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You don’t have to live on a coast to have best New England Clam Chowder in the world. This authentic, stick-to-your-ribs recipe has all the right stuff: bacon, potatoes, cream, and (of course) lots of chopped clams.
There’s nothing fancy about this creamy New England Clam Chowder recipe, because chowder is basically a simple food made at home by hungry people everywhere. New Englanders love making this seafood stew at home, often using razor clams, littlenecks, or the catch of the day.
But delicious homemade clam chowder from scratch doesn’t have to use fresh clams or any hard-to-find ingredients! No ocean-side living, clam digging, or shucking required with this recipe, because canned clams work beautifully. Keep some tender clams in the pantry when you get the urge.
Table of Contents
Recipe ingredients
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
Ingredient notes
- Potatoes: Waxy potatoes like baby red potatoes, or semi-waxy like Yukon Gold potatoes, hold their shape in this soup. You can substitute Russet potatoes, but russets break down more easily for a thicker texture (which isn’t always a bad thing).
- Clam juice: This is the juice that comes from your canned clams. It adds more clam flavor and keeps the chowder from being bland.
- Chicken base: Similar to bullion cubes, chicken base is highly concentrated chicken stock. You can find it in powder or paste forms. I love “Better than Bouillon” brand, a paste which is widely available and tastes delicious. Or, omit the water and chicken base and substitute 1 cup chicken broth.
- Canned chopped clams: If you like it extra clammy, double up on the clams.
Step-by-step instructions
- In a Dutch oven or large pot on the stovetop over medium heat, add bacon and cook until crisp, about 5 minutes. Remove bacon from the pot with a slotted spoon, drain on paper towels, and crumble. Set aside.
- To the bacon fat, add onion and celery and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and thyme until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
- Stir in potatoes, water, clam juice, and chicken base. Bring to boil, reduce heat, and simmer uncovered until potatoes are tender, about 15 to 20 minutes. In a small bowl, whisk together 1 cup half-and-half or heavy cream and flour until smooth.
- Gradually stir into soup, return to a simmer, and cook until thickened, about 1 to 2 minutes longer. Season to taste with salt and pepper (I like 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper). Add clams and their juice and remaining 1 cup half-and-half and stir until heated through, about 1 minute. Garnish each serving with bacon and oyster crackers.
Recipe tips and variations
- Yield: This recipe makes about 8 cups Clam Chowder, enough for 4 hearty servings of 2 cups each.
- Storage: Store leftover clam chowder in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Freezer: Cool the chowder in the refrigerator, then pour into freezer containers or heavy-duty freezer bags and freeze for up to 4 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then reheat on the stove or in the microwave.
- Make it your own: Add diced carrots with the potatoes. Or, stir in a bay leaf or some fresh herbs like parsley. A drizzle of sherry on top, before eating, is traditional for seafood soups and chowders.
- Meaty: Substitute salt pork or pancetta for the bacon. If you prefer to leave the bacon out entirely, substitute an equal amount of butter.
- Garnishes: I like to garnish this soup with cooked bacon and oyster crackers, but it looks pretty with something green on top like fresh parsley or fresh chives.
- Rhode Island Clam Chowder: Unlike New England-style clam chowder which contains cream, and Manhattan-style clam chowder which contains tomatoes, Rhode Island Clam Chowder doesn’t have either and uses a clear broth instead.
- Too hot: Like all creamy soups and stews, if cooked at too high a temperature, the soup could scorch.
- Slow Cooker New England Clam Chowder:
- In a skillet, cook the bacon until crisp. Drain on paper towels, chop into small pieces, and refrigerate until serving time.
- To your slow cooker, add the rendered bacon fat, onion, potatoes, celery, garlic, water, chicken base, and clam juice. Cook on LOW for 7 to 8 hours or HIGH for 3 to 4 hours.
- Whisk together the flour with 1 cup half and half. Stir in to the slow cooker with the clams and their juice and cook on HIGH 30 minutes longer.
- Add the remaining 1 cup half and half, season to taste with salt and pepper, and cook until heated through. Stir in the cooked bacon (or reheat and use as a garnish).
Frequently Asked Questions
Unlike other chowders which may have a clear broth or tomato-based broth, New England Clam Chowder has a creamy base made with either heavy cream or half and half.
