This rustic, Farm Style Clam Chowder combines fresh manila clams, sliced baby potatoes, a splash of sherry, cream, tarragon and smoky bacon.
With all the makings of a rustic chowder right at our fingertips, the Pacific Northwest delivers all the ingredients for this Farm Style Clam Chowder. This cream based chowder has a splash of sherry and fresh tarragon for a flavorful twist on the classic. The addition of creamy red and yellow baby potatoes cut in slices add to the rustic farm style. Topped with crumbled smoky bacon and freshly steamed manila clams, this bowl delivers the full flavor of the pacific northwest.
All About Tarragon
Tarragon is widely used in French cooking, but did you know it’s native to most of the Northern Hemisphere? It’s mild anise flavor pairs perfectly with creamy seafood dishes like this Farm Style Clam Chowder.
Historically, tarragon has been used for medicinal properties like easing tooth and gum pain, but this herb has many more benefits such as:
- Antioxidant: Neutralize those free radicals with tarragon oil
- Digestive Aid: Improve digestion, upset stomach or irritable bowel
- Sedative: Relieves anxiety / stress and helps with a good nights sleep
- Fights Bacteria: Keeps your body healthy and free from bacteria
Ingredients in Farm Style Clam Chowder
- Manila Clams – Small, sweet clams perfect for steaming, look for solid shells with no cracking.
- Tarragon – French herb with mild anise flavor, fresh is best.
- Bacon – Thick, smoky bacon is preferred for this recipe.
- Onion, garlic, celery – Shop your local farms for fresh ingredients.
- Potatoes – Mix of red and yellow baby potatoes.
- Clam Juice – Broth from the juice of clams adds unique flavor.
- Canned Clams – Chopped clams or shell an extra 2 cups manila clams.
- Sherry – Cooking sherry adds a sweet wine flavor to the broth.
- Cream – Whipping cream / Heavy Cream.
- Chicken Bouillon – Better than Bouillon brand.
Farm Style Clam Chowder
Ingredients
- 4 strips thick cut smoky bacon
- 2 cloves garlic minced (about 1 tbsp)
- 1 Walla Walla sweet onion 3/4 diced 1/4 halved then sliced
- 4 sticks celery chopped
- 10 baby potatoes (mix of red and yellow medium size) halved then sliced
- 4 6.5 oz cans chopped clams reserve clam juice
- 1 8 oz bottle clam juice
- 1/4 cup cooking sherry or white wine
- 4 cups water
- 1 tsp chicken bouillon (better than bouillon brand)
- 1/2 tsp fresh tarragon minced
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 pinch pepper
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
Roux
- 1/2 cup flour
- 1/2 cup butter
Steamer Clams
- 1 lb fresh manila "steamer" clams cleaned
- 1 tbsp bacon grease or olive oil
- 1 large clove garlic minced
- 1 large shallot sliced
- 1/4 cup chicken broth
- 1/4 cup cooking sherry or white wine
- 1/2 tsp fresh tarragon minced
Instructions
- Cook bacon strips in your soup pot over medium high heat until browned and fat is rendered. Remove bacon and set aside, leaving fat in soup pot.
- Saute garlic, onion and celery in bacon fat until softened.
- Add cooking sherry or white wine and stir, scraping up any browned bits from bottom of pot.
- Add potatoes, reserved clam juice, bottle of clam juice , water, chicken bouillon, 1/4 tsp tarragon, salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat.
- Make roux: In a small sauce pan, melt butter over medium heat, stir in flour and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring continuously.
- Slowly add roux to pot of chowder, stirring to combine.
- Add heavy cream and remaining tarragon. Simmer until thickened.
- Serve with freshly steamed clams and crumbled bacon.
Steamer Clams
- Heat a medium pot over high heat. Wait until it is very hot, then add bacon grease or olive oil, garlic, shallot and clams all at once. Add sherry or white wine and chicken broth. Add tarragon. Cover and reduce heat to medium low while the clams steam open. When they have all opened, remove clams and divide among chowder bowls.
Related Recipes
- Pan Seared Cod in Tomatillo Broth
- Steamer Clams in White Wine with Bacon and Fennel
- Pacific NW Smoked Salmon Chowder
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