Heat a large, deep saucepan or Dutch oven to medium-high and brown sausage, breaking it up into crumbles. No pink should remain.Remove browned sausage to a plate lined with paper towels. (Use non-stick spray on the pan if using turkey sausage.)
Saute the onion, celery, and carrot in the pan juices of the sausage. Note: If using pork sausage, pour off some of the oil and juice before adding vegetables.
Mix the potato chunks with the vegetables, and cook briefly.Return the sausage to the pan. Add the bay leaf, salt, and pepper and stir to heat spices and coat with pan juices.
Pour in the broth and scrape up any brown bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Bring to a boil, then, lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. The potatoes should be tender.
Add the corn and stir. Then, pour in the milk and heat to a simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Mix the cornstarch with water until it dissolves. Stir it into the chowder bit by bit. The soup should thicken.
Lower the heat and taste. Adjust the salt and pepper if needed.
Serve in bowl or mugs topped with a little shredded cheese.
Notes
🧂 The sodium in this recipe is high. You can cut it by using low-sodium broth, leaving out the salt, and rinsing the corn. Using water rather than store-bought broth will also help. 👀 Watch the heat when sauteing the onion-carrot-celery. The vegetables burn easily.
♦ Instant Pot-multicooker Instructions:
Set the Pot to Saute for 10 minutes. Spray with non-stick oil (avocado, if possible) if using turkey sausage.
Cook sausage until no longer pink and add vegetables except for potatoes. Cook until the onion is translucent. Add potatoes and seasonings, and stir well.
Add broth and put the lid on, turning it to lock. Seal the vent and set it to cook at high pressure for 4 minutes. Rapid release the pressure at the end of cook time.
Remove the lid and stir in evaporated milk. Cook on the low Saute setting for 5 minutes. (If chowder starts to boil vigorously, cancel the Saute and choose the Keep Warm setting.)
Mix cornstarch with water and whisk into chowder. Serve thickened chowder immediately.
♦ Slow Cooker Instructions:
After browning the sausage, pour it into a slow cooker with drippings. Top with onion, celery, carrot, potatoes, and seasonings. Decrease the broth or water to 2 cups and pour into the cooker, over the sausage and vegetables.
Cook on low for 6 hours. Stir in the corn and evaporated milk. Turn the heat to high.
When the chowder begins to boil, dissolve the cornstarch in the water. Whisk in the cornstarch mixture and turn the heat to low or warm once the soup thickens.