New England Clam Chowder has long been the king of the great American soup debate. It’s milky, rich, and unapologetically indulgent. If you’ve ever thought that Manhattan Clam Chowder Soup was just a thin, watery tomato broth with a few lonely clams floating around in it, then you’ve been eating the wrong kind. The truth is that a well-made Manhattan Clam Chowder is one of the most exciting, deeply savory, and filling soups in all of American cooking. This recipe will show you how to make it.
Italian and Portuguese immigrants who settled along the New York coastline in the 19th century created Manhattan Clam Chowder. It brought the strong, sun-ripened flavors of the Mediterranean to the rough shores of the northeastern United States. The result was a soup that was completely new: a tomato-forward, herb-scented, deeply salty soup that celebrates the ocean’s bounty without using cream as a crutch. New England chowder wraps you up in a thick, soft blanket, while Manhattan style has a bright, strong, and surprisingly complex flavor that keeps every spoonful interesting from start to finish.
The secret to this better recipe is not adding more tomatoes, but adding them in a smarter way. This recipe will change the way you think about red chowder forever. It uses tomato paste and flour to make a revolutionary “tomato roux” and layers the clam flavor with both canned chopped clams and whole baby clams. The result is a rich, umami flavor and a luxurious body. This is the Manhattan Clam Chowder recipe that makes people who don’t believe in it into lifelong believers.
Recipe Details
| Detail | Info |
|---|---|
| Cuisine | American (Northeastern) |
| Course | Soup / Main Course |
| Difficulty | Intermediate |
| Servings | 6 Servings |
| Prep Time | 20 Minutes |
| Cook Time | 45 Minutes |
| Calories per Serving | Approx. 285 kcal |
Ingredients
The Clam Base:
- 2 (6.5 oz) cans chopped clams, juice reserved
- 1 (6.5 oz) can whole baby clams, juice reserved
- 1 cup bottled clam juice (or chicken broth)
- 2 cups chicken broth
The Aromatics & Body:
- 4–5 slices bacon, cut into ½-inch pieces
- 1 large yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1 cup diced tomatoes (San Marzano strongly recommended)
- 1 cup carrots, diced into ¼ to ½-inch pieces
- 1 cup celery, diced into ¼ to ½-inch pieces
- 1½ lbs Yukon Gold potatoes, diced into ½-inch pieces
Seasoning & Finish:
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- ⅛ tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tbsp fresh tarragon, minced
- 2 tbsp fresh Italian parsley, chopped
- Oyster crackers (for serving)
- Fresh chives (optional garnish)
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1 — Prepare the Clam Liquid
Put the juice from all three cans of clams into a bowl or measuring cup. Put the clam meat in the fridge to cool down until you need it. Mix the reserved clam juice, the bottled clam juice, and the chicken broth to make a single cooking liquid. You should treat this three-part liquid base with the same care you would give a good homemade stock. It is the backbone of your chowder’s oceanic flavor.
Step 2 — Render the Bacon
Put the ½-inch bacon pieces in a large stockpot and heat it over medium-high heat. Cook them slowly and steadily, stirring them every so often, until they are completely cooked, deeply browned, and perfectly crisp. Don’t hurry through this step. You’re not just frying bacon; you’re making the smoky, savory fat base that all the other ingredients will cook in. When you’re done, take the bacon out of the pot with a slotted spoon, but don’t throw away any of the fat that has come out of it.
Step 3 — Sauté the Aromatics
Put the diced yellow onion and minced garlic right into the hot bacon fat. Add a good amount of salt right away. This will pull out moisture and help the onions cook faster and more evenly. Stir the food often and cook it until the onion is completely see-through and the natural sugars start to caramelize on the bottom of the pot. This is also your first chance to deglaze. Use the moisture from the vegetables to scrape up any browned fond that is starting to form.
Step 4 — Build the Tomato Roux
This is the method that sets apart a truly great Manhattan Clam Chowder from all the other watery, thin ones you’ve had. Put the tomato paste right in the pot and stir it into the aromatics very well. Cook for two full minutes, during which time the paste will darken a little and start to stick to the bottom. In classical French cooking, this process is called “pinçage.” It removes the raw acidity from the tomato and concentrates its sugars. Now add the flour to the paste and stir it constantly for another 60 seconds. This will make a thick, rust-colored paste that will give your broth body and stickiness.
