Thick and Creamy New England Clam Chowder

I like to cook from scratch too, but I thought it made a lot of sense to use cream of celery soup as a base for this clam chowder. I bought fresh minced clams (in their juice) and used half and half. After I browned 4 slices of Oscar Mayer bacon and a whole vidalia onion (chopped); I added two cans of cream of celery soup, two cans of half and half and all of the clam juice to make a broth. Separately, I boiled potatoes, and acknowledging the other reviews, I only peeled and cut up two potatoes so as not to make it too potato-ey. I reserved the fresh minced clams until the end so that they would not get overcooked and rubbery (thanks for that tip too!). The stock seemed a little thin, so I added two tablespoons of Idahoan instant buttery potato, sprinkling it in the broth and letting it dissolve. It thickened the broth and the taste was wonderful--flavor from the soup stock, half and half and clam juice--plus richness from the instant potatoes. I added half a stick of butter to the bacon when it was cooked before I put the onions in too. Now, the chowder is just simmering under a boil--stirring so it doesn't stick to the bottom of the Le Creuset pot--adding the clams last and letting them heat through for flavor but not overcooking them is the last step. Coarse pepper ground on top. I bought two pumpernickel bagels at the farmer's market and will toast them and spread cream cheese on top to go with this hearty chowder for our supper by the New England coast. Thanks for all the tips and observations as you can see they helped me to fine-tune this recipe. It is DELICIOUS, just the right consistency and flavor.

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I am from the Great Plains, so I admit that I am not a Clam Chowder expert. My only exposure to clam chowder was while visting in Maine and New Hampshire during the winter one year. The chowder I enjoyed the most was thick, creamy and had a fair amount of potatoes. So that is why I started with this recipe. I read other reviews and incorporated some of their suggestions.

I doubled the amount of canned clams. I was concerned that the extra amount of clam juice would make the soup to thin, but that was not the case. It really brought out a nice clam flavor.

I added two stalks of chopped celery to add little more texture variation. I also added a couple of cloves of garlic.

But the thing I added that really topped off my variation was 8oz of cream cheese. Of course, I'm sure that clam chowder purists abhore the idea of canned cream of celery soup, canned clams and cream cheese, but it works really, really well. I have made numerous fans by sharing my recipe variation.

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I made a half batch of this for my DH. Since I don't like clam chowder this review is based on his opinion. I think I must have used larger potatoes than intended because I used three and he said that it was a little bland as I made it and it needed salt and pepper. I think I'll make this again and add salt, pepper, double the clams (he said the clam flavor wasn't very strong) and use fewer potatoes. There wasn't enough clam juice to boil the potatoes so I had to add water, and I think that is where the blandness came from. Unfortunately, I couldn't taste as I went so I'll have to use trial and error, but I think this one is one that I'll be able to modify to work for him. Thanks for the recipe!

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FANTASTIC CHOWDER!!! I hesitated somewhat to try this recipe because of the use of canned soup (total scratch cook here). However, because of the amazing reviews, I gave it a try - oh thank heavens I did! Hands down this is the best I have ever made, and probably had at any restaurant (chefs/restauranteurs in the family)! Also shocked how something this good could be that easy to make - other recipes require much more time, ingredients, etc. Only changes/additions: Sauteed a diced rib of celery w/ the onions; used 1/2 & 1/2 because that is what I had on hand; added more dill - preference; and added the clams about 5 minutes before the end of cooking (experienced them becoming tough/chewy if overcooked). After I tasted this, I ended up taking 1/2 to another chowder lover (ex-chef) - rave reviews, and felt the same as I in that it is one of the best he's ever tasted. Thank you Teen for sharing this awesome recipe!

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The chowder was really great tasting, but it didn't taste like clam chowder to me, and I even used extra clams. I think maybe the dill weed may have affected what I thought about this recipe.

