Clam Chowder is the ultimate comfort food with tender clams, creamy potatoes and of course salty, smoky bacon!
Wonderfully creamy New England Clam Chowder is way easier than you think to make at home and about to become a new family favorite!
This easy clam chowder recipe has rich flavor for the perfect bowl of comfort!
REPIN THIS EASY CHOWDER RECIPE HERE!
While I love the summer months of sandals and jacket-free bike rides, I love the winter because SOUP!
Soup season is my favorite because soups are my favorite. I love how you don’t have to create any extra sides but instead get to curl up with your meal-in-one bowl of warm slurpilicious comfort just like this creamy clam chowder recipe.
If someone is intimidated by cooking, I always tell them to start with soup recipes like Slow Cooker Corn Chowder, Slow Cooker Potato Soup, Cheesy Taco Soup and now this New England Clam Chowder!
What is Clam Chowder?
This cravilicious white creamy clam chowder is bursting with delectable clams, tender potatoes, and salty bacon.
Seeing as San Diego is on the opposite side of the United States from New England and fresh clams can be hard to come by or very expensive, I’ve chosen to make this clam chowder recipe with chopped canned clams – and I couldn’t taste a difference!
In fact, many reputable restaurants use canned clams with the addition of clam juice. You will be shocked how restaurant-quality delicious this version tastes and canned clams make it that much easier!
How to Make Clam Chowder
A few notes about this recipe to make it the best ever homemade New England Clam Chowder.
First, use thick, center cut bacon instead of traditional sliced bacon.
Sliced bacon wilts as its simmered whereas thick bacon holds up to the heat so you are left with a wonderful meaty texture that complements the clams.
Next, be sure to use russet potatoes.
Their soft, creamy, melt-in-your-mouth texture is ideal for chowders. They taste the most “potato-y” as opposed to waxy as you want them practically falling apart in your mouth.
Finally, everyone has their own opinion as to how thick a chowder should be.
For this clam chowder recipe, we use a roux to thicken the chowder then stir in 1 cup heavy cream at the end of cooking.
If you would like a thicker chowder, simmer the soup longer, or for a thinner chowder, stir in additional chicken broth.
To finish the chowder, we pile it with some of the reserved crispy bacon, fresh parsley (optional) and oyster crackers.
Now dig into your better-than-any-restaurant New England Clam Chowder!
Ingredients
- 3 (6.5 ounce each) can chopped clams in clam juice
- 8 ounces clam juice
- 6 slices thick cut bacon chopped
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 2 ribs celery finely chopped
- 1 large onion chopped
- 1 ¼ pounds russet potatoes peeled and diced into ½-inch cubes, approx. 3 ½ cups
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups reduced sodium chicken broth
- 2 teaspoons chicken bouillon
- 2 bay leaves
- ½ teaspoon dried parsley
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme leaves
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Garnishes (Optional)
- Oyster crackers
- chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- Drain clam juice from cans into a measuring cup. Add enough bottled clam juice to equal 2 ½ cups. Set aside.
- In a Dutch oven, cook bacon over medium heat until fat is rendered and slightly brown. Remove half of the bacon with a slotted spoon to a paper towel lined plate. To the remaining bacon and drippings, melt in 1 tablespoon butter over medium heat.
- Increase heat to medium high and add celery and onion. Saute for 5-7 minutes or until onions are soft. Add potatoes, garlic, and sauté 30 seconds. Sprinkle in flour and cook an additional 1 minute. Stir in chicken broth, reserved 2 ½ cups clam juice, chicken bouillon, bay leaves and all seasonings. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer. Simmer, uncovered, for 15-20 minutes or until potatoes are very tender.
- Stir in heavy cream and bring to a simmer to heat through. Discard bay leaves. Remove from heat and stir in clams. Taste and add salt/pepper to taste. (You may or may not need additional salt depending on how salty your clams and bacon are.) For a thinner or less chunky soup stir in additional heavy cream/milk or chicken broth.
