This quick and easy Corn Dip makes a crowd-pleasing appetizer any time of year. My recipe takes less than an hour to make and can be served hot or cold. Recipe includes a how-to video!
Corn Dip
Are you making a dip to share for New Year’s Eve? Skip the buffalo chicken dip this year and make my new corn dip! It’s packed full of flavor and can be served hot or cold, depending on your mood. My recipe uses two types of cheeses, fresh jalapeño, bacon, scallions, and a little bit of sugar. Yes, we’re adding sugar–I’ll explain why in a minute!
Similar to my corn chowder and potato soup, this corn dip starts with bacon. A bacon base adds depth of flavor to the dip and makes it super savory and satisfying. When served hot, you’ll cook the dip in the pan the bacon was cooked in, and that extra glaze of bacon grease adds something special to the final product.
You’ll love how easy this recipe is–the hardest part is cooking the bacon–and how quickly it comes together. It’s a fun change-up from the classics that everyone will enjoy!
What You Need
Here are the key ingredients you’ll need to make my favorite corn dip recipe:
- Bacon. We’ll start by cooking chopped bacon over the stove until it’s nice and crisp. Pre-cooked bacon could also work, but I highly recommend cooking your own for the best flavor.
- Sugar. It might seem strange to add sugar to a savory dip, but corn is best when it’s sweet, and it’s hard to get that true sweet ambrosia flavor from canned corn. Adding a few pinches of sugar gives this dip the perfect depth of flavor.
- Mexicorn. You can find this in most grocery stores next to the canned corn; it’s simply canned corn mixed with chopped peppers. If you can’t find it at your local store or would like to use fresh sweet corn instead, I have instructions on how to do so below.
- Shredded cheese. I like a blend of mozzarella and cheddar, but you could use all of one kind.
SAM’S TIP: Pre-shredded cheeses are coated in anti-caking agents that prevent them from melting nicely. This isn’t as important if you’re serving your dip cold, but if you’re serving it hot, I recommend you shred your own cheese.
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Corn Dip
- Crisp the bacon – Cook the chopped bacon in an oven-safe skillet over medium heat until it is brown and crispy, then remove it to a paper towel lined plate. Wipe out most of the grease from the skillet.
- Create the base – In a separate bowl, stir together the cream cheese, sour cream, sugar, salt, and pepper until creamy and smooth.
- Add the mix-ins and bake – Add the cheese, corn, jalapeño, half the bacon, and one chopped scallion, then spread the mixture into your skillet. If serving warm, cover the pan with foil and bake at 350F for 15-20 minutes.
- Garnish and enjoy! Stir the dip after baking, top with the remaining bacon and scallions, and enjoy warm.
SAM’S TIP: Make sure your skillet can go from the stove directly into the oven. If you don’t have a pan like this, you can spread your corn dip into a pie plate to bake.
Frequently Asked Questions
Absolutely! I love using canned mexicorn for ease, but fresh corn and peppers can be substituted instead. You’ll need 4 cups of fresh sweet corn and ¼ cup chopped red and green peppers.
Yes! Prepare the recipe up to the baking step and place your covered pan dip in the fridge for up to 2 days. When you’re ready, simply bake as directed (you may need to bake it just a bit longer if baking from the fridge).
I wouldn’t leave this dip sitting out at room temperature for more than two hours. You can reheat any leftovers in the oven until warmed–I provide instructions for this in the recipe notes below.
Looking for something sweet to make for New Year’s Eve? Try my champagne stars!
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
Corn Dip
Ingredients
- 6 strips bacon cut into pieces
- 8 oz (226 g) cream cheese softened
- ¼ cup (60) sour cream
- 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 11 oz (2 311 g) cans Mexicorn well drained (sweet corn with bell pepper pieces)
- 1 jalapeno seeds removed and finely diced
- ½ cup (57) shredded mozzarella cheese
- ½ cup (57 g) shredded cheddar cheese
- 2 scallions thinly sliced, divided
- Corn chips for dipping
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F (175C).