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As one of the the most recent reviews stated. For me, the two cans of cream of celery soup completely over powered the taste of the chowder. The second time I made this recipe, I substituted the 2 cans of cream of celery soup for cream of potato and use a few stalks of fresh chopped celery instead. This tasted much more like the clam chowder I expected. I think the next time I'm going to go full on heavy cream in place of the cream of potato soup and use diced potatos for the potatos

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This was amazing clam chowder. Unfortunately I couldn't get any Cream of Celery Soup in Cape Town so used Cream of Mushroom Soup instead. Couldn't have been perfect but it still tasted amazing.

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Excellent Chowder! I have another recipe I have used for years and this one has just repaced it. It is such a simple recipe but with great results. I only made a couple of changes I seasoned it with cayenne pepper and celery salt and had to use half and half instead of heavy cream and milk and I used more clams and didn't add the dill weed. It is so flavorfull and has a wonderful consistancy. Thanks so much for posting!

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I'm a teenager who just graduated from High School and currently living with a friend at an apartment. Our usual breakfast, lunch, and dinner usually includes ramen one way or another...and maybe eggs if we get fancy. I never really cooked before and decided to try this recipe since I LOVE clam chowder. This is extremely easy to make and I followed the instructions down to the letters, except I added more clams since my roommate and I love clams. This turned out PERFECT for me and my roommate also agrees that it's the best clam chowder ever! Thank you for this great recipe! Took me about an hour and a half total!

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My kid recently informed me that she loves clam chowder. A friend's mom made it for her and she came home raving about it. So tonight she had a craving for it and I thought "why not." This caught my eye, I had just a little bacon in the fridge, we made a quick trip to the store and wahhlaaa! It turned out deliciously. I will say I always amend recipes just a tad and this was no different. I used 3 strips of bacon, half a large onion and 4 cans of chopped clams. Additionally I only had 4 potatoes. So I rendered the bacon, threw in the onions (with 2 T butter), once they were translucent I drained all 4 cans of clams and added the clam juice to the potatoes. I also added one cup of water since it just didn't seem like enough liquid. Simmered that for 10 minutes until the potatoes were tender and then added the celery soup, clams, 1 cup half-n-half and pepper. I only just heated it through and served it and my little family declared it a success! My daughter loves it and was overjoyed that I learned a new recipe and made it for her! Even hubby approved and that is rare indeed for a soup! Thanks for an easy, delicious, adaptable recipe! It has gone into the family recipe album!!!

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I've tried this recipe twice, and it's very rich, creamy, chunky, and tasty. My only negative would be that the flavor of the clams (juice) isn't very prevelant. I would suggest adding some additional claim juice.

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Very easy and very good. Perfect dinner for cold weather!

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Absolutely delish!

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This is a tasty potato and celery soup....but a very sad clam chowder. The soup just overpowers any taste suggestion this is a clam chowder. But if you have hypertention or high blood pressure the two cans of commercial condensed soup adds nearly 2000mg of sodum, thats not a heart healthy solution to cooking for many, many people. I do love a good clam chowder, its just that this recipe should be renamed.

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DELICIOUS!! (and I didn't use bacon). This recipe is also easy which means I'll be able to make it again without using the recipe! I added garlic close to when the onions were translucent and used a variety of clams (baby, minced, chopped). I also added a can of corn towards the end because, well, I always want corn in my clam chowder. this turned out great and I'm so glad I made a big pot!

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The long Winter season had me craving a warm, thick clam chowder. This recipe gave me exactly what I was looking for. I decreased the dill weed in half as I did not want the herb to be too overpowering. The chowder came out perfectly.

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The only thing I switched is the clams. Canned clams? Really? Not in New England. No wonder folks can't taste the clams.

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Excellent! Only used 1/2 of the Potatoes and 1 can of Cream of celery soup. I added 2 stalks of diced Celery, cooked along with the Onions.

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Excellent recipe! I just used Half-and-Half instead of heavy cream and milk, and added salt and white pepper to taste instead of dill weed (I think it's too pungent an herb for delicate, sweet clams), and it turned out fabulous, with just the right consistency! I'm definitely adding this recipe to my regular repertoire!

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