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clam juice recipe finished dish

Clam Stock Recipe

Jenni Cole
Learn how to make simple homemade clam juice recipe from fresh clams the easy way! Whether you call it calm broth, clam stock, or nectar, it makes the best base for soups, stews, and other seafood dishes.
4.75 from 4 votes
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Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Course Seafood
Cuisine American
Servings 4 cups
Calories 29 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 2 lb clams live
  • 3 cups water

Instructions
 

  • Rinse the clams to remove any remaining sand or dirt before you start cooking.
  • Add the live clams and the cold water to a medium-size stockpot. Place the lid on the pot. Turn the heat to medium high and bring the water to a bowl. As soon as the water starts bubbling, turn the pot down to medium to simmer.
  • Cook until the clams open, which will take about 3-5 minutes. We used manilla clams, littleneck clams will take longer to cook (about 10 minutes).
  • Using a slotted spoon, remove the cooked clams from the "juice." Toss any clams that did not open up, which means that they were dead before cooking and aren't safe to eat.
  • To strain the sand and dirt from the clam juice, take a fine mesh strainer and line it with a coffee filter. Pour the clam broth liquid from the pot through the strainer and into a bowl or a quart-size measuring cup.
  • The clam juice recipe should make about 4 cups of broth, if it doesn't add a little water to bring it up to the 4 cups mark.
  • The remaining strained clam juice is now ready to use for any recipes like clam chowder or other seafood dishes. Enjoy!

Notes

The recipe makes a simple broth that doesn't have added flavors like white wine, garlic, salt, or other seasonings. We prefer to keep the clam juice simple and add the seasoning to the recipe we're making instead.
PNW Manilla clams were used in the recipe, which are very small and only take 3-5 minutes to cook. If you have larger clams like Littleneck, they'll take up to 10-11 minutes to cook. Regardless, clams are done when their shell pops open.
We didn't add salt since clams have a natural brined flavor since they're from the sea. Storebought clam juice does add salt. Feel free to add extra salt to your recipe if you feel it's needed.

Nutrition

Calories: 29kcalCarbohydrates: 1gProtein: 5gFat: 0.3gSaturated Fat: 0.1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.1gMonounsaturated Fat: 0.04gTrans Fat: 0.01gCholesterol: 10mgSodium: 28mgPotassium: 16mgVitamin A: 102IUCalcium: 19mgIron: 1mg
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