Step 5 — Build the Soup Base
While stirring constantly, slowly pour the clam juice and chicken broth that you mixed together into the pot in a thin, steady stream. This slow addition keeps lumps from forming and mixes the tomato roux into the liquid smoothly. Add the diced carrots, celery, chopped clams with their juice, diced San Marzano tomatoes, freshly ground black pepper, and cayenne once all the liquid is in. Mix everything together well until the broth is the same color and thick.
Step 6 — First Simmer
Bring the soup to a full boil. Then, turn the heat down to medium-low and let it simmer for 15 to 20 minutes without a lid. The carrots and celery will get softer, the flour will fully cook out, and the flavors will start to mix together for the first time during this stage. If you see too much rendered bacon fat on the surface, you can skim it off with a ladle for a cleaner, lighter finish. However, many purists like the richness it adds.
Step 7 — Add Potatoes and Whole Clams
Add the diced Yukon Gold potatoes and the whole baby clams that you set aside. With these two extra ingredients, the soup goes from being a tasty broth to a full meal. For about 20 more minutes, or until the potato pieces are completely fork-tender, keep simmering over medium-low heat. During this time, keep a close eye on the potatoes. If you let them simmer too long, they will break down and the texture will become grainy. If you don’t let them simmer long enough, the centers will be hard and unpleasant.
Step 8 — The Final Touch
Before adding the fresh herbs, turn off the heat completely. Stir in the chopped Italian parsley and minced tarragon off the heat. This keeps their volatile aromatic compounds intact and keeps their flavors bright and fresh instead of cooked and dull. Carefully taste the chowder and add more salt if necessary. Keep in mind that the clam juice and canned clams have already added a lot of sodium.
Step 9 — Serve
Spoon the hot chowder into bowls that have been warmed. If you want, you can top each serving with the reserved crispy bacon, a handful of oyster crackers for a satisfying crunch, and some fresh chives. Serve right away, and if you want to really scrape the bowl, have a crusty sourdough baguette on hand.
Manhattan Clam Chowder
Tomato-based clam chowder with smoky bacon, tender potatoes, and bright herbs
- 2 (6.5 oz) cans chopped clams, juice reserved
- 1 (6.5 oz) can whole baby clams, juice reserved
- 1 cup bottled clam juice (or chicken broth)
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 4–5 slices bacon, cut into ½-inch pieces
- 1 large yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1 cup diced tomatoes (San Marzano recommended)
- 1 cup carrots, diced (¼–½ inch)
- 1 cup celery, diced (¼–½ inch)
- 1½ lbs Yukon Gold potatoes, diced (½ inch)
- Salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- ⅛ tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tbsp fresh tarragon, minced
- 2 tbsp fresh Italian parsley, chopped
- Oyster crackers (for serving)
- Fresh chives (optional garnish)
Prepare the Clam Liquid
Drain clam juices into a measuring cup; refrigerate clam meat. Combine reserved juices + bottled clam juice + chicken broth.
Render the Bacon
Cook bacon in a stockpot over medium-high until crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon; keep the rendered fat in the pot.
Sauté the Aromatics
Add onion and garlic to bacon fat with a pinch of salt. Cook until translucent and lightly caramelized, scraping any fond.
Build the Tomato Roux
Stir in tomato paste; cook 2 minutes until darkened. Sprinkle flour over and stir 60 seconds to form a thick paste.
Build the Soup Base
Slowly pour in the combined liquids while stirring to prevent lumps. Add carrots, celery, diced tomatoes, chopped clams (with juice), pepper, and cayenne.
First Simmer
Bring to a boil, then simmer uncovered 15–20 minutes. Skim excess bacon fat if you want a lighter finish.
Add Potatoes & Whole Clams
Stir in potatoes and the reserved whole baby clams. Simmer ~20 minutes more until potatoes are fork-tender.
Finish with Herbs
Turn off heat. Stir in tarragon and parsley. Taste and adjust salt (clams add sodium).
Serve
Ladle into bowls and top with crispy bacon, oyster crackers, and chives (optional). Serve immediately.
