We Tried 14 Canned Clam Chowders & This Was The Best

If you’re a fan of clam chowder, nothing beats a fresh, piping-hot bowl served up at a seaside restaurant. Of course, unless you live at the beach, it’s not feasible to have one of those every day. Instead, most of us have to opt for the next best thing: the canned stuff you can buy at the local supermarket.

Like most products, some options for canned clam chowder are far better than others. We taste tested as many as we could get our hands on so you don’t waste your money on the bad stuff. Yes, we tried 14 canned clam chowders, and this was the best.

#ClamChowder #Soup #Clam

Cole’s New England clam chowder | 0:00
Great Value clam chowder | 0:34
Ivar’s Puget Sound Style clam chowder | 1:14
Progresso Manhattan Clam Chowder | 1:58
Campbell’s Homestyle New England clam chowder | 2:39
Stonewall Kitchen New England clam chowder | 3:25
The Black Pearl clam chowder | 3:55
Snow’s New England Clam Chowder | 4:31
Chincoteague Seafood Manhattan clam chowder | 5:10
Boudin San Francisco Wharf clam chowder | 5:50
Tony’s clam chowder | 6:23
Campbell’s Chunky Manhattan clam chowder | 7:15
Progresso Rich & Hearty New England clam chowder | 7:51
Bar Harbor New England clam chowder | 8:16

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Not all clam chowder is canned equal. We tried  everything from award winners to store brands,   and you won’t believe which chowder is the champ.   Keep watching for our definitive  ranking from worst to best. Cole’s New England Clam Chowder is so bad that  it’s actually shocking to your senses if you  

Make the mistake of trying it. This canned soup  tastes like a combination of stagnant lake water,   old onion soup, and decomposing fish guts. “It’s good.” The good news is that Cole’s  clam chowder can’t get any worse.   No matter how they switch up  their recipe, it can only improve.

One taste of Great Value clam chowder and you’ll  understand why a Mashed survey found that this   Walmart brand is regarded as the worst private  label of them all. This soup is so gross that you   wouldn’t even consider feeding it to your cat.  No living being should be forced to eat this.

The first problem you’ll notice is that this soup  has way too many potato chunks. A more appropriate   name for it would be potato chowder because spuds  are sure to be swimming in each and every scoop.   The other glaring problem is the overwhelming and  inescapable saltiness. It’s like they accidentally  

Tripled or quadrupled the amount of salt that  needed to be in the chowder. Why does Walmart   add so much salt? It’s probably to hide the  other shortcomings of this culinary abomination. When you think of states  known for yummy clam chowder,  

You probably think of states on the East  Coast. However, if you look hard enough,   you can also find fantastic clam chowder on the  other side of the United States. Regrettably,   Ivar’s Puget Sound Style clam chowder isn’t an  example of the best the West Coast has to offer.

To be fair, Ivar’s has restaurant locations  that serve delicious clam chowder. However,   when this company cans its clam  chowder, something goes terribly wrong.   Every ounce of flavor that’s found at  the restaurants is lost and all that is   left is a bunch of mushy sadness. To add  to the misery, Ivar’s clam chowder was  

Once recalled due to fears of sharp pieces of  plastic being in the soup. With that in mind,   just stay away. Some soups are bad, but this  one has a history of being actively dangerous. If all you know is New England clam chowder,  do yourself a favor and try Manhattan clam  

Chowder. It’s quite different but it can be  just as scrumptious. While New England clam   chowder is typically white due to the addition  of cream, Manhattan clam chowder doesn’t have   cream. Instead, this version is packed with  tomatoes and veggies like celery and carrots.  

This version of the soup tends to be reddish  in color, because tomatoes make things red. While Progresso knows how to make excellent  New England clam chowder, don’t be fooled   into thinking that all their clam chowders are  winners. Progresso’s Manhattan Clam Chowder  

Is a subpar example of this style. It’s too  watery and the clam pieces are way too rubbery.   Eating the clams in this chowder is about as  fun as gnawing on the eraser of your pencil. Campbell’s sells more than $8 billion worth of  soup a year, according to Food Processing, and has  

A product line that features dozens of varieties,  some of which are the best in their category. But   the unfortunate truth is that their New England  clam chowder isn’t very good. It’s far from the   worst soup on this list but it’s not anything  you should be purchasing on a regular basis.

Of Campbell’s New England offerings, the Homestyle  New England clam chowder is the best — but it will   still leave you wanting something else. First of  all, the lack of clams can’t be ignored. You’ll   spoon through the soup looking for clams but  you won’t be able to find many. Second of all,  

The potatoes are a major letdown. They have an  unappetizing grittiness and virtually no flavor.   Generally speaking, Campbell’s is a trustworthy  name in the soup universe. But just say no when   it comes to their New England clam  chowder. You can do so much better.

Unlike other soups on this list,  Stonewall Kitchen New England Clam   Chowder is made in small quantities and  has soft pieces of delectable clams.   Sadly, that’s where the positives end and  the problems begin. This clam chowder has   little to no spice or flavor of note, which  makes it an extremely bland experience.

If you buy Stonewall Kitchen New England Clam  Chowder, just know that you are going to need   to add ingredients to it to make it flavorful  enough. Thankfully, if you add enough cream,   butter, salt, pepper, and herbs of  your choice, it can become quite tasty.

