ingredients:

• bacon (optional. i usually use 3-5 slices if i use it, i get lazy. not too fatty, sliced real small. if i don't use it i sometimes use bacon fat since i have it around, or it's fine to omit altogether if you don't have/like/eat it)
• butter (i have been known to put an entire stick in here. but i like my soups kinda greasy, use as much as you like to saute things in)
• onion (i use yellow or white, whatever. i haven't tried reds but i bet that would be good? use as much as you want, if i use pre-chopped/frozen i go closer to half an onion, but i hate having half an onion left over when i chop it)
• garlic (3-5 cloves. or more. i use the frozen puree too, i guess you could use jarred but i don't like jarred lol. i wouldn't recommend relying only on powder but it'd still be good)
• potatoes (i use a bag of baby golds but whatever u got works. personally i like to remove about half the skins to mash those in for texture but thats optional. i have also used ready made mashed potatoes and that was awesome, as was frozen cubed hash browns, but those leave less potato chunk in the final product - good for freezing, less good if you want the potato to stand out)
• corn (frozen corn works great. fresh corn is tedious. canned corn is probably fine. i go for a bag and a half to two bags frozen. i have used half frozen roasted corn and it was sublime i use that whenever i can find it)
• broth/stock (i usually use chicken and sometimes some vegetable/garlic. enough to submerge everything else by half an inch or so, its usually more than a regular box in which case i use water and bouillon paste to get enough)
• seasonings (chicken bouillon. cayenne. arbol. guajillo. cumin. thyme. rosemary. sage. onion powder. garlic powder. a tiny bit of cinnamon. sometimes green chile, sometimes a splash of white wine or lime juice. salt and pepper. go crazy have fun get spicy)
• flour & heavy cream to thicken (like 1/4 cup flour and enough cream to make a paste about the consistency of pancake batter. i suppose you could do this with a starch? but i don't like starch texture so i have not attempted this)
• cheese (i almost always use the tillamook shredded blend with pepper jack and cheddar but that is a regional product! use whatever texmexy cheese you want, but not the kind with taco seasonings in it. unless you really want that idk its your soup)
• toppings (green onion. fried onions. sour cream or crema. hot sauce. crushed tortilla chips. all optional but fun!)

instructions:

1. mise en place. chop bacon, onion, garlic, and potatoes if needed. gather the rest of the ingredients.
2. if using bacon, saute on medium-high until mostly cooked.
3. lower heat to medium, add onion and butter. one more butter pat than you think you need. cook with bacon until ACTUALLY browned and caramelized, a long time. 15-20 min+. get a little snack or smthn for the wait. stir less frequently to start, more as they sweat out to avoid burning.
4. add garlic, stir. i usually turn off the heat here instead of worrying about the garlic burning.
5. add potatoes, corn, and seasonings. stir. dump the stock in on top.
6. pressure cooker: manual high pressure for 5 minutes, natural release for 15, quick release the rest. stovetop: simmer it, until the potatoes go soft.
7. mix heavy cream and flour, stir into soup. add cheese. turn the heat on if its off and simmer until it comes together and any flour lumps are gone.
8. taste and adjust seasonings! you're done!