In order to make Manhattan clam chowder substantially richer, more gratifying, and more tasty, I changed the recipe. Manhattan clam chowder is typically quite watery, very tomato-y, and not nearly clammy enough. My enigmas? There were numerous clams, a moderate amount of tomato, and a small amount of flour to thicken the dish. If preferred, top with fresh chives, parsley, tarragon, or even dill and serve on oyster crackers.
| Prep Time: | 35 mins |
| Cook Time: | 1 hr |
| Total Time: | 1 hr 35 mins |
| Servings: | 6 |
| Yield: | 6 servings |
Ingredients
- 2 (10 ounce) cans whole baby clams, undrained
- 2 (6.5 ounce) cans chopped clams, undrained
- 4 strips thick-cut bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 cup diced yellow onion
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- kosher salt to taste
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 cup bottled clam juice
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 2 medium carrots, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
- 2 ribs celery, sliced into 1/2-inch pieces
- ½ cup diced Italian tomatoes
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 3 pinches cayenne pepper
- 3 cups peeled, diced Yukon Gold potatoes
- 2 teaspoons minced fresh tarragon
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley
Instructions
- Drain baby and chopped clams. Reserve liquid in the refrigerator until needed and set clams aside.
- Place bacon in a soup pot over medium-high heat; cook and stir until well-browned and almost crispy, 7 to 10 minutes. Add onion, garlic, and a pinch of salt; cook and stir until onions start to soften and turn translucent, 5 to 7 minutes.
- Add tomato paste; cook and stir for 2 minutes. Don’t worry if some of the tomato paste sticks to the bottom of the pot; we want that to happen. Sprinkle in flour; cook and stir for 2 to 3 minutes.
- Dump in reserved clam juice plus bottled clam juice and chicken broth. Stir with a spatula, scraping the bottom of the pot to deglaze any caramelization.
- Add carrots, celery, clams, diced tomatoes, pepper, and cayenne; stir and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, skimming off some bacon fat if desired.
- Add diced potatoes and cook until tender but not falling apart, about 20 minutes. Taste and adjust for salt, if needed. Stir in fresh tarragon and parsley just before serving.
- The steps in my video for adding the clams and clam juice vary slightly from the written recipe. For best results, follow the written recipe.
- To simplify things, you could just use six 6 1/2-ounce cans chopped clams.
- Bacon is optional, but I consider it a key ingredient. If you skip it, toss in 3 to 4 tablespoons butter.
- You can use fresh peeled and seeded tomatoes in place of canned, or russet potatoes in place of Yukon Golds.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 375 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 32 g |
| Cholesterol | 114 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 3 g |
| Protein | 46 g |
| Saturated Fat | 1 g |
| Sodium | 902 mg |
| Sugars | 4 g |
| Fat | 6 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
Absolutely delicious! The only thing that I skipped was the flour.
We made it. We loved it. But as a group of Marylanders, we thought it was so much better with just one amendment …. we used 2 tsp. of Old Bay. Perfection!
I used fresh tomatoes and sauteed with onion & garlic. Old Bay seasoning and the zest and juice of 1 lemon. Yummy
Delicious. I used six peeled and seeded Compari tomatoes. I don’t care for the texture of canned diced tomatoes. Great recipe!
I love this recipe and just tried it out today, though I did do two things different. First I used crushed red pepper flakes instead of cayenne pepper and second I used baby red potatoes instead of Yukon gold potatoes.
I loved it was a great hit, I got everything to make this and had it on hand what seemed like forever but i wanted to weight for a cold and in doing so it was a great hit, family loved hit
My neighbor said it was the best clam chowder he has ever had.
I love Manhattan Chowder and this was the best! However, I did one part a little differently. I microwaved the bacon. I used a microwave bacon cooker. 4 pieces, about 7 minutes on 40% power, a combination that took me years of trial and error to get. Thus, the bacon wasn’t “browned” but it still worked! While the bacon was cooking, I put the diced onion and garlic in the soup pan. When the bacon was done, I poured the grease onto the diced onion and garlic in the soup pan and cooked accordingly. And when I added the tomato paste, there wasn’t any “browned bits” for the paste to stick to. But it still turned out wonderful! It was so good I ate three bowls the first time. The way I did it, the bacon grease mixed in with the soup and made it really good! Didn’t need to skim.
I very rarely rate recipes, but this one is one of the BEST step by step, not needing to change a thing recipes I have ever made. I’m usually a New England Style Clam Chowder person, but THIS recipe changed me!!!! SOOOOO GOOD!!!!!
I love both chowders, New England Clam Chowder and Manhattan Clam Chowder. I have a great New England Clam Chowder (from this web site), that I’ve used for over 10 years. It’s delicious and now I must say, this is the best Manhattan Clam Chowder I’ve ever tasted. Rich, creamy and full of flavor. My only changes were butter instead of beacon and all clams were minced. I checked out other recipes, but after reading the ingredients, this was the winner. And it truly is.
Brings back memories of the clam chowder I ate as a kid 50 years ago at Jones Beach. Absolutely delicious. The tomatoey roux step is good cause it gives the soup body. And the oyster crackers are the bomb with chowdah.
I was disappointed. The ingredients are great but it tasted like tomato and not clam. I used the broth from 4 cans clams and I jar broth Any suggestions? I don’t want to spend 5.96 to add another jar of broth
I added a little more paste and it came out amazing….
Delicious !
I made this clam chowder for our Holy Supper,which is meatless, at Christmas time. It was perfect and big hit! I have added this recipe to our regular menu and will make this to eat year round. I did not use the bacon but substituted with the butter. It was easy to make and I had some leftover and put it in the freezer. Hard to believe, but it tasted even better after it had been frozen , almost if the flavors had time to meld. I thought the potatoes would have gotten mushy after being frozen,but they didn’t. 5 stars all the way! Thank you Chef John!
Turned out exactly how it should easy to follow great recipe
Tasty and easy! Had to omit garlic and onions due to food allergy- so added chopped fennel, 2t black pepper + 2t crushed red pepper. Also added 1 # seafood mix and a little cauliflower cuz I had them on hand . Came out delicious and filling enough as an entree w all the goodies I added.
Delicious ! I had to modify as we try to eat low fat and low carb. I used turkey bacon instead of regular bacon and as we dont eat potatoes because of the carbs? I cubed tofu. I didnt skip the flour (even tho carbs) because didn’t want it watery. My family loved this and will definitely make again!
This was wonderful! A good deal of prep, but preparing it was a breeze. I used 4 cans chopped clams and a little extra chicken stock. Next time I think I’ll add a little more tomato paste. The fresh tarragon absolutely took this from very good to stellar. Another winner and do-over from CJ!
Trusted Chef John to make a great Manhattan Clam Chowder — and Chef John delivered!
I signed up just to rate this recipe. Its fantastic. I followed the recipe as he wrote it with the only exception, I couldn’t find tarragon in my local store so I left it off (its optional anyway). I even gave some to my neighbors who love it as well and asked for the recipe.