Boston Clam Chowder is another name for New England Clam Chowder and is thick with a creamy base.
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New England Clam Chowder
Ingredients
- 4 slices bacon
- 1 large onion chopped
- 2 celery ribs chopped
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme or 1 teaspoon fresh
- 3 small potatoes peeled and cubed (see note 1)
- 1 cup water
- 1 (8 ounce) bottle clam juice (see note 2)
- 1 tablespoon chicken base (see note 3)
- 2 cups half and half divided
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 (6 ½ ounce) cans chopped clams undrained (see note 4)
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Oyster crackers for serving
Instructions
- In a Dutch oven or large pot over medium heat, add bacon and cook until crisp, about 5 minutes. Remove bacon from pot, drain on paper towels, and crumble. Set aside.
- To the bacon fat, add onion and celery and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and thyme until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
- Stir in potatoes, water, clam juice, and chicken base. Bring to boil, reduce heat, and simmer uncovered until potatoes are tender, about 15 to 20 minutes.
- In a small bowl, whisk together 1 cup half-and-half and flour until smooth. Gradually stir into soup, return to a simmer, and cook until thickened, about 1 to 2 minutes longer. Season to taste with salt and pepper (I like 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper).
- Add clams and their juice and remaining 1 cup half-and-half and stir until heated through, about 1 minute. Garnish each serving with bacon and oyster crackers.
Recipe Video
Notes
- Potatoes: Waxy potatoes like baby red potatoes, or semi-waxy like Yukon Golds, hold their shape in this soup.
- Clam juice: Adds more clam flavor and keeps the chowder from being bland.
- Chicken base: Similar to bullion cubes, chicken base is highly concentrated chicken stock. You can find it in powder or paste forms. I love “Better than Bouillon” brand, a paste which is widely available and tastes delicious. Or, omit the water and chicken base and substitute 1 cup chicken broth.
- Canned chopped clams: If you like it extra clammy, double up on the clams.
- Yield: This recipe makes about 8 cups Clam Chowder, enough for 4 hearty servings of 2 cups each.
- Storage: Leftover clam chowder will keep in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Nutrition
Meggan Hill is a classically-trained chef and professional writer. Her meticulously-tested recipes and detailed tutorials bring confidence and success to home cooks everywhere. Meggan has been featured on NPR, HuffPost, FoxNews, LA Times, and more.
Tried the recipe, absolutely love it. I have made it three times this month.
I’m so glad you love it. Thanks Aimee! -Meggan
The flavor is really good. Could use a step-by-step of exactly how much of each ingredient though. Kind of had the eyeball it and taste test it myself and Doctor it up towards the end.
Hi Christina, did you find the recipe card? I sure hope so. All the quantities are listed in the recipe card, you shouldn’t have to eyeball the ingredient photo and just wing it. I’m so sorry for the confusion, here is the URL to the recipe card. I’m so sorry, this sounds like nightmare. -Meggan
https://www.culinaryhill.com/new-england-clam-chowder-recipe/#wprm-recipe-container-56419
Hi Meggan
I need to make this gluten free. Since you mix the flour with the half and half, to make a slurry, could I use cornstarch instead? Would you do a one to one substitution or use less cornstarch?
Hi Jennie, thanks for your question! I haven’t done that substitution in this recipe, but I’ve done it for other recipes, so I don’t see why not. I would start with 2 tablespoons of cornstarch and 2 of the tablespoons of the half and half, add it to the pot and bring to a simmer for a couple minutes. If it needs additional thickening, add another slurry of 1 tablespoon half and half with 1 tablespoon cornstarch. You could also add the heavy cream to the pot, bring to a simmer, and then remove 2 tablespoons of the warm liquid to make the slurry, and return it to the pot. I hope you love it! Please write back with anymore questions! – Meggan
Hi Meggan,
I wanted to let you know that the slurry worked very well to thicken the chowder. My coworker (who can’t have gluten) really appreciated the opportunity to be included in the lunch that I made the soup for, No one else realized I didn’t use a traditional rue to thicken up the soup. I wound up using 3 tablespoons cornstarch to 3 tablespoons half and half in total. Thank you again for the advice!