This creamy jalapeño corn casserole with cream cheese, shredded cheese, and sweet corn is an easy side dish for your holiday dinner.
This jalapeño casserole is made with rich heavy cream, cream cheese, lots of creamy cheeses, canned corn, and fresh jalapeño peppers. Cream cheese corn casserole is a great side dish for your holiday table, a perfect addition for Thanksgiving or Christmas.
Whether you're serving this cheesy jalapeño corn casserole at Christmas or your next weeknight dinner, it's a super-easy side dish that the entire family will love. If you enjoy this creamy jalapeño corn recipe, try creamy green chile corn casserole and Velveeta green bean casserole next.
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Recipe Highlights
- Easy recipe: Prep only takes 10 minutes (or less)!
- Simple ingredients: With only 6 main ingredients are 4 common seasonings, you won't have any trouble finding anything at the grocery store.
- Creamy and cheesy: Heavy cream and cream cheese make a rich cream cheese sauce for this tasty side dish topped with sharp cheddar and Pepper Jack.
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Ingredients
- Cream Cheese: Cream cheese has a thick, rich, and creamy texture.
- Heavy Cream: A high-fat dairy cream.
- Fresh Jalapeño: Fresh jalapeños are mild to moderate in terms of heat. Sometimes you'll come across extra spicy jalapeños, so use your best judgment. You can also use canned jalapeño peppers (see substitutions below).
- Sweet Corn: Canned corn, drained.
- Pepper Jack: Spicy and creamy cheese, perfect for melting.
- Sharp Cheddar: Sharp cheddar cheese has a tangier flavor than mild or medium cheddar.
- Garlic Powder: To add a slight garlicky flavor to the recipe.
- Dried Parsley: Adds a very muted herb flavor.
- Salt: To enhance the flavors.
- Paprika: Adds a smoky and slightly sweet flavor and a small amount of color.
See the recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350ºF (175ºC).
In a medium saucepan, heat the cream cheese and heavy cream over medium heat, breaking up the cream cheese and stirring occasionally until smooth.
To the cream cheese mixture, add the diced jalapeño, sweet corn, half of the pepper jack, half of the sharp cheddar, garlic powder, parsley, salt, and paprika. Stir until combined.
Transfer the corn mixture to an 8x8-inch baking dish.
Top with the remaining shredded cheese.
Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the cheese starts to turn golden brown and the casserole is bubbling.
Allow to cool for about 10 minutes before serving.
Substitutions
- Cream Cheese: Reduced-fat cream cheese, Neufchatel cheese, or Greek yogurt-style cream cheese spread.
- Heavy Cream: Half-and-half and whole milk are perfect in this recipe. Even reduced-fat milk will work, but the result may not be as creamy. You can always add butter to increase the fat content.
- Diced Jalapeño Peppers: Try canned diced jalapeño peppers or canned diced green chiles (see my green chile corn casserole recipe).
- Sweet Corn: Frozen and thawed corn or cooked fresh corn kernels will work. You can also use white corn or low-sodium corn.
- Cheddar Cheese and Pepper Jack Cheese: Shredded cheddar cheese and Pepper Jack can be swapped with your favorite shredded cheese like shredded Monterey Jack cheese, shredded Colby Jack, or shredded mozzarella.
- Garlic Powder: Onion powder is a close substitute.
- Dried Parsley: This can be omitted.
- Salt: Instead of kosher salt, you can use table salt (slightly less), sea salt, or flaky salt.
- Paprika: Smoked paprika or a very small amount of chili powder.
Variations
Green chile corn casserole: Bookmark this creamy green chile corn casserole.
Jiffy corn casserole: Try this traditional corn casserole with Jiffy mix, green chiles, sour cream, and cream-style corn. It has a firmer consistency and is crumbly rather than creamy.
Corn pudding: Southern corn pudding is made with creamed corn, eggs, milk, butter, and brown sugar.
Equipment
- 8x8 baking dish - To bake the casserole.
- Medium saucepan - To melt the cream cheese with heavy cream. You could also use a large microwave-safe bowl to melt the cream cheese in 15-second increments if needed.
Storage
Allow the cheesy corn casserole to cool to room temperature. Store it in an airtight container (or cover the dish with plastic wrap or aluminum foil). Store it in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days.
It can be frozen for up to 3-4 months but cream cheese has a tendency to change texture after being frozen and reheated, so I personally recommend making this dish fresh.
FAQ
A can of corn is roughly equal to 1-½ cups of frozen corn or fresh corn.
Related
For another perfect side dish for the holidays, try one of these favorites.
📖 Recipe
Creamy Jalapeño Corn Casserole
Video
Equipment
Ingredients
- 8 ounces cream cheese
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 3 fresh jalapeños seeded and diced (about ½ cup)
- 2 cans sweet corn drained (15-ounce each)
- ½ cup shredded Pepper Jack
- ½ cup shredded sharp cheddar
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon paprika
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF (175ºC).
- In a medium saucepan, heat the cream cheese and heavy cream over medium heat, breaking up the cream cheese and stirring occasionally until smooth.
- To the cream cheese mixture, add the diced jalapeño, sweet corn, half of the pepper jack, half of the sharp cheddar, garlic powder, parsley, salt, and paprika. Stir until combined.
- Transfer the corn mixture to an 8x8 inch baking dish and top with the remaining cheeses.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the cheese starts to turn golden brown and the casserole is bubbling. Allow to cool for about 10 minutes before serving.
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