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Filed under side dishes I can inhale in main dish quantities: Crock Pot Creamed Corn. This slow cooker creamed corn is velvety rich, naturally sweet, and tastes of backyard BBQs, holiday gatherings, childhood nostalgia, and long, lovely meals you’ll never want to end.

Crock pot creamed corn with cream cheese in a bowl with a spoon

If you’ve only been eating creamed corn out of a can up until this point, this crockpot cheesy corn is going to be a revelation.

If you thought creamed corn needed to be heart-stoppingly heavy to taste delicious or that it is something best limited to special, indulgent occasions, this recipe is going to be a revelation for you too.

I’d even go so far as to say that if you don’t think you like creamed corn (or corn in general), this old fashioned creamed corn will change your mind.

Unlike the cloyingly sweet, excessively heavy, and one-note creamed corn recipes you  may have tasted in the past—and very unlike canned creamed corn which in my (either popular or unpopular) opinion tastes like mushy sweet corn paste—this crock pot creamed corn recipe manages to taste equal parts fresh and comforting.

Rather than smothering the naturally sweet taste and creamy texture of the corn itself, this crock pot creamed corn recipe celebrates it.

This is the consummate of what creamed corn should be: a perfect, easy side dish that everyone loves and leaves you no leftovers. (Pineapple Casserole fits that description perfectly too.)

Creamy crock pot creamed corn served in a bowl with wooden spoon

How to Make Creamed Corn in the Crock Pot – A Classic, Done Better

The ingredients in classic creamed corn are dairy (multiple forms), sugar (a lot or a little depending on the recipe in question), and usually aromatics like onion and chives and garlic. The most traditional version is made by simmering corn kernels with heavy cream and copious amounts of butter. Sometimes you’ll find creamed corn without cream cheese, sometimes it’s included. Other recipes make creamed corn with Parmesan cheese (I like this idea) or American cheese (why tho?).

My goal with today’s slow cooker version was to keep everything about creamed corn that’s wonderful—the luscious texture, the natural, delicately sweet flavor of the corn itself—and highlight it, rather than mask it with unnecessary additives.

I also wanted to make this creamed corn recipe healthy, without skimping an ounce of texture or flavor.

The Ingredients

  • Corn. In my opinion, making this as a fresh creamed corn recipe is the most fabulous. When you cut the fresh kernels from the cob, the corn’s milk (a.k.a. liquid gold) comes along with it and will make your creamed corn all the richer. Be sure every drop makes it into the crockpot.

That said, if frozen corn or canned corn kernels are all that is available to you—or you just want to make this creamed corn EASY and save the step of cutting off the kernels—you can certainly make this crock pot creamed corn with canned corn or frozen corn. Do NOT use pre-made cream-style corn in a can, as it defeats the purpose of making creamed corn from scratch.

A closeup shot of an ear of fresh corn on the cob used in crock pot creamed corn
  • Onion. Even though this is a slow cooker recipe, I ALWAYS recommend sautéing the onion on the stove first before adding it to the slow cooker with the corn and other ingredients. Sautéing the onion softens, sweetens, and enriches its flavor. Skip it and you may risk the taste of raw onion overpowering the corn.
  • Milk. Use 2% milk, whole milk, or if you really want to be indulgent, you can make this crock pot creamed corn with half and half. Skim or almond milk will work here too, but do note that the richer the milk, the creamier the creamed corn.
  • Reduced Fat Cream Cheese. While many creamed corn recipes are made without it, I found that creamed corn with cream cheese was the most DELISH. I only used four ounces (that’s half of a standard block).
  • Butter. A must for creamed corn! Forget the multiple sticks. Four tablespoons is plenty to give the creamed corn a tantalizing, buttery flavor.
  • Greek Yogurt. It gives the creamed corn thickness and body, and its low fat/high protein content is good for you too.
  • Honey. Instead of the granulated sugar called for in most creamed corn recipes, this recipe uses a touch of honey. The honey complements the flavor of the corn beautifully. It’s not overly sweet by any means. You might not notice it’s there, but you will notice a little something missing if you omit it.

The Directions

Once you have your ingredients, the prep for this recipe is easy peasy.

