. They both contain chicken and/or chicken broth (at the bare minimum). But the Egg Drop Soup has a history in China that predates the introduction of corn by a millennium. You can introduce corn into the egg drop soup because it is what I call a “platform” dish. The egg drop soup provides a platform to add a variety of ingredients. You could include several mild vegetables (think diced celery), and proteins such as mushrooms, tofu, shrimp, and chicken.
Undoubtedly, virtually every Asian restaurant serves a version of this dish, reflecting the chef’s imagination and constraints. It is a very straightforward dish. My Chicken Corn Soup Recipe is slightly spicy and simple to make. This reflects both my South Asian and South East Asian preferences.
Frequently Asked Questions:
- What types of corn can be used for this recipe of Chicken Corn Soup?
- There are six types of corn kernels: flour, waxy, dent, sweet, flint, and pop. Sweet or waxy corn can be used for Chinese chicken corn soup.
- Flour corn: As the name suggests, it is used to make corn flour, bake bread, and as a wheat flour substitute in pancakes, biscuits, waffles, and pastries.
- Waxy corn: Although waxy corn is consumed fresh in China because of its glutinous nature, it is also used to thicken foods and make adhesives.
- Dent corn is called dent corn because of the distinctive dent that forms on the kernel as it dries. You can not eat dent or field corn directly because it is hard and not sweet. Instead, it is milled and processed into food products such as corn syrup, corn flakes, chips, corn starch, or corn flour.
- Sweet corn: This is the corn that we find in our supermarkets and farmer’s markets. It is harvested when the kernels are young and moist so that the corn has plump and juicy kernels that are high in natural sugars that we love.
- Flint corn: It gets its name from the hard flint-like outer layer protecting the kernels’ small, soft endosperm. Flint’s hard outer layer and sugar insufficiency make it ideal for grits, polenta, and hominy to make masa.
- Popcorn: Contrary to urban myth, not all corn can be “popped”. Only a specific variety (Zea mays everta) contains a small amount of water stored inside a circle of soft starch that expands and ‘pops’ when the kernel is heated.
- Is this soup healthy?
This recipe for the Chicken Corn Soup is easy to make and is packed with protein from the chicken and egg and fiber and vitamins in the corn.
3. How can I make this recipe vegetarian?
Swap out the chicken for tofu, use vegetable broth, and add mushrooms and carrots or green beans to make it vegetarian.
This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.
If you’ve tried this recipe or have questions, I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to share (below) your thoughts, comments, or any questions that you might have. And if you like my recipes, you could subscribe to my mailing list for the latest recipes that will be delivered to your inbox. From my pen to your table, Bon Appetit!
Ingredients:
- Corn: Sweet or waxy corn can be used in Chinese Chicken Corn Soup Recipe.
- Chili-garlic paste: Influenced by my South and South East Asian bias, I have decided to notch up this relatively sweet soup with a hint of chili-garlic paste. While you can just use chili paste, I have found that the garlic rounds out the spiciness and adds a depth of flavor to this dish. It’s guaranteed to clear the sinuses!
- Rice vinegar: I marinate the otherwise bland chicken with rice vinegar (or Mirin) to add a subtle zing. While you can swap between the two to some degree, there are differences. Mirin has a naturally high alcohol content, while rice vinegar, through its secondary fermentation, converts the natural alcohol into acetic acid, which is why it should be used sparingly.
- Chicken boneless tenders, peanut oil, cornstarch, ginger, soy sauce, scallions and/or pea shoots for garnish
Here are the step-by-step instructions on how to make this dish. Please refer to the recipe card below for the measurements.
How to make the Chinese Chicken Corn Soup:
- Heat the peanut oil in a Dutch oven or wok. Add the ginger and chili-garlic paste and sauté for a minute.
2. Add the chicken and sauté for 3-4 minutes on medium heat. Season with salt and pepper and cook on medium heat.
3. Add the creamed corn and chicken broth or water and cook for 2-3 minutes.
4. Gradually, drizzle cornstarch slurry while stirring continuously. Add the light soy sauce and stir until it boils. Gradually, add the beaten egg and gently stir in a clockwise direction.
5. Serve hot garnished with chili sesame oil, scallions, and pea shoots.
1. You could make this soup with other kinds of meat or even seafood. I have tried shrimp and crab, and they both tasted fine. You may need to adjust the cooking times for other meat or seafood.
2. Sweet corn is the best option for this Chicken Corn Soup Recipe. Do not cut the corn too close to the stalk to ensure smooth creamed corn.
3. Pour the beaten egg slowly into the soup and stir gently to get perfect egg ribbons.
Serving suggestion:
This Easy Chicken Corn Soup Recipe is perfect for any day, but never more so than when you are under the weather and need a quick pick-me-up. It pairs well with steamed rice and vegetables and is a perfect appetizer before any meal.
Storage:
Any leftovers of this simple Chicken Corn Soup can be frozen. Make a batch with the egg ribbons and freeze the leftover soup (without egg) in airtight containers for 3 months. Thaw and reheat in a pot and add the beaten egg before serving. This soup can be refrigerated for 1-2 days.
Other soup recipes that you might like:
Easy Chicken Corn Soup Recipe
Equipment
- Stovetop
Ingredients
For the marinade:
- 1 tbsp peanut oil
- 1 tsp ginger minced fine
- 2 tsp chili-garlic sauce
- ½ lb chicken tenders chopped
- 1 tsp rice vinegar optional
- 1 tsp white pepper powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 3 cup chicken broth or use water
- 1 cup fresh corn kernel creamed
- 1 egg beaten
- 1 tbsp light soy sauce
- 4 scallion chopped, garnish
- 1 tsp chili sesame oil for garnish
For the cornstarch slurry:
- 3 tbsp cornstarch
- 3 tbsp water cold
Instructions
- Prepare the ingredients. Optionally, marinate the chicken in rice vinegar for 5 minutes. Place the corn kernels in a food processor or blender to cream them.
- Heat the peanut oil in a Dutch oven or wok. Add the ginger and chili-garlic sauce and sauté for a minute.
- Add the chicken and sauté for 3-4 minutes on medium heat. season with salt and pepper and cook on medium heat.
- Add the creamed corn and chicken broth or water and cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Gradually, drizzle cornstarch slurry while stirring continuously. Add the light soy sauce. Stir until it boils. Gradually, add the beaten egg and stir in a clockwise direction and turn off the heat.
- Garnish with chili sesame oil, scallions, and pea shoots, and serve hot in soup bowls.
Notes
- Dice the chicken tenders into small pieces or use shredded cooked leftover chicken.
- Beaten eggs must be added gradually only when the soup is boiling. Stir gently to get egg ribbons.
Nutrition
This tastes just like my grandmother’s recipe in the Sichuan province!
this is perfect for fall!
I’ll just sum it up what I want to say, I’m thoroughly enjoying your blog.