I love that soup season time of year! This creamy clam chowder recipe chockfull of clams is different than all the others you'll try! One simple thing takes this soup from lacking in flavor to that authentic taste and depth of flavor that you want. Plus, it's ready in 30 minutes!
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Authentic clam chowder flavor with tender clams and creamy potatoes!
- Easy, just like all my other Soup Recipes!
- Ready in 30 minutes!
- One of the best soups to eat out of the bread bowl!
Ingredient Notes
- NOTE - I know some are critical of this recipe using cans of clams instead of fresh clams. Please keep in mind that most people live in areas where fresh seafood is not available.
- Clams - Be sure not to buy the least expensive brands of canned clams at the grocery store. They tend to have chewy clams and quite a bit of sand. I personally prefer the minced clam to the chopped clams as well.
- Clam Juice - You can substitute clam stock or clam broth for the bottle of clam juice.
- White Pepper - You can sub black pepper for white pepper but trust me, you'll love white pepper.
- Half and Half - Usually found by the coffee creamers in the dairy case. It's a blend of cream and milk. You always mix 1 part milk and 1 part heavy cream to use if you can't find half and half.
- Chicken Broth - You are reading this recipe correctly. There is not any chicken broth or chicken stock. This is not Potato Soup. This recipe calls for using clam juice instead because that's how you get that delicious clam flavor.
- Butter - You can use either salted butter or unsalted butter.
Step by Step Instructions
- In a 4-quart soup pot, melt the butter to sizzling over medium-high heat.
- Add the celery and onions, and sauté them until the onions are translucent.
- Add the diced potatoes.
- Pour the clam juice over the potatoes through a very fine mesh strainer or through a strainer lined with a paper towel to catch any sand from the bottle.
- Open the cans of cans and pour the juice from the cans over the potatoes through the strainer as well. DO NOT ADD THE CLAMS YET!!!
- Bring the contents of the pot to a low boil over medium heat and cook until the potatoes are cooked through.
- Most of the liquid will be absorbed.
- While this is cooking, make the white sauce in a separate small pot.
- For the white sauce, melt butter in a small pot.
- Add flour and stir to make a paste.
- Slowly add the slightly warmed half and half while whisking.
- Heat until hot and starting to thicken.
- Pour into the pot with the potatoes once the potatoes are finished cooking.
- Add the salt, white pepper, and minced clams to the pot.
- Cook to heat the clams through.
- Serve OR put in the fridge to reheat the next day! Sitting overnight enhances the rich flavor nicely!
- This creamy soup is absolutely delicious and served in homemade Bread Bowls or with a side of oyster crackers!
Recipe FAQs and Expert Tips
What is the difference between Boston and New England clam chowder?
There isn't one. Boston clam chowder and New England clam chowder are the same thing. Manhattan Clam Chowder, however, is made with a clear-ish tomato-based broth rather than a creamy milk-based one.
What kinds of clams are best for clam chowder?
I usually buy the Snow's brand minced clams. Off-brand or bargain-brand clams are chewy and sandy.
Can I add bacon or bay leaves to this classic chowder?
If you want to go the extra mile and crisp some smoky bacon to add to your soup, go for it! You can also add a bay leaf when simmering the potatoes if you want!
Related Soup Recipes
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The Best Clam Chowder Recipe
This creamy clam chowder recipe is different than all the others you'll try! One simple thing takes this soup from lacking in flavor to that authentic taste that you want. Plus, it's ready in 30 minutes!
Ingredients
- 1 Tbs Butter
- ¾ Cup Onions finely chopped
- ¾ Cup Celery chopped
- 2 ½ Cups Potatoes small diced
- 19.5 oz Chopped Clams (See note at end) 3x 6.5 oz cans
- 8 oz Clam Juice bottle of 8 oz
- 3 Tbs Butter
- 3 Tbs Flour
- 1 quart Half and Half slightly warmed
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- ¼ teaspoon White Pepper
Instructions
- In a 4-quart soup pot, melt 1 Tbs. Butter to sizzling.
- Sauté the onions and celery until they are half cooked.
- Add the potatoes.
- Pour the clam juice over the potatoes through a very fine mesh strainer or through a strainer lined with a paper towel to catch any sand from the bottle.
- Open the cans of cans and pour the juice from the cans over the potatoes through the strainer as well. DO NOT ADD THE CLAMS YET!!!
- Bring to a low boil and boil until the potatoes are done. Most of the liquid may be absorbed.
- While the potatoes are cooking, prepare the white sauce.
- In a small pot, melt the 3 Tbs. Butter and whisk in the flour.
- Add the slightly warmed half and half a little at a time, whisking constantly until smooth and all the half and half has been added.
