New England Clam Chowder
New England clam chowder is a thick, creamy soup of clams, potatoes, bacon and onion from the northeastern United States. Unlike Manhattan clam chowder, which is red and tomato-based, it is made with milk and cream and comes out ivory-white. Here the clams come from a can, the broth builds on a butter-and-flour base, and the clams go in for only the last few minutes so they stay tender.
Ingredients
- 800 gcanned clams with juice
- 180 gthick-cut bacon
- 1 large onion
- 3 celery stalks
- 3 garlic cloves
- 60 gunsalted butter
- 45 gall-purpose flour
- 480 mlwhole milk
- 240 mlheavy cream
- 240 mlclam juice or fish stock
- 700 gYukon Gold potatoes, peeled and diced into 1cm cubes
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tspfresh thyme leaves
- 1 tspsalt
- 0.5 tspwhite pepper
- 2 tbspfresh parsley
- 1 tbspdry sherry, optional
Method
- Drain canned clams, reserving all the juice. Set clams aside. In a large Dutch oven over medium heat, cook diced bacon until the fat renders and the bacon turns crispy, about 6–8 minutes. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside, leaving the drippings in the pot.
- Add butter to the bacon drippings. Sauté onion and celery over medium heat until softened and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more.
- Sprinkle flour over the vegetables and stir constantly for 2 minutes to cook out the raw flour taste. This creates the thickening base.
- Gradually whisk in the juice from the cans plus 240 ml clam juice or fish stock (about 500 ml liquid in total), scraping up any browned bits from the bottom. Add milk and heavy cream, whisking to keep smooth.
- Add potatoes, bay leaves and thyme. Bring to a gentle simmer (do not boil hard or the cream will break). Cook 15–18 minutes until potatoes are completely tender when pierced with a fork.
- Add the reserved clams and half the crispy bacon. Simmer very gently for just 3–4 minutes — clams toughen quickly if overcooked. Remove bay leaves. Season generously with salt and white pepper.
- Ladle into warm bowls. Top each serving with remaining crispy bacon and fresh parsley. Serve with oyster crackers or crusty sourdough bread.
FAQ
Both are correct — they are simply different traditions. New England (white) chowder is creamy, made with milk or cream, potatoes, and bacon, originating in Massachusetts and by far the most popular. Manhattan (red) chowder is tomato-based, created in early 20th-century New York restaurants by Portuguese and Italian immigrants. There is also Rhode Island chowder (clear broth) and Long Island chowder (a hybrid). The debate over which is 'correct' never ends — in Boston, the tomato version is taken as a genuine insult. For a richer shellfish soup in the same cream-based family, try lobster bisque.
Canned clams are a perfectly respectable substitute and the most common choice for home cooking in the US. The key: never discard the liquid from the can — that is clam juice, the foundation of the broth, and it holds all the sea flavor. Fresh clams such as littlenecks or vongole give a brighter result: steam them open in a little water, strain that liquid into the pot as part of the broth, and add the shucked meat at the very end, 3–4 minutes before serving. If neither is available, mussels or any bivalve shellfish make a good substitute.
The traditional method is to mash some of the potato. Remove about a quarter of the cooked potato, mash with a fork or blender, and stir it back in. A second method is to stir in a splash of heavy cream (33%+) at the end — it thickens without a starchy taste. Flour is also used (a butter-flour roux at the start), but it can leave a powdery flavor. Important: always add milk and cream slowly to hot soup to prevent curdling.
There is only one cause: overcooking. At a bare simmer clams are done in 3–4 minutes; beyond that, the protein seizes and the meat turns rubbery. The correct technique: add the clams last, keep the heat low and never let the soup boil, and serve right after those 3–4 minutes. Canned clams are already cooked, so they only need to warm through.
Without bacon: replace with smoked paprika (1 teaspoon) plus a drop of liquid smoke to get the same smoky note. Vegetarian version: substitute artichoke hearts or fresh corn kernels for the clams (they give a similar texture), and use a broth made from kombu seaweed and shiitake mushrooms for the oceanic flavor. Dairy-free: coconut cream gives a close result, though slightly sweeter.
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Comments (1)
I always make a larger batch of this new england clam chowder and freeze individual portions. It reheats beautifully and having homemade soup in the freezer is one of the best investments of a Sunday afternoon.