Ingredients

• 4 (8 oz) bottles of clam juice, heated
• 3 (6.5 oz) cans of drained chopped clams (reserve juice)
• 1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter
• 1 cup chopped Spanish onion
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 6 oz flour (about 1 1/4 cups)
• 2 cups diced potato
• 1 teaspoon clam base or 2 clam bouillon cubes
• 1 pint half and half cream, heated
• 4 oz salt pork, scored
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat
2. Add chopped onions and celery to the melted butter and sauté until transparent
3. Mix flour into the vegetable mixture and cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently
4. Slowly add hot clam juice (both bottled and reserved from canned clams) to the mixture
5. Whisk until smooth
6. Add scored salt pork
7. Add clam base or clam bouillon cubes
8. Add chopped clams to the mixture and cook for 20 minutes
9. Meanwhile, in a separate pot, cook diced potatoes until tender
10. Add the cooked potatoes to the chowder
11. Let the mixture stand for 20 minutes
12. Remove the salt pork and discard
13. Add the heated half and half cream to the mixture, stirring gently
14. Season with salt and pepper to taste
15. Serve hot