Instant Pot Clam Chowder (Gluten-Free)
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This creamy, delicious Instant Pot Clam Chowder is made with all whole food ingredients (no canned cream soups!), is gluten-free, and is faster and easier to make thanks to the Instant Pot. Our testing team loved this one!
About This Recipe
We may be from mid-Missouri, but we love ourselves some creamy, traditional New England Clam Chowder. So, I worked on creating my own easy-to-make recipe for a few years(!) and finally nailed it.
Here’s why I think you’ll love my soup:
- Comforting and filling, this soup tastes like a traditional New England Clam Chowder but is made easier in the Instant Pot.
- All real food, clean ingredients. No processed canned soups.
- Our version is gluten-free because we thickened it with cornstarch at the end rather than flour.
- It’s freezer-friendly!
Ingredients
You’ll need these wholesome ingredients (plus whipping cream, which we accidentally left out of the pic below) found in most major grocery stores. You’ll notice that there are no processed canned soups!
Ingredient Notes
- Bacon – Note that you’ll cook the bacon in the Instant pot and then remove it to use for a topping later. You will not add it back into the soup; it makes the soup too salty and the bacon gets chewy. But the left behind bacon grease adds a lot of flavor to the sauteed vegetables.
- Canned minced clams – Always read the ingredient list, and select the brand with the least amount of ingredients. Bar Harbor brand has the cleanest ingredient list, but is quite pricy. We tested it with Snow’s and Chicken of the Sea brands and they work. You’ll find this and the clam juice near the canned tuna section in the grocery store.
- Clam juice – I definitely recommend Bar Harbor brand for this ingredient. I did test using chicken broth and it changes the flavor of the soup significantly to use this substitution. Clam juice is preferable.
- Red potatoes – No need to peel these. Just scrub them and diced into ½ inch pieces.
How to Make Clam Chowder in the Instant Pot
You can find the the full printable recipe at the bottom of this post, but here is a visual overview…
Saute Ingredients
Place bacon in the Instant Pot, and then turn on the Saute function. Fry the bacon until crisp, about 7-9 minutes. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate, leaving the bacon grease in the pot. Next, add the onion and celery and saute until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic during the last 30 seconds.
Additional Ingredients
Place a colander over the Instant Pot and drain the clams, adding the juices to the pot. Set the clams aside in a bowl. Stir in the bottled clam juice, potatoes, thyme, bay leaves, and salt & pepper to the cooker.
Pressure Cook
Lock and seal the lid. Cook for 6 minutes at high pressure with a quick release of the pressure. Remove the bay leaf.
Thicken & Finish Soup
Turn on the Saute function. In a small bowl, stir together the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of water until smooth. Add this slurry to the soup and stir until thickened, about 2-3 minutes. Press Cancel.
Stir the half and half and clams into the pot. Taste and season with more salt and pepper, if needed. The soup will thicken up more as it cools off.
Serve
Serve warm in bowls topped with minced chives, bacon bits, and oyster crackers.
Can You Freeze Clam Chowder?
Yes, you can freeze clam chowder after it’s been fully cooked and cooled. Here’s how:
Freeze for Later: Fully cook the soup through step 6 and let it cool completely. Place the soup in 1- or 2-gallon freezer bags or containers and seal. Place cooked bacon in a quart-sized freezer bag and seal. Freeze together as a kit.
Prepare From Frozen: Thaw and warm over low heat in the Instant Pot or on the stove top, stirring occasionally, until warmed through. Follow step 7 for serving.
Recipe FAQS
Yes! Saute the bacon and vegetables in a pan on the stovetop over medium high heat. Add the other ingredients from Step 3 to the crock pot. Cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours. Stir in the cornstarch slurry and cook on High for another 30 minutes at the end to thicken it. Finish the soup by following Steps 6-7.
No. If you add canned cooked clams at the beginning of your chowder, they’ll get tough and rubbery from overcooking. So, for best flavor, we add the clam juice from the cans early in the cooking process to build depth, and then added the clams themselves at the end.
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Instant Pot Clam Chowder (Gluten-Free)
This creamy, delicious Instant Pot Clam Chowder is made with all whole food ingredients (no canned cream soups!), is gluten-free, and is faster and easier to make thanks to the Instant Pot.
Ingredients
- 6 slices bacon, chopped (sub: 2–3 tablespoons salted butter)
- 1 large onion, diced (about 1 1/2 cups)
- 2–3 celery stalks, diced or sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 4 (6.5-ounce) cans minced clams
- 2 (8-ounce) bottles of clam juice (recommended brand: Bar Harbor)
- 1 1/2 pounds red potatoes, scrubbed and diced into 1/2-inch pieces (about 4 cups; no need to peel)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons minced fresh thyme leaves
- 1 large bay leaf
- 1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper, plus more to taste
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- Minced fresh chives, for serving
- Oyster crackers, for serving (optional, not gluten-free)
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Instructions
Make It Now:
- Saute Bacon: Place bacon in the Instant Pot, and then turn on the Saute function. Fry the bacon until crisp, about 7-9 minutes. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate, leaving the bacon grease in the pot.
- Saute Aromatics: Next, add the onion and celery and saute until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic during the last 30 seconds.
- Additional Ingredients: Place a colander over the Instant Pot and drain the clams, adding the juices to the pot. Set the clams aside in a bowl. Stir in the bottled clam juice, potatoes, thyme, bay leaves, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper to the cooker.
- Pressure Cook: Lock and seal the lid. Cook for 6 minutes at high pressure with a quick release of the pressure. Remove the bay leaf.
- Thicken Soup: Turn on the Saute function. In a small bowl, stir together the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of water until smooth. Add this slurry to the soup and stir until thickened, about 2-3 minutes. Press Cancel.
- Finish Soup: Stir the half and half and clams into the pot. Taste and season with more salt and pepper, if needed. The soup will thicken up more as it cools off.
- Serve: Serve warm in bowls topped with minced chives, bacon bits, and oyster crackers.
Freeze for Later: Fully cook the soup through step 6 and let it cool completely. Place the soup in 1- or 2-gallon freezer bags or containers and seal. Place cooked bacon in a quart-sized freezer bag and seal. Freeze together as a kit.
Prepare From Frozen: Thaw and warm over low heat in the Instant Pot or on the stove top, stirring occasionally, until warmed through. Follow step 7 for serving.
Notes/Tips
- When buying the minced clams, look for the brand with the least amount of ingredients listed.
- Note that you will not add the cooked bacon to the soup before pressure cooking it. It will get too chewy and the soup will become too salty. So, we just have you use it as a topping when serving.
- If you add canned cooked clams at the beginning of your chowder, they’ll get tough and rubbery from overcooking. So, for best flavor, we added the clam juice from the cans early in the cooking process to build depth, and then added the clams themselves at the end.
- I tested this in a 6 quart Instant Pot and do not think there would be room to double this recipe.
- Slow Cooker Instructions: Saute the bacon and vegetables in a pan on the stovetop over medium high heat. Add the other ingredients from Step 3 to the crock pot. Cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours. Stir in the cornstarch slurry and cook on High for another 30 minutes at the end to thicken it. Finish the soup by following Steps 6-7.
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