New England Clam Chowder

New England Clam Chowder

9 January 2018

Creamy, rich and chunky clam chowder made the good old fashioned way with fresh clams, potatoes, and a hint of bacon.
  • Level #2: sous chef
  • Masterclass
  • Recipes

Category

Main

Serves

8

Preperation Time

10 minutes

Cooking Time

40 minutes

Ingredients

3 dozen cherrystone clams in their shells scrubbed

3 onions chopped into 1⁄2" pieces divided

2 sticks celery chopped into 1⁄2" pieces

2 carrots chopped into 1⁄2" pieces

2 sprigs fresh thyme

2 bay leaves

2 cups clam juice

2 cups water

6 slices bacon chopped into 1 ⁄2" pieces

1⁄4 cup plain flour

1lb red potatoes cut into 1⁄4" cubes

2 cups double cream

2 tablespoons fresh parsley chopped

Instructions

1Combine the clams, 1 cup of the chopped onion, celery, carrots, thyme, bay leaves, clam juice and water in a large pot

2Cover the pot; bring to a boil over a high heat and cook until the clams open, about 10-12 minutes

3Remove clams from their shells and transfer to a bowl; cover and cool. Meanwhile, use a wire mesh sieve lined with cheesecloth or paper towel to strain the cooking liquid into a bowl and reserve

4Chop the cooled clams and reserve

5Wipe out the pot and return to the stove over medium heat

6Add the bacon and cook, stirring occasionally, until starting to crisp, about 10 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low and add the remaining 2 cups of onion; cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are translucent, about 10 minutes

7Add the flour and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in the reserved broth and the potatoes, increase heat to medium, bring to a simmer, cover and cook until potatoes are cooked through, 8-9 minutes

8Stir in the reserved clams and cream, return to a simmer and cook uncovered until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in parsley.