Conclusion: Why This Chowder Wins
The most important thing about making Manhattan clam chowder is to respect the clam. This recipe makes every choice with the goal of letting the clam’s natural, oceanic sweetness and brine shine as the clear star of the bowl. For example, the tomato is only added in small amounts, the clam meat is added in two stages, and the fresh herbs are added later. Too many Manhattan chowder recipes cover the clam with a lot of tomato juice, making it taste more like marinara than seafood soup. This recipe won’t make that mistake.
The choice of Yukon Gold potatoes is also a smart one. Their medium starch content gives the broth a rich, coating mouthfeel without the heaviness of cream as they cook. And the “tomato roux” method you learned in Step 4 is a real cooking skill that you can use in other dishes. The idea of cooking tomato paste with fat and flour to make a thick, flavorful base works just as well for classic French bouillabaisse, Italian cacciucco, and many other stews and braises.
This chowder has about 285 calories per serving, which makes it a lot lighter than its New England counterpart without losing any of its deliciousness. And like all great slow-cooked soups, it tastes even better the next day, after the tarragon and clam juice have had a full night in the fridge to mix together and become something truly special. Make a lot on Sunday, and you’ll look forward to lunch every day of the week.
Common Questions & Answers About Manhattan Clam Chowder Recipe
Why use both chopped and whole baby clams?
When you simmer chopped clams, they break down and spread their flavor and protein throughout the broth. Whole baby clams, on the other hand, keep their meaty texture and add satisfying, substantial bites to the finished bowl.
What exactly is a “tomato roux” and why is it a game-changer?
A traditional roux is made by mixing fat and flour. A tomato roux adds tomato paste as a third ingredient. This thickens the broth (with starch) and gives it a deep, caramelized tomato flavor (with the Maillard reaction) all at once, which regular tomato additions can’t do.
Can fresh clams be substituted for canned?
Yes, for sure. Steam about 36 littleneck or cherrystone clams until they open, then take them out and chop the meat. Use the strained steaming liquid as your main clam juice. Fresh clams have a stronger oceanic minerality than canned clams.
Why does a traditional Manhattan Chowder actually need flour?
The tomato-and-broth base stays watery and thin without a thickening agent, so it can’t coat the potatoes or stick to the vegetables. The starch granules in the flour, when heated in the liquid, give the soup its “body” and thickness, turning it from a broth into a real chowder.
What does tomato paste contribute that diced tomatoes alone cannot?
Tomato paste has shrunk to about one-third of its original size, which concentrates the glutamates, natural sugars, and lycopene without adding extra water. One tablespoon of paste gives you the color and umami taste of several tablespoons of fresh tomato.
Why is tarragon considered the definitive “seafood herb”?
Estragole, the main aromatic compound in tarragon, has a light anise-like flavor that goes well with shellfish. Estragole’s slight sweetness is similar to and enhances the natural sweetness of fresh clam meat in a way that parsley, thyme, or dill can’t quite do.
Can a vegetarian version of this recipe be created?
You can make a meatless version by using finely chopped king oyster mushrooms (which have a clam-like texture) and mushroom or kombu broth (which has the same depth of flavor as seafood stock). But since it doesn’t have the oceanic flavor that real clam meat and juice have, it’s more of a vegetarian tomato chowder than a clam chowder.
What is the culinary purpose of skimming the surface fat during the first simmer?
The bacon fat that floats on top of the soup has separated from the emulsified base and makes the soup feel greasy instead of adding flavor. Skimming it makes the soup look cleaner and gives it a lighter, more refined taste, but it does make it a little less rich overall.
Why is the whole baby clam addition timed to the final 20 minutes?
All bivalve proteins, including clam proteins, are very sensitive to heat for a long time. When you cook clams too long, the myosin and actin proteins in the muscle break down too much, releasing moisture and making the texture rubbery, shriveled, and unpleasant. Adding them late keeps them soft.
What specific qualities make San Marzano tomatoes superior for long-simmered soups?
Compared to regular plum tomatoes, San Marzano tomatoes (DOP-certified) have a higher solid-to-liquid ratio, fewer seeds, and a lot less citric acid. Because they are less acidic, they need less neutralization and don’t overpower the delicate clam flavor when they are simmering for a long time.
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