  1. Saute the onion in a bit of the butter and olive oil. Add it to the crockpot with the corn, honey, and milk and milk.
uncooked ingredients in crock pot
  1. Scatter the remaining diced butter and the cream cheese on top. Don’t add the Greek yogurt yet! If you add it now, you risk it curdling.
  2. Cook on HIGH for 2 to 3 hours, until the corn is tender.
  3. Once the corn is tender, the Greek yogurt goes in! Add it slowly to keep curdling at bay. DIG IN!

Crock Pot Creamed Corn Recipe Variations

As written, this recipe yields simple, sublime creamed corn with a classic flavor. You can make it as is, or try one of these tasty spins:

  • Crock Pot Creamed Corn with Parmesan Cheese. This crock pot creamed corn will only be further elevated with the addition of Parmesan. Add 3/4 cup of grated Parmesan cheese to your slow cooker just before serving and stir until combined.
  • Crock Pot Creamed Corn with Bacon. Corn and bacon, need I say more? Sprinkle some cooked and crumbled bacon pieces over the top when serving, and enjoy the deliciousness of slow cooker creamed corn with bacon. (Oven Baked Bacon and Air Fryer Bacon are the easiest ways to cook it.)
  • Crock Pot Creamed Corn with Jalapeno. Add a little spice to your corn by adding chopped jalapeno. Dice one jalapeno, removing the seeds, and stir pieces into your crockpot right after you finish pureeing the corn mixture in step 3.
  • Crockpot Cheesy Corn. For an extra decadent twist, after you finish pureeing your creamed corn, add 1/2 cup cheddar cheese and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese and stir until combined.
  • Slow Cooker Creamed Corn with Onions and Chives. Add a sprinkle of chopped chives the top of your creamed corn just before serving.

How to Thicken Creamed Corn

The best way to thicken creamed corn is to puree a small amount of it, and it’s the approach you will find in this recipe.

  • For maximum ease, I like to use an immersion blender like this one (I puree it directly in the slow cooker).
  • If you don’t have an immersion blender, you can transfer a few ladlefuls of the creamed corn to a food processor or regular blender, puree it, then stir it back in with the rest.
  • Don’t go crazy and turn the creamed corn into baby food. A short blending time of just a portion of the corn will thicken it substantially.

Once the creamed corn is blended, you can serve it right away, or let it sit in the crock pot with the lid on to keep it warm. It will thicken more as it cools.

If you’d like it even thicker, uncover the crock pot, crank it up to high, then let the corn continue cooking for 15 to 20 additional minutes.

A slow cooker full of a delicious, healthy vegetable side dish

Benefits to Making Side Dishes in a Slow Cooker

This creamed corn recipe also works well on the stove. Personally, I love to cook it (and a few of my other favorite slow cooker sides like Crock Pot Stuffing, Crock Pot Baked Potatoes, Crock Pot Spaghetti Squash, and Slow Cooker Brussels Sprouts) in the crock pot for a few reasons.

  • Crockpot cooking means I can keep my oven OFF. Crock pot side dishes are a win for days when the last thing you feel like doing is turning on the oven. If you are making this creamed corn for a holiday, the slow cooker method leaves your oven available for other dishes that need it.
  • Your creamed corn will stay hot. Nothing is worse than working hard on a recipe you are excited to share (like these Slow Cooker Scalloped Potatoes), then having to serve it cold. The crock pot keeps this creamed corn warm, creamy, and absolutely delectable.

Storing and Reheating Crock Pot Creamed Corn

  • To Store. Let the creamed corn come to room temperature, and place in an airtight storage container in the refrigerator for up to five days.
  • To Reheat. Gently reheat the corn in a large pot on the stovetop over medium-low heat, stirring frequently until warm. You can also rewarm this dish in the microwave.
  • To Freeze. Once your corn has cooled, transfer it to an airtight freezer-safe container and place in the freezer, laying it flat for easy storage. Let thaw overnight in the refrigerator overnight before reheating.
Slow cooker creamed corn served in a bowl with a wooden spoon

What to Serve with Crock Pot Creamed Corn

Here are a few ideas of what goes well with creamed corn:

More Favorite Corn Recipes

Crock pot creamed corn served with fresh herbs in a bowl.

