Clam Chowder

Creamy, rich New England clam chowder is so much easier to prepare than you think! Ready in under an hour, this indulgent soup is delicious topped with oyster crackers or for dunking your favorite crusty bread.

Course Soup

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 35

Total Time 45

Servings servings

Calories 249kcal

Author John Kanell

Equipment

Large Pot
Paper towels

Ingredients

4 slices bacon chopped
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 onion chopped
2 celery stalks chopped
3 garlic cloves minced
⅓ cup all-purpose flour (40g)
2 (6.5-ounce/184g ) cans chopped clams in juice undrained
1½ cups milk 360ml
1½ cups chicken stock (360ml)
1 bay leaf
1½ teaspoons salt
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
2 russet potatoes peeled and diced
1½ cups half and half (360ml)
Chopped parsley

Instructions

Add the bacon to a large pot or Dutch oven and cook over medium-high heat until brown and crispy, about 10 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove the bacon from the pot and place on paper towels to drain. Reserve the drippings in the pot.
Add the butter to the pot and melt over medium-high heat. Add the onion, celery, and garlic, and sauté until the onion is tender, about 4 minutes. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute.
Gradually whisk in the juice from the clams, milk, stock, salt, and pepper. Cook until mixture starts to thicken, about 2 minutes. Add the potatoes and bay leaf and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes.
Stir in the half and half and clams. Cook until heated through, about 2 minutes. Discard the bay leaf. Serve immediately topped with the cooked bacon and parsley.

Video

Notes

Cut the potatoes into evenly sized pieces. This will help them cook at the same speed. If you don't have russet potatoes, you can swap them out for red potatoes.
If you prefer using fresh clams, you’ll need about 1 cup of cleaned, steamed, chopped fresh clams, along with about 1 cup of clam juice.
Make an even richer chowder! Swap the half and half out for an equal amount of heavy cream.
Serve the creamy soup immediately. It will continue to thicken as it sits. You can thin it out with a little milk if necessary.
Add a spicy kick to the clam chowder! Add a few splashes of your favorite hot sauce, or chop up a jalapeno or two and add it directly to the soup with the garlic for extra heat!

Nutrition