Suam na Mais is a Filipino soup made with fresh corn kernels, shrimp, and spinach. It’s creamy, nutritious, and delicious on its own or served as a side dish.
Suam na Mais was one of the first recipes I posted on the blog in 2013. I am updating it today because a) the old photo was ugly and needed a makeover, b) I finally found the right kind of corn to use at our neighborhood Asian supermarket, and c) I recently learned the traditional seasoning is shrimp paste and not fish sauce.
What is Suam na Mais
Suma na mais is a type of Kapampangan soup made with fresh corn kernels, green vegetable leaves, flavorful meat, and thick broth.
- Native white corn
- Pork, chicken or shrimp
- Spinach, chili, ampalaya or malunggay leaves
- Fresh shrimp paste (bagoong alamang)
The old version of the recipe uses yellow corn as I couldn’t find native white corn. Although the soup was delicious in its own right, it lacked the thick and creamy consistency of a good suam na mais.
Yellow corn has a tasty flavor but doesn’t have the viscosity of the white variety, which helps thicken the broth naturally. Fortunately, I was able to find these glutinous corn cobs pictured above, and they worked perfectly! If you live in the U.S., you can find them in the freezer section of most Asian supermarkets. If you are in the Philippines, look for mais lagkitan in the wet markets.
I also used fish sauce in my old recipe, but I recently learned from my aunt that the traditional flavoring for this Kapampangan soup is bagok (shrimp paste).
I like to add fresh spinach leaves for color and texture; feel free to use chili leaves, ampalaya leaves or malunggay (moringa) leaves if available.
How to Serve Filipino Fresh Corn Soup
This creamy corn and vegetable soup is delicious and filling and can be enjoyed on its own. It also makes a great side dish with steamed rice and your favorite fried fish or grilled meat.
Store leftovers in airtight containers and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Add water or broth to loosen consistency and reheat in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until completely heated through. Adjust seasonings with salt and pepper as needed.
Looking for more classic Kapampangan dishes? Try this batsui soup made with pork and macaroni!
Suam na Mais
Ingredients
- 4 native white corn (glutinous)
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- 1 small onion, peeled and sliced thinly
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
- 1/2 pound small shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 1 tablespoon shrimp paste
- 6 cups water
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 bunch spinach, stems trimmed
Instructions
- Shuck the corn cobs by removing the husks and silks. Using a sharp knife, cut the stem ends.
- In a large bowl, stand an ear of corn up and using a small knife, thinly cut the kernels off from top to bottom. Rotate the corn when done with each section to get to the next.
- In a small bowl, scrape the sides of the cobs using a spoon to extract the remaining pulp and milky juice.
- In a pot over medium heat, heat oil. Add onions and garlic and cook until softened.
- Add shrimp and cook, stirring occasionally, just until color changes.
- Add shrimp paste and continue to cook for about 1 to 2 minutes or until lightly browned.
- Add the cut corn and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 2 to 3 minutes or until corn turns translucent.
- Add water and bring to a boil, skimming scum that floats on top.
- Lower heat, cover, and simmer for about 7 to 10 minutes or until kernels are tender.
- Add scraped corn pulp and juice and stir to distribute. Continue to simmer for about 3 to 5 minutes until soup thickens.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Add spinach, pushing down the leaves into the broth. Turn off heat, cover, and allow the residual heat to cook the spinach just until wilted. Serve hot.
Notes
- For a creamy texture, use glutinous white corn or lagkitan. If unavailable, thicken the broth with cornstarch slurry (dissolve 1 tablespoon cornstarch in 1/4 cup water)
- Chili leaves, ampalaya leaves or malunggay (moringa) leaves can be used in place of spinach.
Nutrition
thanks for the recipe… I am sure that my kids will love this ” mais dish “…
Hi Shiella, did you kids like it? 🙂
I can use any kind of corn because I remembered my mother when she cook this she used white corn…but I don’t have here white corn only the yellow corn I can use that..and also I can put shrimp instead of chicken or meat?
The white glutinous corn is preferred but you can use yellow corn if the white variety is not available. You can just thicken the broth with cornstarch slurry. 🙂
I tried this tonight for dinner, substituted the leaves with ampalaya (bitter Mellon) leaves from my backyard garden. Wow, so good. Thank you.
Thanks for the feedback, Natty! I am glad you enjoyed it. I can just imagine how good it tastes with fresh produce straight from the garden 🙂
I tried it and replaced spinach to malunggay leaves instead, definitely good!! This is the recipe what i’ve been looking since i was in the US..
I am glad you liked it 🙂
Hi Lalaine,
can’t find native white corn in my place, can I use sweet corn instead? And is it okay to blend the corn rather than grate tnem?
Yes, you can use sweet corn and blend them to help thicken the soup. Or you can use cornstarch slurry. 🙂
I will try this tomorrow. Thankyou.
Enjoy!
Can you use regular corn from a can or frozen corn?
Hello Monica,
The corn kernels from the can are actually different from the fresh “native” corn used in suam na mais as they are sweeter in taste. I suppose you can use them in a pinch but please note that the consistency and flavor will not be the same.
I will try this but will substitute with shrimp. Thanks for sharing.
What a delicious idea! Will try that next time. Thanks for the tip 🙂
thanks for this recipe! I tried this tonight but changed it a bit, doubling the amount of corn and eliminating the chicken. it was very good! 🙂
Thanks for the feedback, Cathy 🙂