Cioppino
This uniquely west coast seafood stew, made with an assortment of in-season fish and shellfish, makes an easy, impressive dinner party star.
Pronounced chuh•PEE•noh, this hearty seafood stew originated around the fishing docks of San Francisco, where Italian immigrant fishermen would cook up a rustic, spicy stew with the catch-of-the-day. A colourful story about the word “cioppino” tells the tale of cooks on the pier calling out to the fishermen to “chip in” their catch to the community stew pot; their heavily-accented shouts were mistaken for “Cioppino!”.
Here’s a wonderful idea! Next time you are having friends for dinner, why not ask them to “chip in” by bringing one of the seafood ingredients. Toss them all into the rich, spicy broth and you have an instantly fabulous dinner party that’s affordable for everyone! Serve with a crusty sourdough bread and a light red wine with great acidity such as Pinot Noir.
You can use whatever in-season shellfish and seafood you can get, but for this recipe I used shellfish only. Full disclosure, all the shellfish and the fish stock I used were generously provided by my local fish market, 1 Fish 2 Fish Fresh Seafood Market in my home town of Langley, B.C.
Cioppino
Equipment
- 1 Large stock pot with lid
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp olive oil extra virgin
- 2 shallots finely diced
- 4 cloves garlic finely minced
- 1 large can diced tomatoes
- 4 tbsp tomato paste (about 1/2 small can)
- 1/2 tbsp dried chili flakes
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 1 cup fish stock
- 1 dozen mussels scrubbed, beards removed
- 1 dozen small clams scrubbed
- 1 dozen prawns shelled & deveined, leave on tails
- 2 tbsp italian parsley chopped
Instructions
- Heat olive oil over medium heat in a large stock pot that has a well-fitting lid. Sauté shallots and garlic until soft and fragrant. Add in diced tomatoes, tomato paste, and chili flakes. Stir and cook for about a minute. Add wine and stock. Simmer on low heat, covered for about 30 minutes.
- Turn the heat to medium-high, and add mussels and clams, and put the lid back on the pot. As soon as the shells have opened, add prawns and cook until pink, about a minute or two. Discard any shells that haven’t opened. Sprinkle with fresh, chopped Italian parsley.
- Serve with a rustic sourdough bread for dipping. Enjoy!
Notes