Recommended Tools to Make Crock Pot Creamed Corn

  • Slow Cooker. I made it in my cheap, highly functional small three-quart slow cooker, but almost any size will do.
  • Immersion Blender. Ideal for thickening creamed corn or blending any of your favorite soups.
  • Ladle. Great for transferring your corn to plates and storage containers.

Did you grow up eating creamed corn? Between you and me, unless it’s the height of summer I usually give corn a pass, but this recipe is a notable exception. It reminded me that when prepared properly, corn is DIVINE and deserves its popularity.

This crock pot creamed corn is creamy, sweet, and the only downside to making it is that you aren’t likely to have leftovers. Good thing it’s easy enough to make again any night of the week!

Crock Pot Creamed Corn

5 from 11 votes
The most incredible cheesy crock pot creamed corn you will ever taste! Rich, creamy and the slow cooker makes it easy. A delicious make from scratch recipe!

Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 2 hours 15 minutes
Total: 2 hours 30 minutes

Servings: 10 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter divided
  • 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 small sweet onion diced
  • 6 cups corn kernels about 3 (15.25-ounces) cans (drained), 6-8 ears fresh, or 48 ounces frozen*
  • 1/2 cup milk any kind you like; the richer the milk, the creamier the corn!
  • 1/2 tablespoon honey
  • ½ tablespoon kosher salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 4 ounces reduced fat cream cheese do not use fat free
  • 1 cup 2% plain Greek yogurt do not use non fat or it may curdle; I purchased a 7 ounce single serve container and called it close enough!

Instructions
 

  • Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil, onion and cook until softened and beginning to turn translucent, about 5 minutes. Do not let the onion turn brown and adjust the heat as needed to avoid it. Transfer to a slow cooker (any size works here; I used a small 3 quart).
  • To the slow cooker, add the corn. Stir in milk, honey, salt, and pepper until evenly combined. Dice the cream cheese and the remaining 3 tablespoons butter and scatter the pieces over the top. DO NOT STIR. Cover the crock pot and cook on high heat for 2 to 3 hours, until the corn is hot and tender.
  • Uncover and stir until the butter and cream cheese are well combined. Stir in the Greek yogurt. With an immersion blender, partially puree the creamed corn to thicken it. Stop to stir a few times to make sure you don’t over do it; you want the corn to be creamy but still have some nice texture to it. If you don’t have an immersion blender, transfer a few ladlefuls of the creamed corn to a food processor or blender and puree (be careful, hot food splatters!). Stir the blended portion back in with the rest of the corn. Keep pureeing batches until your desired consistency is reached.
  • To further thicken the creamed corn: keep the crock pot uncovered and cook on high heat for an additional 15 minutes. Stir and salt and pepper to taste. The corn will continue to thicken as it cools down. Serve very warm.

Video

Notes

  • This recipe works well with fresh, frozen, or canned whole kernel corn. If using fresh, after cutting the corn from the cob, add both the kernels and the corn milk that comes away from the cob. DELISH.
  • TO STORE: Pour leftovers in an airtight container and place in refrigerator for up to five days. 
  • TO REHEAT: Place leftovers in microwave-safe bowl and reheat gently, stirring frequently until warm. 
  • TO FREEZE: Pour leftovers in freezer-safe container and seal. When ready to enjoy, let container thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating. 

Nutrition

Serving: 0.5cupCalories: 186kcalCarbohydrates: 23gProtein: 6gFat: 9gSaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 20mgPotassium: 247mgFiber: 2gSugar: 7gVitamin A: 267IUVitamin C: 3mgCalcium: 64mgIron: 1mg

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Erin Clarke

Hi, I'm Erin Clarke, and I'm fearlessly dedicated to making healthy food that's affordable, easy-to-make, and best of all DELISH. I'm the author and recipe developer here at wellplated.com and of The Well Plated Cookbook. I adore both sweets and veggies, and I am on a mission to save you time and dishes. WELCOME!

