Cioppino

Cioppino, a fisherman’s fish and shellfish stew from San Francisco, is easy to make, and absolutely delicious with the right ingredients. It has crab (I bought snow crab which was available to me), shrimp, clams, mussels, and some firm fish. You can really throw in any seafood and shellfish that is available and fresh.

The trick is using the highest quality seafood. I wouldn’t attempt this stew unless I had access to very fresh fish and shellfish, which is widely available in the Houston area.

Asian markets and higher end grocery stores tend to have nice fresh seafood, just ask the person behind the counter if it was brought in that day. If you can find a local fish market, even better.

Keep in mind that cioppino is served with the shellfish still in their shells, making for messy eating. But it’s a lot of fun for a small dinner party with friends. Have plenty of napkins available and don’t wear light colors!

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 large fennel bulb, thinly sliced

3 leeks, chopped

2 teaspoons salt

4 large garlic cloves, finely chopped

3/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper flakes, plus more to taste

6 tomatoes diced

1 1/2 cups dry white wine

5 cups fish stock

1 bay leaf

1 pound manila clams, scrubbed

1 pound mussels, scrubbed, debearded

1 pound uncooked large shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 1/2 pounds assorted firm-fleshed fish fillets such as halibut or salmon, cut into 2-inch chunks

3-4 snow crab leg clusters, presteamed

Instructions:

Heat the oil in a very large pot over medium heat. Add the fennel, leeks, and salt and sauté until the onion is translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and 3/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes, and sauté 2 minutes. Add tomatoes and sauté until the tomatoes are soft, another 10 minutes. Add wine and reduce by half. Add fish stock and bay leaf. Cover and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer until the flavors blend, about 30 minutes.

Add the clams and mussels to the cooking liquid. Cover and cook until the clams and mussels begin to open, about 5 minutes. Add the shrimp and fish. Simmer gently until the fish and shrimp are just cooked through, and the clams are completely open, stirring gently, about 5 minutes longer (discard any clams and mussels that do not open). Add the crab to warm at the end. Season the soup, to taste, with more salt and red pepper flakes.

Label into bowls and serve with good crispy bread.

Serves 4 | Cook time: 1 hour 30 minutes | Total time: 1 hour 45 minutes