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Clam Chowder Recipe – a homemade clam chowder that is creamy, but still light and satisfying! This is loaded with clams, potatoes and bacon and is ready quickly for a warm and delicious meal.
When it is at all chilly out, I am all about any kind of soup that I can get. And there is just something about a creamy soup that is so comforting. Creamy Chicken Tortellini is one of my all time favorites to make on repeat all winter long!
And what goes better with a homemade soup that salad and bread! It is the ultimate combination for lunch or dinner. I took a page out of Big Boards For Families book and make a Clam Chowder Board that is fit for entertaining or just a family dinner.
If you don’t follow Sandy from the blog Reluctant Entertainer you are missing out. She makes these over the top amazing boards for breakfast, game day, dinner, dessert or just about anything. And she turned her love of creating boards into a cookbook. Big Board For Families is out now, and you can pick up a copy on Amazon.
This book is full of super fun ideas you can make for a party or just with your family. It has everything from breakfast, think and Oatmeal Board or Pancake Board to dinners, desserts, appetizers and more! Not only does it give you ideas of what to put on the boards, but it includes different recipes to make some of the components.
For this Clam Chowder Board, Sandy recommends filling the board with baby shrimp and cocktail sauce as well as a couple kinds of crackers, butter for the bread, and the centerpiece being a big pot of comforting and delicious clam chowder. I changed up the board a little and served mine with fresh salad instead of shrimp cocktail. But no matter what you put on your board, it will be a show stopping success!
Clam Chowder is one of those soups I always thought of as something you got out at a restaurant, not something to make at home. But it is so easy, and the ingredients are available at the normal grocery store, so making homemade clam chowder is so much easier than you would ever think.
What Is Clam Chowder
It is a thick and creamy soup that originated in the North Eastern part of the United States. It commonly includes potatoes, salted pork, and onions. It is one of the few soups that doesn’t usually have other vegetables in it.
It is believed that clams were very easy and inexpensive to harvest, so this soup was a great use for them and how it started. It is often served with saltine crackers or oyster crackers. These days each region has their own twist, to use milk or tomatoes or just broth to make it their own. This version is more typical of the New England “white” chowder.
What’s In Clam Chowder
- Bacon
- Butter
- Celery
- Shallot
- Onion
- Garlic
- Red Potatoes
- Chicken Broth
- Salt
- White Pepper
- Dried Thyme
- All-Purpose Flour
- Half and Half
- Clams
- Clam Juice
- Bay Leaves
How To Make Clam Chowder
- The first step is to cook the bacon. I like to chop up the bacon before adding it to the pot so it cooks faster. Cook until the bacon is browned and then remove it from the pan. Pour out most of the bacon grease, reserve about 1 Tablespoon in the pot.
- Add the butter and melt over medium high heat. Once the butter is melted add in the celery, onions and shallot and cook for about 5 minutes until everything is soft and translucent.
- Add in the garlic and cook for about 1 minute, until you can just start to smell it.
- Stir in the potatoes, chicken broth, salt, pepper, and dried thyme. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes, until the potatoes are tender. How long you cook it will depend on the size of your potatoes.
- Meanwhile, mix together the flour and some of the half and half until it is nice and smooth. Gradually pour it into the soup, stirring until the soup starts to thicken.
- Next stir in the clams, clam juice, and the remaining half and half. Heat the soup until everything is warm, but do not bring to a boil.
- Turn the heat to low and add the bay leaves. Cook for 4-5 minutes for everything to come together.
- Stir in about half of the reserved bacon and serve.
- Top soup with parsley and remaining bacon.
Most of the time you will see clam chowder made with lots of heavy cream. Although this makes it extra rich, creamy, and delicious it also adds a lot of fat and calories. I like to use half and half or even a mixture of regular milk with a little bit of heavy cream in most of my recipes. This gives you the thick and creaminess without all the guilt.
You can use heavy cream for any or all of the half and half called for in the recipe. The process and amounts will be exactly the same.
Fresh or Canned Clams
This recipe calls for canned clams, because they are readily available all around the country, as well as being relatively inexpensive. If you have access to fresh clams, by all means use them if you want. I just wanted to make sure this was an accessible recipe to all, so canned is what I used.
You can find cans of chopped clams in the normal grocery store near the tuna and canned salmon. You will need 3 cans as well as a bottle of clam juice that is usually in the same area.
Storage
You can store any leftover clam chowder in an air tight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. This is one of those soups that gets better with age, so you can definitely make a large pot that you enjoy for a couple of days.
The soup with thicken as it cools and sit in the fridge. If necessary when you reheat it, you can add in a little bit of chicken broth or more milk to thin it out a little.
Be sure to check out Big Boards For Families and all of the delicious and fun ideas that are inside. I am personally eyeing the Donut Sundae Bar for when all the nieces and nephews are together next!
More Comforting Soup Recipes
- Vegetable Beef Soup
- Cabbage Roll Soup
- Egg Drop Soup
- Minestrone Soup
- Southwestern Chicken Corn Chowder
- Chicken Gnocchi Soup
- Lasagna Soup
- Potato Corn Chowder
Clam Chowder Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 slices bacon
- 2 Tablespoons butter
- 2 celery stalks, chopped
- 1 shallot, finely chopped
- 1 onion, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 3-4 small red potatoes, peeled and cubed
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups half-and-half, divided
- 3 6.5 oz cans chopped clams, drained
- 1 8oz bottle clam juice
- 1 bay leaf
- Fresh Parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Add chopped bacon to a large stock pot. Heat over medium heat to cook the bacon until it is browned. Remove from the pan and set aside. Pour out most of the bacon grease, reserve about 1 Tablespoon in the pot.
- Add the butter and melt over medium high heat. Once the butter is melted add in the celery, onions and shallot and cook for about 5 minutes until everything is soft and translucent.
- Add in the garlic and cook for about 1 minute, until you can just start to smell it.
- Stir in the potatoes, chicken broth, salt, pepper, and dried thyme. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes, until the potatoes are tender.
- Meanwhile, mix together the flour and 1/2 cup of half-and-half until it is nice and smooth. Gradually pour it into the soup, stirring until the soup starts to thicken.
- Stir in the clams, clam juice, and the remaining half-and-half. Heat the soup until everything is warm, but do not bring to a boil.
- Turn the heat to low and add the bay leaf. Cook for 4-5 minutes for everything to come together.
- Stir in about half of the reserved bacon and serve.
- Top soup with parsley and remaining bacon.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Ooh I know a few people who would absolutely love this!
Oh my, this looks incredible!! I can’t wait to give this a try!! YUM!
This Clam Chowder looks incredibly delicious!! I am so excited to try it!!
This is one of our favorite dishes. It’s so great to make it at home!
I had no idea clam chowder was so easy! This was delicious.
This is my favorite!!!
This is really comforting!! A huge hit at my house!