- Cook bacon in a 9” skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until crisp and deep brown. While bacon cooks, prepare the rest of the dip.6 strips bacon
- In a separate mixing bowl, combine softened cream cheese, sour cream, sugar, salt, and pepper. Stir until smooth and creamy.8 oz (226 g) cream cheese, ¼ cup (60) sour cream, 2 teaspoons granulated sugar, ¼ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- Add corn, jalapeno, cheese, and one sliced scallion (reserve remaining scallion slices) and stir gently with a spatula until combined.2 11 oz (2 311 g) cans Mexicorn, 1 jalapeno, ½ cup (57) shredded mozzarella cheese, ½ cup (57 g) shredded cheddar cheese, 2 scallions
- Once bacon is finished cooking, remove bacon to a paper towel lined plate, drain grease from skillet (I save one of the corn cans for draining the grease into) and use a wad of paper towels to wipe the skillet mostly clean.
- Add about half of the bacon to the cream cheese mixture (reserve remaining bacon) and stir until combined. Spread mixture into the skillet you cooked the bacon in.
- Cover loosely with foil and transfer to 350F (175C) preheated oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until heated through.
- Remove dip, stir with a spoon, then top with reserved scallion and bacon before serving warm.Corn chips
Notes
Skillet substitute
If you don’t have an oven-proof skillet, spread the dip into a 9” pie plate to bake and serve.Substituting fresh corn/peppers
You can substitute 4 cups of fresh sweet corn cut off the cob and ¼ cup finely chopped red and green pepper.Cheese
I like a blend of mozzarella and cheddar cheese, but you could just use 1 cup of mozzarella or 1 cup of cheddar instead.Storing
This dip is best served immediately after preparing/baking, but leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. To reheat, place in an oven-safe container and cover with foil, heat in 350F (175C) preheated oven until heated through.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Margaret
I made this last night and it was delicious. I used fresh sweet corn and fresh red bell pepper and omitted the sugar. I would definitely recommend tasting it first “before” adding sugar if you’re using fresh sweet corn.
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much, Margaret! 🙂
Sunny
I recently stumbled across Sugar Spun Run and am loving all of Sam’s recipes (at least the ones I’ve tried!). If anyone has made a version of “crack dip” that is similar to this recipe, trust me when I tell you that this recipe is a million times better! It’s perfectly balanced, has just the right amount of heat to appeal to almost everyone, and it’s not too salty like other similar recipes I’ve tried. The only things to mention are that you may not be able to find “Mexicorn”, but “Southwest corn is practically identical, and the can sizes seem to be much bigger (15.25 oz vs. 11). Thanks Sam, for perfecting this. I love it!
Sam
I’m so glad you’ve enjoyed everything so much, Sunny! 🙂
Wayne
Hi Sam, I am thinking about making this for a get-together, but two vegetarians will be in attendance. How do you think this will come out using one of the fake bacon products instead of real bacon? Should I go down that path?
Sam
Hi Wayne! It will certainly change the flavor, but I think it’s certainly doable. 🙂
Emily
What would be a jalapeno substitute suggestion? I don’t love the flavor of jalapenos…like at all. What other mildish pepper would you suggest that would have a different flavor that would still play well in this dish? Have you every tried it with poblanos? Thanks for your help!
Sam
Hi Emily! I think poblano would work well here, or you could just leave it out entirely. I hope that helps! 🙂
Liz
This is absolutely the best corn dip I have ever eaten! I made it for New Year’s Eve and it was a huge hit. I did have some leftovers and gladly finished it off. The combination of flavors is a treat for your taste buds. Thank you for another delicious recipe!
Sam
I’m so thrilled to hear this! Thank you for trying my recipe, Liz! 🙂
Ginger
Very delicious! Recipe was well written & easy to follow. I have made several of your dessert recipes but this was my first savory dish. Big hit with my family. Excellent recipe Sam!
Sam
I’m so glad everyone enjoyed it so much, Ginger! 🙂
Bruce
You really should specify that you’re only using the green part of the scallions, since the whole thing is edible. I’ll probably make this for a New Year’s Day party, so I’ll review it then.
Sam
Thanks, Bruce! I hope you love it. And so long as you remove the root end you can technically use whichever part you prefer. I really hope you love it!