The other day I had Cioppino for the first time when I served it for Christmas Eve dinner, a confession that pains me. Here’s why…cioppino is an amazing seafood stew that is The Trademark Dish of San Francisco. I love San Francisco! I had the opportunity to live there for a brief year and it was wonderful. My studio apartment was only a few blocks away from North Beach and a nice walk away from Fisherman’s Wharf. I could have enjoyed this dish authentically made! And while this realization stings a bit, it’s short-lived because (cue the bold statement)…I can make it just as good at home.
Shellfish 101
If you’ve never cooked with shellfish before, here’s what you need to know before you begin:
- Shellfish are live when you buy them, so you have to keep them very cold, but not too cold that they freeze. When I brought mine home, I put them on a bed of ice in a 9×13 baking dish, and then covered them with ice packs and put them in the fridge. In this manner, you should be able to keep them (living) for a few days. I bought mine the day before and then used them for the cioppino within 24 hours.
- If you purchase farm-raised shellfish, they will be cleaner than those harvested wild. This recipe is based on using farm-raised shellfish.
That aside, there are two main parts to making cioppino: the preparation phase, and the cooking phase. The preparation phase is the bulk of it. Give yourself a leisurely 45 minutes to do this part. This is what makes cioppino a perfect food to make with people because everyone can do a little something.
Preparing the Mussels
My stepfather, Ed, helped out by scrubbing the shells and pulling out the wispy parts on the mussels (called the beard).
Once they were cleaned and debearded, he put them in a large bowl (about 8 quarts) filled with cold water to keep while cleaning and prepping all the shellfish.
Clams don’t have beards, they just needed to be rinsed and checked. The shrimp needed to be peeled. We discarded any shellfish that had a crack or were opened. This is the “hardest” part of cioppino. You need to give some time to the proper preparation of the shellfish and make sure you wash, clean, and inspect them.
Note: Serving crab for the holiday is a Bay Area tradition and is an authentic ingredient for this dish. I didn’t use crab in my cioppino, however, because there is an issue with toxic California Dungeness crab this season. For this batch I used few (pricey) Alaska King crab legs instead.
I helped out by cutting up the fish and set it aside. I used salmon and cod.
If you’re lucky like me, you’ll have someone else helping out during shellfish prep. My mom cut up all the bulbs: shallots, onion, garlic, and fennel.
If you’re making this for a crowd and need to coordinate timing (maybe someone is late, or there is an extra appetizer that you want to sample first) you can set all the prepped food aside in the fridge for an hour or so if needed. Once you start the cooking phase, it will be ready in a blink of an eye.
I sautéed the bulbs in a little olive oil first. Then added canned tomatoes, tomato paste, seafood stock, clam juice, and wine and brought to a low boil. Spices and herbs came next (oregano, thyme, saffron, bay leaf).
Shellfish, Please!
- Mussels
- Clams
- Crab legs
- Shrimp
Then I threw in the shellfish. Mussels and clams first, cooking them until they opened (about five minutes), then the crab legs, then the fish, then shrimp. I cooked it all until the shrimp turned pink. Then I added flat-leaf parsley and a bit of basil.
You can serve with a light salad, or by itself. I served it with freshly baked rosemary sourdough bread and it was out of this world. Spoons are entirely optional. Just use the bread to soak up the broth and you’ll be good.
Serving Suggestions
- Crusty sourdough bread topped with butter
- Light green salad with light vinaigrette
- Basil to garnish
I still miss my city by the bay, but enjoying this dinner with loved ones was truly something special. It was more than enough for us. It would easily serve eight people with a little extra. I had two gallons leftover…one full of seafood and the other just the broth. Perfect for freezing and having later during a busy week.
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Cioppino
Equipment
- 12-quart stock pot
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large fennel bulb, thinly sliced
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 3 large shallots, chopped
- 2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 4 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 3/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon dried thyme
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 56 ounces canned diced tomatoes in juice
- 1 1/2 cups dry white wine
- 6 cups seafood stock
- 12 ounces clam juice, bottled (or to taste)
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 pound Manila clams scrubbed
- 1 pound mussels scrubbed and debearded
- 1 pound uncooked large shrimp peeled and deveined
- 5 Alaska King crab legs
- 1 1/2 pound assorted firm-fleshed fish fillets halibut, salmon, cod cut into 2-inch chunks
- pinch of saffron optional
- 3 tablespoon flat leaf parsley, finely chopped finely chopped (optional)
- 2 tablespoon capers optional
- 2 tablespoon basil chopped (optional)
Instructions
- Heat oil in a very large pot, about 10 quarts. over medium heat.
- Add fennel, onion, shallots, and salt and saute until onion is translucent, about 10 minutes.
- Add garlic and red pepper flakes and sautee for two minutes.
- Stir in tomato paste.
- Add diced tomatoes with juices, wine, fish stock, and bay leaf.
- Add the clams and mussels to the pot. Cover and cook until the shells being to open, about five minutes.
- Add the shrimp and fish. Simmer gently until fish and shrimp are just cooked through, and the clams are completely open, stirring gently, about five minutes longer.
- (Discard any shellfish that does not open.)
- Season the soup to taste with more salt and red pepper flakes and serve.
Notes
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