Monterey Bay Red Cioppino
Cioppino is a fish stew, originating in San Francisco, CA. The fish stew typically includes, crab. This recipe is a bit different, as it's adapted from a local Fish Restaurant very close to where I live. The first component to make, is a simple marinara sauce that has an ingredient that you'd never think to add to it-- and it works! Once the red sauce is made, fresh mussels are steamed with fresh basil, garlic, dry sherry and clam juice. Last, comes the marinara sauce and the scallops and fish are nestled into the soup and gently cooked for just a few minutes. Last, but not least, the shrimp is added and cooked just long enough to be tender and not chewy. Served with sour dough bread, this soup/stew is loaded with lots of flavor-- and it's healthy!
Ingredients
Marinara (can be made a day ahead):
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 large onion halved and sliced thin
- 3 garlic cloves sliced thin
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 15-ounce can tomato sauce
- 1 cup canned tomato puree
- ½ cup chopped fresh basil
- 1 tablespoon packed light brown sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Cioppino
- 1 ½ pounds skinless cod 1 to 1 1/2 inches thick, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces (or skinless sea bass fillets or halbut) Any kind of firm white fish
- 12 ounces extra-large shrimp 21 to 25 per pound, peeled, deveined, and tails removed
- 12 ounces large scallops tendons removed, cut in half horizontally
- Salt and pepper
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 pound mussels scrubbed and debearded
- ½ cup chopped fresh basil
- ¼ cup dry sherry
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- ½ teaspoon saffron threads crumbled
- 2 8-ounce bottles clam juice
- 1 12-inch baguette, sliced and toasted
- Lemon wedges
Instructions
FOR THE MARINARA:
- Heat oil in large saucepan over medium heat until shimmering. Add onion, garlic, and salt and cook until onion is softened and just beginning to brown, about 8 minutes. Add tomato sauce, tomato puree, basil, sugar, Worcestershire, and cinnamon and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until marinara is slightly thickened, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from heat, cover, and set aside.
FOR THE CIOPPINO:
- Season fiah, shrimp, and scallops with salt and pepper; set aside. Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add mussels, basil, sherry, garlic, Worcestershire, saffron, and ½ teaspoon salt. Cover and cook until mussels start to open, about 2 minutes.
- Stir in clam juice and marinara until combined. Nestle sea bass and scallops into pot and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium, cover, and simmer until seafood is just turning opaque, about 2 minutes. Nestle shrimp into pot and return to simmer. Cover and cook until all seafood is opaque, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and let sit, covered, for 5 minutes. Serve with baguette slices and lemon wedges.
Notes
This recipe doesn't include traditional San Francisco crab, but feel free to add it if you wish. You can also add calamari, and/or clams if you wish. Stick with a firm fish, so it doesn't fall apart. Salmon isn't recommended.
We recommend buying “dry” scallops, which don’t have chemical additives and taste better than “wet” scallops. Dry scallops will look ivory or pinkish; wet scallops are bright white. If you can’t find fresh dry scallops, you can substitute thawed frozen scallops.
If you can’t find sea bass, you can substitute cod, haddock, or halibut fillets.
Recipe source: "Cook's Country Magazine" December / January 2018 issue