If you’re feeling lucky, go ahead and purchase  a can of The Black Pearl clam chowder. It’s   expensive, but if things go your way, you’re in  for some of the best clam chowder you’ve ever   eaten. On the other side of the coin, you’re in  for a world of disappointment if you get unlucky.  

What’s the deciding factor? It’s all up to  the amount of clams you find in your soup.   Basically, opting for this  brand is a dangerous gamble. “I’m going after the Black Pearl.” If you don’t want to roll the dice, just go  to The Black Pearl, a restaurant in Newport,  

Rhode Island. This highly-rated eatery has  splendid clam chowder that is reliably delicious. Although Snow’s New England clam chowder  won’t be the best clam chowder you’ll   ever have the pleasure of eating, this  stuff is decidedly above average. Every   can of this clam chowder tastes  exactly like the previous can,  

Which is impressive considering that Snow’s has  been making this soup for more than 100 years.   If you grew up eating it, you’ll be happy to  learn that it tastes the same as you remember. While Snow’s also sells condensed clam chowder,  the cans you should buy say “ready to serve” on  

Them. As that phrase indicates, you don’t need  to add any water, cream, or milk. You don’t need   to even add any salt or pepper. Simply heat it  in a saucepan on your stove or pop it in the   microwave for a couple of minutes and prepare  your taste buds for a consistently tasty treat.

If you want Manhattan clam chowder that allows  the clams to take center stage and be the star   of the show, look no further than Chincoteague  Seafood Manhattan clam chowder. From the first   bite until the very last mouthful, you’ll revel  in the glorious flavor of clams. The flavor is so  

Fresh that you’ll be convinced that the clams were  plucked out of the ocean just minutes earlier. “Good soup.” Chincoteague Seafood Manhattan clam  chowder also has a lot of other   fresh-tasting ingredients playing supporting  roles, including tomatoes, carrots, celery,   sweet peppers, and onions. This dark red clam  chowder smells great and tastes even better.

Boudin San Francisco Wharf clam chowder is crafted  in the Bay Area and it’s so tasty that it is sure   to make even New Englanders fall head over  heels for it. The potatoes, in particular,   are perfect in terms of taste and texture and  are the optimal match for the clam flavor.

To taste Boudin San Francisco Clam Chowder  at its absolute best, you need to eat it out   of a sourdough bread bowl or at least  dip pieces of sourdough bread into it.   That elevates it from a really good  soup to unforgettable clam chowder.

“What’s the deal with the bread  bowl? I’ve never had a bread   bowl before either.” Tony’s clam chowder The Great Chowder Cook-Off has been an annual  event in Newport, Rhode Island, for four decades.   Each year, a world champion is crowned in the  category of best clam chowder. Three times,  

Tony’s Clam Chowder won the coveted title as  the world champion of clam chowder. A single   spoonful of this majestic soup is all  you’ll need to agree that this is indeed   some next-level stuff that richly deserves  its spot in the top five of our ranking.

What makes Tony’s Clam Chowder stand out from  the competition is its supersized peppery   kick. The black pepper in the recipe adds  just enough spice to keep you on your toes   as you enjoy all of its inherent clam  chowder goodness. Even if the thought of  

Spicy foods scares you, don’t fret because  there’s enough gentle creaminess to cool   off your tongue before you dig in for your  next mouthful of award-winning greatness. “I do believe now that this is  probably one of the greatest chowders   in history, and I’m really proud of that.”

If you want voluptuous Manhattan clam  chowder that’s thick in all the right places,   reach for a can of Campbell’s Chunky  Manhattan clam chowder. As the name implies,   this chowder has unmistakably large pieces  of clams, potatoes, tomatoes, carrots,   celery, red bell peppers, and green bell peppers.

“Let’s fill up with some chunky  soup. Whoo. Whoo. Let’s go baby.” As mentioned previously, Campbell’s doesn’t have  a New England clam chowder that is worth buying.   This Manhattan clam chowder, though, is  easily good enough to be the only soup  

Of its kind that you ever buy because it’s so  easy to find on your local grocer’s shelves. Progresso makes multiple varieties of  New England clam chowder. While there   is nothing wrong with their Traditional  version or any of the other varieties,  

The one you need to get your hands  on is the Rich & Hearty version. First, the creamy texture is matched by  a creamy flavor, with plenty of soft,   juicy clams and firm, hearty potatoes. Add  it all together and it’s fair to say that  

Progresso Rich & Hearty New England Clam Chowder  is the best widely available canned clam chowder. If you’re willing to put in the effort  to track down a can of this stuff,   Bar Harbor New England clam chowder is without  a doubt the best canned clam chowder you can  

Find anywhere. While it’s not as ubiquitous  as the soups made by Progresso and Campbell’s,   it’s definitely worth going the extra mile or two.   In fact, not only is this the best clam chowder,  it’s one of the best canned soups of any kind.

Bar Harbor has called Maine home since 1917 and  their dedication to excellence can be tasted   in each can of their clam chowder. Most canned  soups can’t compare to restaurant-quality soups   that are prepared from scratch, but Bar Harbor New  England Clam Chowder is one of the few that can.  

Not only does it compare to the quality  you’d find at a fancy seafood restaurant,   it surpasses what most restaurants are  capable of making. From the clams so   fresh they’ll bite back to the mouthwatering  tender potatoes and everything in between,   this clam chowder is the best  of the best in each category.

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