Creamy, Delicious Clam Chowder
Slow-cooked in the crock pot, add whatever fish you have on hand
For this recipe, I use my own homemade fish stock, and I don’t feel at all bad about the fact that I use canned clams. If you don’t have fish stock on hand, just substitute with extra clam juice, chicken stock or water.
I love making this clam chowder when I have leftover salmon, trout or other fresh fish, at which point, of course, it turns into more of a fish or seafood chowder. Just mix and match whatever fresh or canned fish you have on hand, or use only clams.
Ingredients for Clam Chowder
Tip:
This clam chowder is a hearty comfort food meal or a rich first course for a nice steak dinner.
- Fish stock, 2 cups
- Cornstarch, 2 tbsp
- Half and half cream, 1 1/2 cups (one at beginning, 1/2 at the end)
- Butter, 1/4 lb (use half at beginning and rest at the end)
- Onion, 1/2 large, finely chopped
- Potatoes, 1 large or 3 baby, diced
- Canned clams, 2 cans – use just one can of juice if you use fish stock
- Garlic, 4 – 6 cloves, minced
- Savoury, 1/2 tsp dried
- Fresh ground black pepper, 2 tbsp
- Celery salt, 1 tsp
- Basil, 1 tsp dried
- Cumin, pinch
- Nutmeg, pinch
- Worcestershire sauce, 1 tsp
- Optional:
- Canned or cooked salmon or trout
- 1 can of crabmeat
How to Make Clam Chowder in the Crock Pot
- Mix the cornstarch with very cold fish stock, or the cream or clam juice if you’re not using fish stock.
- Pour the cornstarch mix, 1 cup of the cream, and one can of clams with the juice into the crock pot.
- Put the second can of drained clams, half of the butter and all the other ingredients, except the optional ones, in the crock pot.
- Cook on low 6 hours.
- Turn to high for about twenty minutes, then stir in the remaining cream and butter.
- Turn this clam chowder into seafood chowder at this point with crab meat and any other canned or cooked fish you want to add. Add a bit more basil, salt and pepper if needed and cook long enough to heat everything through.
The last time I made this clam chowder, I had leftover bacon wrapped scallops that I cut up and threw in with a can of crab meat and a can of salmon for the last hour — great flavour and texture!