- Remove the sauce from the heat and add it to the potatoes once they are done.
- Stir the clams, salt, and white pepper into the soup and heat until the clams are hot.
- You are now ready to serve, or you can refrigerate the soup overnight, and reheat and serve the next day.
Notes
- Line a strainer with a paper towel and pour the clam juices through it. The paper towel with catch any sand that's in the juice keeping it out of your soup.
- Just a word about canned clams here. Don't buy whatever is least expensive or off-brand clams. In my experience, cheap, non-name brand clams have chewy, tough clams and quite a bit of sand in them.
- I like to make this soup the day before I plan to serve it because sitting in the fridge overnight enhances the flavor.
- Nutritional Disclaimer
Nutrition
Calories: 1102kcalCarbohydrates: 122gProtein: 31gFat: 56gSaturated Fat: 34gPolyunsaturated Fat: 3gMonounsaturated Fat: 16gTrans Fat: 0.1gCholesterol: 182mgSodium: 1160mgPotassium: 2088mgFiber: 9gSugar: 42gVitamin A: 2148IUVitamin C: 68mgCalcium: 678mgIron: 5mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
Bob The Lobstah Guy
As an old timer that grew up along the northern New England coast, I can attest to the long held traditions of local shellfish cooking for something to add to our family meals on a regular basis. Family chowder recipes varied as much as the street signs in the smaller towns and villages, but all in all were pretty much the same except for the amounts, preference in seasonings, and variations in the proportions. It was hard to make a bad chowder. One thing we didn't have in those days was Hand and Half, but milk and cream was plentiful. We used one or the other, sometimes both. Many a day I went out at low tide and dug up the evening's family meal on the shore. One variation mentioned by someone above is tossing in some bacon. We used to instead use a block of salt pork, about a pound, diced into 1/2 inch cubes. The fat would render out and the pork would crisp up like pork rinds. Scoop out the pork and set aside until just after you add the clams and then add them back in. If you want to try that in your chowder, you can get salt pork in almost any local grocery store. I think Hormel (and others) sells it in a close to a pound package. Just dice it, drop it in the pot and render it like the aforementioned bacon, remove the crispy pork until adding later with the clams. Toss in your onions, potatoes, and celery. As to the person asking if anything can be substituted for the clams, NO! It then won't be clam chowder! (chowdah, where I come from). the seasonings and techniques will be different. There's recipes for fish chowder, corn chowder (my favorite for easy year round satisfaction), seafood chowder, lobster chowder, crab chowder, etc. They will not cook up the same. Check out those other recipes to find if substituting is feasible and to your preferences. Let's say that you live in a region where crab is cheap and plentiful (Maryland bay area on the Chesapeake comes to mind) you may want to find a crab chowder recipe to your liking. Seafood chowder has recipes just about anywhere in any American coastal region but varies per the local fish. Corn chowder is through most of America, and "lobstah" is off of all American shores, but ("homarus americanus") is that big 2-clawed favorite indigenous to our eastern Canadian/New England waters and depending on the season, can sometimes be cheaper than supermarket hot dogs.
Bob the Lobstah Guy
My mistake... Hand and Half should've been Half and Half
Lillian Gasiorowski
This was the first time I ever made clam chowder , it was delicious. I added a bay leaf and a tablespoon of vegetable bullion.
Mindee
So glad you enjoyed it!!!
Sue
This was excellent! I haven't made Clam Chowder for years. This will be my new recepie!
Mindee
Thank You!!!
Jamie
Creamy, savory, and delicious! We loved this with some toasted bread and crackers on the side.
Lauren
Such a delicious chowder recipe, it makes me feel like I'm at a classic East coast diner. Great recipe.
Pam
My husband loves clam chowder and I've never made it for him until now. He was so surprised and said it was great!
Tavo
One of the best clam chowders I have had! Thank you!
Dannii
This takes me back to a wonderful trip to Maine. I really should try making it myself - it looks amazing.
Eve
What is half and half and how do I make the half and half ? Aside which brand do u recommend for clams can and also the claim juice.
And any recommendation to replace clams with something else ?
Thank you.
mindeescookingobsession
Half and half is a blend of light cream and whole milk. You can generally find it next to the coffee creamers in the grocery store. If you wanted to make your own you can mix 1/2 cup of whole milk with 1/2 cup of light cream to get 1 cup of half and half. Or you could mix 3/4 cup 2% milk with a 1/4 heavy cream to make 1 cup of half and half. As for the clams and clam juice, I usually buy the bumblebee brand. And I'm sorry, I'm not sure what to recommend to substitute for the clams. Good luck!
L.S
You will love this soup! I really like clam chowder. Tip #2 is really important though, because chew clams and sand are not on my yummy list.