Cioppino
Our homemade Cioppino seafood stew recipe is here to impress, with a flavorful tomato broth and loaded with your favorite seafood. Don't forget to serve it with crusty sourdough, for dipping.
Servings: 6
Calories: 381kcal
Cost: $62
Equipment
- Dutch Oven or large stock pot
- Cheesecloth optional
Ingredients
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 bulb fennel , chopped
- 1 onion , chopped
- 3 shallots , diced
- 4-6 cloves garlic , minced
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes , or more to taste
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 2 Tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 cup dry white wine*
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/2 teaspoon Dried oregano
- 2 28oz cans San Marzano whole peeled tomatoes , or use crushed tomatoes
- 1/2 cup fresh chopped parsley
- Lemon wedges , for serving
- Sourdough or crusty artisan bread , for serving
Seafood:
- 1-2 lbs dungeness or king crab , in the shell
- 1 pound large raw shrimp , with shells and tails
- 1 pound fresh white fish , like halibut, cod, sea bass, cut into 1-in pieces
- 1 pound fresh mussels , debearded
- 1 pound fresh clams , rinsed
Instructions
- Make Seafood Stock*: Use kitchen shears to cut open the crab legs and remove the meat, then place the cracked shells into a stock pot. Remove shells and tails from shrimp then add to the stockpot. Add enough water to the pot to cover the shells by about an inch. Add a pinch of salt. Cook over medium high heat until water reaches a bare simmer. Add clams and mussles on top (don’t stir) and cover pot. Cook for 2-3 minutes, until shells open up. Uncover, remove from heat and set aside
- Tomato Base: Add oil to a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Stir in onion, fennel and 2 teaspoons kosher salt. Cook until onion is soft and translucent, 8-10 minutes. Stir in garlic and red pepper flakes then cook for 1 minute. Add tomato paste and stir well. Add wine and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in crushed tomatoes, bay leaf, and oregano.
- Strain Stock: Set clams and mussels aside and strain seafood stock through a fine mesh strainer with a cheesecloth over it (if you don’t have a cheesecloth, just don’t add the bottom tablespoons of liquid, that may have sand in it) into a measuring cup. Add 4 cups seafood stock to the pot. Bring to a simmer, reduce heat, cover pot, and simmer for 30 minutes.
- Add seafood: Just before you’re ready to serve the stew, bring to a simmer, stirring. Cut the fish into 1 inch pieces and drizzle fish and shrimp with a little oil, and season with salt and pepper. Add the fish, cover, reduce heat and simmer for 3 minutes. Stir in shrimp and crab and simmer about 2-3 minutes, just until shrimp are pink. Stir in steamed clams and mussels. Taste the sauce and add more seasoning, if needed. Sprinkle with fresh parsley.
- Serve: Ladle stew into bowls and serve with fresh lemon wedges, crusty bread, and extra bowls for placing shells in (and lots of napkins)!
Video
Notes
Make Ahead Instructions: Make the tomato base and seafood stock a few hours or up to a night before serving.
Freezing Instructions: I don't recommend freezing cioppino with the seafood, as the seafood will overcook when rewarmed. But any leftover tomato broth could be frozen and used another day, with fresh seafood.
Seafood Variations: You could replace the crab with scallops (add them at the same time as the fish). Calamari would also be a great addition, and can be added near the end. I don’t recommend using oysters or salmon as their flavor may overpower the dish.
Crab: You can add the crab, in its shell, to the broth, if you want to serve it in the shell, but I think the shells help add rich flavor to the seafood stock.
Wine: don’t use “cooking wine”, but instead choose an inexpensive dry white wine, like chardonnay, sauvignon blanc or pinot grigio. I don’t drink alcohol, but I do use wine in cooking because it adds a depth of flavor you can’t get otherwise (most of the alcohol cooks out). If you’re against cooking with wine, you can omit it, or add a little splash of white wine vinegar.
Seafood Stock: You could substitute 4 cups store-bought seafood stock, and add the clams and mussels at the same time as the shrimp and crab.
Nutrition
Calories: 381kcal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 45g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 191mg | Sodium: 1666mg | Potassium: 1164mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 936IU | Vitamin C: 21mg | Calcium: 143mg | Iron: 3mg
Recipe Link
Recipe Video
