Serves 6–8. Makes a great leftover meal.
4 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup tomato paste (if using cans of chicken stock)
(28-ounce) can diced tomatoes in juice, or Pomodoro sauce/Marinara sauce
½ cup of diced celery (if using canned tomatoes, omit if using marinara sauce)
½ cup of diced carrot (if using canned tomatoes, omit if using marinara sauce)
3 garlic cloves, finely diced
1 yellow onion, diced
½ teaspoon dried crushed red pepper flakes, add more if you like it spicy
1 cup water
1 bay leave
1 tablespoon dried basil
½ teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon dried oregano
1½ cups dry white wine
1½ teaspoons salt to taste
¾ teaspoon black pepper
2 cans of chicken stock or 4 bouillon cubes – Tony's preference is 4 tsp. of Better Than Bouillon
1 pound of fish fillets such as halibut or tilapia, cut into 1-inch chunks
1 ½ pounds of medium uncooked shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 pound of scallops
1 ½ cups of crabmeat (optional)
2 cups calamari, cut into rings (optional)
1 ½ pound lobster cut into ½ inch pieces (optional)
1 pound of little neck or other small / medium clams, scrubbed
1 pound of mussels, scrubbed, de-bearded
8 ounces of soup noodles or linguini (optional)
Parsley for garnish
This Italian fisherman’s seafood stew is the cousin of the French bouillabaisse.
There are so many versions of Cioppino, as it is a mixture of any available seafood in a tomato base with common Italian ingredients. You may add/subtract from the list of seafood ingredients as desired to develop your own mixture –– shrimp of course is the most popular. I always use scallops and calamari, and prepare it with a soup noodle because I want every drop of the stew. When using fish, treat it gently as it can easily break apart.
1. Heat the oil in a large stock pot over medium heat.
2. Add the onion (plus celery & carrot if not using marinara sauce) then sauté over medium heat until the onion is translucent.
3. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes, continue to sauté about 3 minutes.
4. In a separate saucepan add one cup of water and shells from the shrimp. Simmer 15 minutes and strain out the shells to make shrimp stock. Add the shrimp stock to the stock pot.
5. Add tomatoes or marinara sauce, tomato paste (if using cans of chicken stock), chicken stock (or bouillon), bay leaves, basil, thyme, oregano, salt, pepper, and wine. Mix, cover, and simmer about 30 minutes. Stir occasionally.
6. Add the seafood in the following order: Fish chunks first, followed by shrimp, scallops, crabmeat, clams, and mussels. Do not stir.
7. Bring to a simmer, lower the heat, cover and cook for 10-15 minutes until the seafood is cooked and the shellfish open.
7. Softly stir in the stew without break up the fish. Discard any clams and mussels that have not opened.
8. Add salt and pepper to taste.
9. Serve in large shallow bowls, or with soup noodles on even on a bed of linguini. Then garnish with parsley.
