Name: New England Clam Chowder
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 70 min
Ingredients: 4 ounces salt pork, minced (Read the Recipe Notes first); 2 tablespoons butter, unsalted; 1½ cups finely diced yellow onion; 3 cups diced russet potatoes; 4 cups clam juice; 2 cups chopped clams; 2 cups whole milk; 12 ounces evaporated milk; salt and pepper to taste

If you’ve ever been to the Northeastern United States, you know that authentic New England Clam Chowder is not a thick, chunky chowder, but a relatively thin bowl of Yankee deliciousness! This easy clam chowder recipe uses simple and authentic ingredients, is flavorful and filling, and boasts the flavor of creamy Russet potatoes, canned clams and their juice.

The scoop behind the recipe

Unless you’re in New England, it’s often difficult to find fresh clams. This recipe uses a few cups of whole and chopped canned clams with their juice and the flavor is just as good as if you were at Chatham Pier in Massachusettes!

Because the Russet potatoes dissolve a bit when cooking, they naturally thicken the creamy clam chowder without having to use heavy cream or a roux made with flour.

By cooking the potatoes in clam juice, the mild clam flavor is in every bite.

You’ll use the juice or clam liquor from the canned clams, but you will need to get a few extra jars of bottled clam juice; the potatoes are cooked in clam juice, which makes this a rich and flavorful broth.

Pair a big bowl of chowder with some crispy fried oysters, and you’ve got a tasty seaside dinner on the table in no time.

How to make New England Style Clam Chowder

This recipe doesn’t take much prep time or cook time, however, you do need to let the soup rest about 30-minutes off-heat before adding the dairy.

In a large stockpot or dutch oven, melt butter; add minced salt pork and diced onions and cook on low for a few minutes
Add diced potatoes to stockpot, and a few cups clam juice to cover; cook until potatoes are almost tender
Remove from heat, add chopped and/or whole baby clams, and allow to cool; once cooled, add milks and season to taste
Return to a low heat and simmer until warmed throughout; enjoy with a warm biscuit, roll, slice of sourdough bread or cornbread

Recipe Tips

Use a sharp knife or kitchen shears to cut and mince the salt pork into tiny pieces
Dice onions and potatoes into small pieces; you don’t want a big chunk of onion or potato to overwhelm a spoonful of the chowder

Storage, Make Ahead and Reheating

Store clam chowder in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Freeze for up to 3 months. For best results, reheat in a saucepan on the stove; it may thicken upon refrigeration and need a few additional teaspoons of water.

To make ahead, saute the salt pork and onions, and boil the potatoes in clam juice until they’re almost fork tender. Then store this mixture for up to 5 days in the refrigerator. When ready to assemble, heat the potato mixture on low heat; add the chopped clams; and allow the soup to rest off-heat for 30 minutes. Then, add the milks, return to low heat and cook until it is warmed throughoutl

New England Clam Chowder in red bowl with spoon.

This easy New England Clam Chowder recipe makes about 8 cups. Serve it with a side of crispy Southern fried oysters, fried catfish, pan fried trout or your favorite seafood dish!

More Soup and Chowder Recipes

New England Clam Chowder

Northeastern New England Clam Chowder made with simple, authentic ingredients just like they make up North!

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Course: Soup

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 30

Cooling time: 30

Total Time: 1 10

Yield: cups

Author: Anecia Hero

Equipment

Sharp knife

Ingredients

4 ounces salt pork, minced Read the Recipe Notes first
2 tablespoons butter, unsalted
1½ cups finely diced yellow onion
3 cups diced russet potatoes
4 cups clam juice
2 cups chopped clams
2 cups whole milk
12 ounces evaporated milk
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Prep

Mince salt pork into tiny pieces; peel and dice potatoes; finely chop onion; drain clams and reserve the juice, or liquor; set all this aside
4 ounces salt pork, minced, 3 cups diced russet potatoes, 1½ cups finely diced yellow onion

Make the Chowder

In a large stockpot or Dutch oven on low heat, add butter; once melted, add minced salt pork and chopped onions; cook on low until onions are transluscent, but not browned
2 tablespoons butter, unsalted
Add diced potatoes and clam juice (you want enough juice to cover the potatoes); cook on medium heat until potatoes are almost fork tender
4 cups clam juice
Add clams to the stockpot and turn off the heat; let the chowder rest for 30-minutes (until the temperature is below 100°F); once cooled, add whole milk and evaporated milk; turn the heat back on to low and cook until it's warmed throughout; taste for salt and pepper; adjust accordingly
2 cups chopped clams, 2 cups whole milk, 12 ounces evaporated milk, salt and pepper to taste

Notes

Authentic New England Clam Chowder is a relativey thin chowder; not thick like canned or restaurant versions. Some recipes add flour to the recipe to create a roux, but that is not necessary if you use the right potatoes.

Salt pork

Authentic New England Clam Chowder uses salt pork; however, you can substitute with bacon.

The best way to cut salt pork is with a super sharp knife or sharp kitchen shears (it’s oily and slippery, so sometimes kitchen scissors work best)

Onion

I used sweet yellow onion, but you can use a plain yellow onion or a white onion. You want to finely dice it so there’s not big chunks of onion in your soup.

Potatoes

Russet or Idaho potatoes work best in this recipe because they are high in starch and easily dissolve to create a creamy soup. If you use a waxy potato, like a Yukon gold or red creamer, your soup will be super thin, as these types of potatoes do not dissolve-and you’ll probably have to adjust the milk/cream accordingly. Russets work best.

I found a medium-sized russet yielded about one-cup of diced potatoes, so keep that in mind when you’re buying potatoes.

Clams and Clam Juice (also called “clam liquor”)

I used 2 cans of whole baby clams and 2 cans of chopped clams. If you can’t find whole clams, use the equivalent portion of chopped or minced clams. Whichever you use, be sure to reserve the clam juice.

The juice from canned clams is not going to be enough; you need to buy four 8-ounce jars of clam juice. I used “Snow’s” brand; it comes in a bottle and is usually on the same aisle at the grocery store as the clams and tuna.

Milk

Traditional recipes use “light cream,” which has 18-30% fat (heavy cream has 36% fat.) It’s hard to find “light cream” at American grocery stores (especially in the South), so you can use a combination of whole millk and a can of evaporated milk or, you can use heavy cream and milk in a 1:1 ratio.

Curdling

A warning. The soup needs to cool a bit before adding the dairy. Do not ignore this or your chowder may curdle, particularlly if you use heavy cream.

Salt and Pepper

Salt pork, clams and clam juice are already salty, so be sure to adjust for salt and the very end of the cooking process. Season with pepper to your liking. Ground white pepper is stronger than ground black pepper, so go easy on it until you get it like you want.

Nutrition Estimate

Serving: 1cupCalories: 346kcalCarbohydrates: 33gProtein: 9gFat: 20gSaturated Fat: 9gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0.1gCholesterol: 42mgSodium: 908mgPotassium: 618mgFiber: 2gSugar: 13gVitamin A: 491IUVitamin C: 12mgCalcium: 215mgIron: 1mg

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