Easy Clam Chowder Recipe

Clam chowder is a thick, hearty soup, but oddly, it’s light enough in taste that it can be eaten any time of the year. It’s inexpensive to make, too. Let me show you how!

I partnered with Collective Bias and their advertiser (Walgreens) to bring you this easy chowder recipe. I was compensated for writing the post, but all thoughts and opinions are my own.

If you’ve ever struggled to make your monthly shopping budget stretch until your next paycheck, I’ve got some great news for you! I used paperless coupons from Walgreens to help me save money on the ingredients for this easy clam chowder recipe. I saved loads of money with #WalgreensPaperless!

Did I really just tell you that I buy groceries at Walgreens?  You betcha, I did!  

Hey, if I can save money on groceries by purchasing them at a store I already shop at anyway, and I can save money while I’m doing it, why not? Besides, by not having to spend time with the Sunday newspaper and a pair of scissors, I save time along with my money savings.

How Paperless Coupons Work

Walgreens paperless coupons are just like the manufacturer coupons that you find in the newspaper, but these are better, because they’re all in electronic form. They can be ‘clipped’ and sent to your own Balance Rewards account, then they’re redeemed when you purchase the product. To get access to the coupons, I downloaded the Walgreens mobile app to my phone. After I used the app to the select the coupons I wanted to redeem, the app sent the coupons over digitally to my free Walgreens loyalty card.  I took a couple of screen shots so you can see what it looks like:

In addition to the convenience of not having to clip paper coupons, I really liked having accessibility to the Walgreens app because I could view the store’s weekly specials and sales there, too. That’s how I found out that my favorite peanut mix and Brian’s favorite brand of deodorant were on sale.

I saved $8 on those items, and then I went to the food aisle to pick up the items that I had paperless coupons for.  I bought two cans of chicken stock for $1 and two cans of clams for $2.  I don’t know what you pay for those items in your neck of the woods, but around here, a single can of this brand of chopped clams normally sells for $1.69 and the chicken stock is about $.89 a can, so I saved another $2.  That’s a total of $10 in savings…  Sweet!

Saving that much money at Walgreens allowed me to treat myself to stop over at the farmer’s market to pick up organic potatoes and celery for my clam chowder recipe.  Because of my tight grocery budget, those type of purchases are rare treats.

Incidentally, ranch biscuits or a healthy salad are the perfect side with your clam chowder.

I want to hear what you would do with the savings from deals like that.  Please let me know in the comments below this post!

OK. Let’s make some easy clam chowder!

Easy Clam Chowder

This creamy New England style clam chowder is incredibly flavorful and comes together in just 20 minutes!

5 from 3 votes

Print Pin Rate

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Servings: 4 cups

Calories: 401

Author: Lindsay

Ingredients

• 3 slices of bacon, diced
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 rib celery, diced
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried
• 1 bay leaves
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black or white pepper
• Dash of cayenne (optional)
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 2 cups peeled and diced yukon gold or baby red potatoes
• 4 ounces seafood stock
• 4 ounces clam juice
• Liquid from the canned clams
• 2 (6.5 oz) cans clams, diced or minced
• 4 ounces heavy cream

Instructions

• Place bacon in a large soup or stock pot over medium heat; cook until it's almost crisp. Remove bacon and place on paper toweling to drain. Leave bacon grease in pan and add butter.
• Once butter has melted, add diced onion, celery, bay leaf, thyme, salt, pepper, and cayenne (if using)..
• Cook for 4-5 minutes, or until onions become translucent, then add the flour and stir to combine. Allow to cook for 1 minute, add the reserved clam cooking liquid, the diced potatoes, and stock. Bring to a boil, stirring fairly frequently, and then reduce the heat. Simmer until the potatoes are tender - usually about 8 - 10 minutes. Stir once or twice as the potatoes simmer.
• Add the clams and the heavy cream. Bring just to a simmer, and then cook for 2-3 more minutes.
• Stir in cooked bacon, reserving some for garnish.

Recipe Nutrition

Nutrition Facts

Easy Clam Chowder

Amount Per Serving

Calories 401 Calories from Fat 216

% Daily Value*

Fat 24g37%

Saturated Fat 12g75%

Cholesterol 108mg36%

Sodium 622mg27%

Carbohydrates 16g5%

Fiber 1g4%

Sugar 3g3%

Protein 29g58%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.