Easy Clam Chowder
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Clam chowder is easier (and much better) to make right at home! So unbelievably creamy, flavorful and chockfull of clams!
Featured Comment
why i love homemade clam chowder
- Cozy soup season vibes, perfect for fall and blustery winter nights
- Restaurant-quality, if not even better
- Pantry-friendly recipe using canned clams (more on that below)
- Quick, weeknight hero made in 30 min or less
new england clam chowder vs. manhattan clam chowder
New England Clam Chowder
New England is a thick and creamy white soup, typically made with milk or cream.
Manhattan Clam Chowder
Manhattan is a tomato-rich red soup without milk or cream, and typically includes more vegetables than New England.
why use canned clams in clam chowder
- Convenience
- Budget-friendly and economical
- Extra flavor, especially when using the juices
- Abundance of clams
which potatoes are best for clam chowder
A lot of recipes recommend waxy potatoes such as Yukon gold or baby red potatoes because they will hold up well in soups. Instead, I opted for russet potatoes here – they are naturally very starchy, ideal for creating a thicker, chowder-like consistency.
tips and tricks for success
- Use the reserved juices. The juices from the canned clams add all the extra, deep clam flavor.
- Simmer, simmer, simmer. The longer it simmers, the more it thickens, making it perfect to cook until the desired consistency is reached.
- Make it clammier. For those wanting extra clam flavor, add an additional can of chopped clams.
- Serve with crusty bread. Serve with all the homemade crusty bread for dipping, sopping and dunking!
what to serve with clam chowder
Tools For This Recipe
Dutch oven
Easy Clam Chowder: Frequently Asked Questions
Absolutely! Substitute 1 – 1 1/2 cups chopped fresh clams along with bottled clam juice to replace the juice from the can. Chopped fresh clams will need additional cook time to cook through.
Yes! Always thaw properly, adding at the end of cooking as they are already precooked.
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days.
We do not recommend freezing this as cream-based soups tend to separate when frozen.
Easy Clam Chowder
Ingredients
- 4 slices bacon, diced
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 onion, diced
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 cup milk
- 1 cup vegetable stock
- 2 (6.5-ounce) cans chopped clams, juices reserved
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 russet potatoes, peeled and diced
- 1 cup half and half*
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
Equipment
Instructions
- Heat a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium high heat. Add bacon and cook until brown and crispy, about 6-8 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate, reserving 1 tablespoon excess fat in the stockpot.
- Melt butter in the stockpot. Add garlic and onion, and cook, stirring frequently, until onions have become translucent, about 2-3 minutes. Stir in thyme until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Whisk in flour until lightly browned, about 1 minute. Gradually whisk in milk, vegetable stock, clam juice and bay leaf, and cook, whisking constantly, until slightly thickened, about 1-2 minutes. Stir in potatoes.
- Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 12-15 minutes.*
- Stir in half and half and clams until heated through, about 1-2 minutes; season with salt and pepper, to taste. If the soup is too thick, add more half and half as needed until desired consistency is reached.
- Serve immediately, garnished with bacon and parsley, if desired.
Video
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
Tag @damn_delicious on Instagram and hashtag it #damndelicious!
My first time making clam chowder and these came out awesome! I subbed more clam juice for veg stock. Easy, and damn delicious indeed! Thank you!
I love to cook, I am glad I found this site
Excellent dish, but what is the easiest way to thicken?
I made this for dinner tonight and it was a huge hit. Hubby requested “about a gallon more” and the kids gobbled it down, rated it 5 stars, and asked if I could make it again tomorrow. I added some diced carrots and celery to the onions since I had them in the fridge and seasoned with a 1/2 and 1/2 mixture of pink salt and soy sauce.
This is an easy recipe, flavor was average but just not quite there with the clam flavor we love. Couldn’t find where to add the 1 tablespoon of excess fat from bacon, but that’s okay! It’s definitely a comfort soup for cold nights with some garlic toast on the side. I’d probably make it again using actual clam juice sold in a jar (adjusting the liquids to make up for less vegetable stock) and the juices from the canned clams to add more richness. Also, I always use fat-free half and half to keep the calories down.
This recipe was excellent. The changes I made was to almost double it for my large family and I used heavy whipping cream instead of half and half and extra vegetable broth to balance it out. I also used spicy smoked sea salt for a little kick.
Best clam chowder ever! The entire family loved it!
Delicious! Served this with my Christmas Eve buffet. It is restaurant quality chowder. I’ll be making this frequently.
I really liked this-it was easy! I used 3 cans of clams and 1/2 heavy cream in place of milk-so it’s super rich!
I would take 3 tbls of the bacon grease, the 3 tbls of flour and make a roux with it. Add’s flavor and thickens the soup.
Very tasty recipe. It was a little thinner than I expected
but I would make it the same again.
Love it! Added summer savory and used seafood stock instead of vegetable stock. Plus added an extra 2 cups…. came out delicious! Thank you!
Using seafood stock sounds good. Did you add an extra 2 cups of it? That seems like a lot of broth, am I understanding you correctly?
Using seafood stock, great idea, but not sure where to find it or do you make your own? Also, the summer savory sounds good. Mine just needed a little more of some type of seasoning, so I will try that.
Look forward to trying this. Thanks.
If I were to focus on making a chowder as my main dish – what would you recommend as an appropriate starter?
John.
This recipe was delicious, I got a lot of compliments. I also added celery, and I think next time I’ll add more clams.
Excellent recipe! My husband and I loved it. We tweaked a bit due to not having all ingredients in-house. Had only half an onion so added chopped up celery in place of the other half. I also used dried thyme and parsley instead of fresh, and added a bit of Old Bay and onion powder. Next time I’ll try it with fresh herbs. I’ll also try adding extra clam juice, as others have done. I think I’ll make Damn Delicious one of my favorite recipe sites!
Damn Delicious is absolutely my favorite recipe site! Everything I make from her is a huge hit in my house. I have a feeling it will be the same for you. 🙂
Great recipe, it was delicious but you don’t mention what to do with the reserved fat that you put aside after cooking the bacon.
This soup was easy to make and tasted great. I am not a cook, but the directions were easy to follow and the prep was quick.
I have a quick question. I would really like to make this tonight but I would need to double it … is there any special instructions for doing so?
Hi Alissa! I used this method to increase the recipe for 18 people: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6uyxpBmqmrE. Hope this helps. 🙂
This was the best Clam Chowder I ever ate,loved it,and shared the receipt with my Daughter and they also loved it.
I made this clam chowder for the first and just cook said it was indeed very easy and damn delicious, I did add few more seasonings which made this recipe damn good. I’ll definitely be make this soup more often. Trecia Williams from Philadelphia
I’ve been making this for about a year or so now. It’s delicious, but it never thickens for me. 🙁
Excellent recipe, however, I wish that it had a tip on how to make the chowder thicker.
You can make a roux to thicken the soup. Take 2 Tbsp butter & melt over med heat. Add 1 heaping Tbsp of flour and stir constantly as it thickens. I add some of the milk from ingredient list as it thickens. Then stir into your chowder. Works every time!
I added more flour in a separate bowl with cold milk and mixed til smooth then pour mixture into soup. Also, I didn’t use any fresh vegetables just the dried powder ones and dried parsley. Delicious clam chowder which is my favorite of all soups.
Judy Babcock