The Best Clam Chowder Ever Recipes

Steps:

• Drain juice from clams into a large skillet over the onions, celery, potatoes and carrots. Add water to cover, and cook over medium heat until tender.
• Meanwhile, in a large, heavy saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in flour until smooth. Whisk in cream and stir constantly until thick and smooth. Stir in vegetables and clam juice. Heat through, but do not boil.
• Stir in clams just before serving. If they cook too much they get tough. When clams are heated through, stir in vinegar, and season with salt and pepper.

Steps:

• Put the clams in a large, heavy Dutch oven, add about 4 cups water, then set over medium-high heat. Cover, and cook until clams have opened, approximately 10 to 15 minutes. (Clams that fail to open after 15 to 20 minutes should be discarded.) Strain clam broth through a sieve lined with cheesecloth or doubled-up paper towels, and set aside. Remove clams from shells, and set aside as well.
• Rinse out the pot, and return it to the stove. Add butter, and turn heat to medium-low. Add bacon or salt pork, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the fat has rendered and the pork has started to brown, approximately 5 to 7 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to remove pork from fat, and set aside.
• Add the leeks to the fat, and cook, stirring frequently, until they are soft but not brown, about 10 minutes. Stir in potatoes and wine, and continue cooking until wine has evaporated and the potatoes have just started to soften, approximately 5 minutes. Add enough clam broth to just cover the potatoes, approximately 3 cups, reserving the rest for another use. Add the thyme and the bay leaf.
• Partly cover the pot, and simmer gently until potatoes are tender, approximately 10 to 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, chop the clams into bits about the size of the bacon dice.
• When potatoes are tender, add cream and stir in chopped clams and reserved bacon. Add black pepper to taste. Let come to a simmer, and remove from heat. (Do not let chowder come to a full boil.) Fish out the thyme and the bay leaf, and discard.
• The chowder should be allowed to sit for a while to cure. Reheat it to a bare simmer before serving, then garnish with chopped parsley. Serve with oyster crackers.

Steps:

• In a large soup pot, brown prosciutto, or bacon over medium-low heat until crisp.
• Add the onion and cook until softened.
• Add the flour and stir until lightly colored, about a minute.
• Slowly whisk in the clam broth, reserved clam liquid, potatoes, bay leaf and thyme. Simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes.
• Add the clams, cream, fresh parsley, salt and white pepper.
• Bring to a simmer and serve immediately.
• (You may substitute any type of shellfish, or even fish for the clams in this recipe.).

Steps:

• In a Dutch oven, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp. Remove to paper towels to drain; set aside. Saute celery and onion in the drippings until tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Stir in the potatoes, water, clam juice, bouillon, pepper and thyme. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, until potatoes are tender, 15-20 minutes., In a small bowl, combine flour and 1 cup half-and-half until smooth. Gradually stir into soup. Bring to a boil; cook and stir until thickened, 1-2 minutes., Stir in clams and remaining half-and-half; heat through (do not boil). Crumble the cooked bacon; sprinkle over each serving.

Steps:

• line a cookie sheet with foil and lightly spray with non-stick spray. cut the bacon in half and lay in single layer on foil.
• Bake bacon at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes- just until crisp but still flexible.
• remove bacon to paper towels for later use.
• open the cans of clams and drain over a bowl to RESERVE the juice. let continue to drain while working on the base of the chowder.
• NOW put all that bacon fat in a large pot. add the onions, celery, old bay seasoning and cook until soft. careful not to burn. you will mostly use a med to medium low heat through out recipe.
• peel the skin off the cooled baked potatoes and dice (large or small pieces depending on how chunky you like your soup) use more or less potatoes depending on how chunky you want it.
• let this cook for about 10 minutes stirring often to prevent scorching on bottom of pan. you want the potatoes to "soak" up the bacon fat. once that has happened. add the butter just until melted.
• sprinkle the flour all over and keep stirring. turn the heat up just a touch and do this for about 5 minutes or so until you see some browning happening in bottom of pot.
• NOW add that broth from the can, pay attention there may be a little bit of grit in the bottom from the clams, you dont want that in the pot.
• add enough water to cover the potatoes in the pot add pepper.
• bring this up to a boil and then turn down the heat to a low simmer for about 30 minutes.
• add your clams, and the bacon crumbled up and let cook for 15 minutes.
• add the heavy cream, cajun seasoning and let simmer on low for another 15 minutes.
• taste and adjust seasoning if desired.