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33 Comments

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    1. Hi Maya, while I have not tried this recipe on the stovetop, I have found other recipes that offer directions for this. You could experiment by following the recipe instructions in step one, but add the ingredients into a large, wide, heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Stir in milk, honey, salt, and pepper until evenly combined. Dice the cream cheese and the remaining 3 tablespoons butter and add them to the pot. Slowly warm, stirring constantly, until the butter has melted, cream cheese has softened, and the milk has warmed. Not everything has to be completely dissolved, but make sure the cream cheese has softened. Add the remaining ingredients and then, add the corn. Stir well to combine. Reduce heat to low and continue to cook until the cream cheese is fully dissolved and corn is heated through about 15 minutes. Stir frequently. If you try this method, please let me know how it turns out!

    1. Hi Debbie! You should cook the corn on high for 2-3 hours or until corn is tender. I hope you enjoy it if you give it a try!

  1. Healthy food makes a person healthy..!!!! Ingredients you used in this recipe are full of healthy things which makes it awesome, creamed corn.5 stars

  2. Your recipe looks absolutely delicious. When I lived in South Africa we could buy creamed corn in the can and I always had tins of it in my kitchen cupboard (it makes the best-tasting corn fritters). Since moving to the UK I find it very difficult to get creamed corn in the shops – they don’t seem to stock it very often. I’m definitely pinning this recipe and will be trying it out tomorrow.

    1. Hi Peg! You can use any brand of reduced fat cream cheese, and I recommend dicing it up prior to adding it to the slow cooker. I hope this helps!

  3. Hi Erin! Your ingredient list includes olive oil, but I don’t see it in the recipe directions anywhere. When should do we use the olive oil?

    1. Hi Dawn! You should add the olive oil to the melted butter when you saute the onion. I hope you enjoy the recipe!

  4. I made this as a side for Thanksgiving and it was DELICIOUS! Will be making this one often. I already put this on my Christmas dinner menu ?5 stars

    1. I’m so happy to hear that this recipe was a hit, Becki! Thank you for taking the time to share this kind review!

  5. Absolutely. If you’re lucky enough to have fresh corn at your fingertips, it’s delicious that way.

  6. As a summer sweet corn lover, I had no use for frozen corn until today with Erin’s Crock Pot Creamed Corn. This was outstanding!! Bought one of the top brands of frozen corn and the rest of the ingredients, followed the directions and Voila!! Simplistic and delicious!! Definitely plenty for a family or side dishes for the week. If you like the taste of summer corn, you have to try this and you will not be disappointed.5 stars

  7. I’m abroad and cream cheese is hard to find here, and at best expensive or off. Any suggestions for an alternative? More yogurt and butter?

    1. Hi Abi! While I haven’t tried it myself, a quick online search suggested mascarpone cheese might be a nice swap. If you decide to experiment with it, I’d love to hear how it goes!

      1. EXXX-CELLENT RECIPE. EASY. and TASTY!! You do NOT need creamed corn? I ONLY use the
        regular canned corn!! I’ve made this recipe for numerous “special occasions!” My husbands
        continued request during holidays and recently on Easter Sunday..(OMIT OIL and yogurt)
        I add crispy bacon and chopped green onions!!
        It never fails to disappoint! GOOD LUCK!! Karla

  8. Does not even come close to cutting the kernels off the cob and then scraping the cob into a cast iron frying pan with bacon drippings or fat back fried crisp and using the renderings. fry it out using a little milk. Serve this and you won’t have any left.

    1. Hi Randall! I’m sorry to hear that this didn’t turn out as expected. It’s so hard to say what might’ve happened without being in the kitchen with you. I (and other readers) have really enjoyed this corn, so I wish it would’ve been a hit for you too!

  9. I was prepping my crockpot with all ingredients the night before thanksgiving and accidentally added the Greek yogurt w raw corn mixture- instead of waiting until after it’s cooked. Should I redo the whole batch in the morning or give it a go and see how it tastes?

    1. Hi Lorelle! I’m sorry, but I don’t think you can leave that Greek yogurt out overnight in the crockpot. Let me know how it went!

  10. This recipe was super easy and yummy! It could have used a smidge of extra salt or paprika just to round out the flavor a bit. Thickening the creamed corn in the blender was so easy and l the texture was perfect! Thanks for another great recipe, Erin!5 stars