Canned Clam Chowder Is 100x Richer When You Add This Creamy Ingredient

Clam chowder is one of those rich, indulgent soups that sticks to your ribs and leaves you feeling utterly satisfied by the time you've worked your way through a bowl. And while there is something intangibly special about a homemade chowder, many of us don't have the time or wherewithal to spend chopping and simmering, nor access to fresh clams, so more often than not, we're reaching for a canned version. And the store-bought stuff is definitely a serviceable substitute (it even makes a flavorful seafood pasta sauce), but if you want to make it 100 times richer and much closer to homemade, adding a pat or two (or five) of butter gives it an instant upgrade.

New England-style clam chowder is creamy by default, and while the canned version typically gets that right, the flavor can fall a little flat at times or have too much of the wrong things. Adding butter can actually help remedy a multitude of sins, like excessive saltiness, which is why you'll likely want to use unsalted butter, as canned soups tend to be fairly high in sodium already. Butter can further help mellow your soup's underlying sourness, bitterness, or too much acidity, in addition to creating a deeper, richer backdrop for the bits of potato and clam. It also facilitates a more velvety, silky texture that will make you want to lick the bowl clean.

Adding butter to clam chowder to improve the texture and the taste is pretty straight-forward, but there are a few things you'll want to keep in mind. First, to avoid the butter breaking and separating, you should add it at the end of the soup-heating, after the pot has been taken off the burner. Further, instead of aggressively stirring the butter in, you might instead let it melt slowly into the soup, holding the pot by the handle and tilting it around at different angles until the golden pat has disappeared, so that it has the opportunity to gently incorporate into the chowder. 

If you go rummaging through your fridge looking for butter but come up empty, there are a few ingredients you might have on hand that can add their own brand of richness. Heavy cream is one option, which will create a spoon-coating thickness. You might also mix in a dollop of plain yogurt, which can give the chowder a pleasant tang. And a surprising addition is Cheez Whiz. One commenter on Reddit vouches for this ingredient, which they said not only makes the chowder creamier and richer, but also gives the soup a desirable bite with its sharp, cheesy flavor.