- Top individual servings with reserved bacon and oyster crackers and fresh parsley if desired.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Soup
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What are the Different Types of Clam Chowder?
The most common type of clam chowder is New England Clam Chowder! This type of clam chowder is also known as “Boston” clam chowder and features a rich creamy base with potatoes and onions (and no tomatoes).
Manhattan Clam Chowder is quite different as it generally has a clear tomato broth.
Long Island Clam chowder combines the two above to create a delicious creamy tomato base where Rhode Island Clam chowder is simply a clear broth.
Of all varieties, I have to admit, this award winning New England Clam Chowder is definitely at the top of my list!
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No lie first time I made this I nailed it and so delicious thank you!
Absolutely love your recipes! Thank you for your easy to follow and delicious ideas!
Made this last night. I followed it step by step. It was delicious.
Solid recipe. I only made two changes. I added some chopped carrots because I had them. And substituted half and half for the cream because that’s all I had. Honestly delicious. Not too thin and not too thick. Would definitely make this again. Thank you!
If I double would I double all ingredients
I would double all ingredients if wanting to make a big double batch :)
Depends on how many you are feeding. (For the same recipe as posted)
We like a chunky and textured soup that is super filling so I add double the clams and extra potatoes. You can always add more broth and/cream for a thicker/thinner texture to your soup. This is a great base to start with and alter to your liking.
Flat out, the best NE Clam Chowder recipe I’ve ever made (and I’ve made many over the years)! I substituted Half& Half for the Heavy Cream but otherwise, followed the recipe exactly. It has a full bodied, rich flavor and every ingredient adds to the overall taste explosion. Thank you for sharing!
Made it for Valentine’s Day and it totally won the evening for me. My only problem was that I didn’t double the recipe.
This turned out so very good! Growing up in New England this reminded me of home. I did use light cream and some whole milk as I grabbed the wrong one at the store and used powdered potato flakes to thicken up to make it GF instead of flower…. Sooo yummy!
I followed the recipe exactly and my husband said it is the best clam chowder he has ever had. Coming from a life long New Englander that is high praise.
Anxious to see what you have
I made this today and it was just delicious. My first time making chowder and I couldn’t have found a better recipe and am looking forward to making this again.
One of the best clam chowder I have tasted. Outstanding! Substituted chopped ham for the bacon and it worked very well. Great flavor, easy to make.
Yum
Only thing I’d do different next time is cook whole strips of bacon do desired doneness, crispness. I dont know why but chopped bacon takes longer and cooks unevenly. Great recipe though. Might add some corn next time.
Hi There Holly,
I made your clam chowder last night and OMG,,,,It was AMAZING!!! I followed the recipe exactly as written. Both my husband and I agree that it’s hands down, THE BEST New England clam chowder we have EVER had!! You are right – it IS better by far than any restaurant’s. Thank you SOOO very much for this wonderful recipe. I’m not sure I’ve ever made any soup this delicious!
Carol
My family loved it. Great flavors. My local market ran out of clam
juice. So I used the water from a tuna can ( as a substitute) & other than that, I exactly doubled the recipe. Was perfect for 12 guests.
If I wanted to make it ahead of time and let it sit for a bit, what step would I stop at and let it stay covered on low heat?
I would suggest stopping at step 3 when your potatoes are slightly tender. You can finish cooking them and continue on with the recipe from there. Let us know how it goes!
Hi! If I use frozen clam meat instead of canned clams, what can I substitute the clam juice with?
I have only tried this as written but most stores sell clam juice. If you don’t want to purchase clam juice, you could try another type of seafood broth. While this may change the flavor a bit, it will still be delicious.
Why would you substitute the clam juice? I don’t think it would make a difference what type of clams you used you would still need the clam juice.
This will be a keeper recipe! I never tried making clam chowder before. This was so easy to make.
When do you add the clams?
Hi Marybeth, we add the clams in step 4 after we have removed the soup from the heat.
Awesome clam chowder!!!
Thanks Valentina! Glad you enjoyed it.