1 bunch flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped, about 1 cup
2 garlic cloves, finely minced
3 anchovy fillets, dried and finely chopped
zest from 1 lemon
2 teaspoons lemon juice
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
To serve:
Pernod
fennel fronds
For the garlic bread
6 slices sourdough, halved
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 large garlic clove
finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
Takes ,
serves 6.
Instructions
Prepare the gremolata: Stir the parsley, garlic, anchovies, lemon zest, salt and pepper together in a medium bowl. Add lemon juice and enough olive oil to create a thick sauce. Cover and refrigerate until use.
Prepare the stew: Heat large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add olive oil and, once shimmering, add onions and fennel. Cook until soft and translucent. Add carrot, celery, and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes, until tender. Stir in fennel seeds, chili flakes, salt and pepper and cook for 1 minute. Add the fish stock, wine and tomatoes. Bring to a boil.
Add clams and mussels to boiling broth. Reduce to simmer, cover and cook for 10 minutes or until the clams and mussels are open. Discard any that remain closed. Gently stir the cod, scallops, shrimp and squid into the stew. Cover and cook for 5 minutes more.
Prepare the toasted bread: Preheat barbecue or grill to 500°F. Brush both sides of the sourdough bread slices with olive oil. Place onto grill and toast for about 1 minute, then turn and toast the other side. Remove from grill and rub with a cut garlic clove. Sprinkle with chopped parsley.
To serve: Ladle stew onto large soup plates. Add a a splash of Pernod, a dollop or two of gremolata and 1 or 2 two fennel fronds as garnish.
Serve with toasted bread and remaining gremolata on the side.
Cioppino Fisherman’s Stew
Ingredients
For the fish stew:
1 pound cod loin, cut into 2-inch pieces
½ pound sea scallops, divided widthwise
½ pound jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 small squids, cut into rings, tentacles divided
1 dozen mussels, scrubbed
1 dozen clams, scrubbed
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 white onion, finely diced
2 small carrots, finely diced
3 celery ribs, finely diced
¼ fennel bulb, finely diced, about 1 cup
3 garlic cloves, finely diced
2 teaspoons fennel seeds
½ teaspoon chili flakes
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 28-ounce cans crushed tomatoes
1½ cups dry white wine
4 cups fish stock or broth
For the gremolata:
1 bunch flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped, about 1 cup
2 garlic cloves, finely minced
3 anchovy fillets, dried and finely chopped
zest from 1 lemon
2 teaspoons lemon juice
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
To serve:
Pernod
fennel fronds
For the garlic bread
6 slices sourdough, halved
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 large garlic clove
finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
Directions
Prepare the gremolata: Stir the parsley, garlic, anchovies, lemon zest, salt and pepper together in a medium bowl. Add lemon juice and enough olive oil to create a thick sauce. Cover and refrigerate until use.
Prepare the stew: Heat large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add olive oil and, once shimmering, add onions and fennel. Cook until soft and translucent. Add carrot, celery, and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes, until tender. Stir in fennel seeds, chili flakes, salt and pepper and cook for 1 minute. Add the fish stock, wine and tomatoes. Bring to a boil.
Add clams and mussels to boiling broth. Reduce to simmer, cover and cook for 10 minutes or until the clams and mussels are open. Discard any that remain closed. Gently stir the cod, scallops, shrimp and squid into the stew. Cover and cook for 5 minutes more.
Prepare the toasted bread: Preheat barbecue or grill to 500°F. Brush both sides of the sourdough bread slices with olive oil. Place onto grill and toast for about 1 minute, then turn and toast the other side. Remove from grill and rub with a cut garlic clove. Sprinkle with chopped parsley.
To serve: Ladle stew onto large soup plates. Add a a splash of Pernod, a dollop or two of gremolata and 1 or 2 two fennel fronds as garnish.
Serve with toasted bread and remaining gremolata on the side.
Cioppino Fisherman’s Stew
5 / 5. 1
Assorted fresh seafood and shellfish cooked in a fragrant tomato-white wine broth, topped with garlic gremolata and Pernod…
A casual summer dinner idea that can be served with nothing more than delicious bread and a good bottle of white wine – enjoy this tasty fisherman’s stew affectionately known as CIOPPINO.
Two years back my friends Heather Lynn and Bill came up for a “gourmet” weekend. Truth be told, it’s a gourmet weekend every time they come up. We all love to cook, and more importantly, we all appreciate eating delicious, well-prepared food. So Heather Lynn and I spent time working through this idea for a seafood soup recipe known as CIOPPINO.
What is CIOPPINO you ask? From WIKI:
“Cioppino was developed in the late 1800s by Italian immigrants who fished off Meiggs Wharf and lived in the North Beach neighbourhood of San Francisco, many from the port city of Genoa. When a fisherman came back empty-handed, he would walk around with a pot to the other fishermen asking them to chip in whatever they could. Whatever ended up in the pot became his “cioppino”. The fishermen that chipped in expected the same treatment if they came back empty-handed in the future.”
In crafting our take on this classic Italian-American dish, we agreed on the following as our general framework to make the best CIOPPINO ever:
Begin with a fragrant, flavourful veggie mix of onion, carrot, celery and garlic, then boost the flavour profile by also including fresh fennel.
Season not only with kosher salt and black pepper but also red pepper flakes and fennel seeds for added heat and anise flavouring.
Craft the broth for the soup using fish stock, dry white wine and canned, diced tomatoes.
Include a wide array of fresh seafood and shellfish.
Serve the hearty, rustic soup with garlic-scented sourdough toast, a robust garlic and anchovy gremolata, and a splash of anise-flavoured Pernod liqueur.
If this all sounds too good to be true, fear not, the preparation is simple. Repeat visitors to WATC may notice a little difference with this recipe. We’re posting photos of various ingredients sequentially to assist you in making the dish. For all of you at-home chefs, this should make replicating it a breeze.
Here’s how to make our take on the classic fish stew, CIOPPINO.
SOFFRITTO
We believe every memorable soup, stew or sauce recipe begins with a robust flavour base. Often referred to as a MIREPOIX. We better use the correct Italian terminology for this recipe, considering this recipe’s storied roots. So, say it with me; this recipe starts with a SOFFRITTO.
Traditionally made with onion, carrot, celery and olive oil, we also added garlic and fennel into the mix to round out our desired flavour profile. For best results, dice the onion, celery, carrot and fennel to a uniform size. The garlic can be chopped a bit finer.
One additional thing to keep in mind is to start this recipe on low and go slow as it cooks. This will sweeten the ingredients as they cook rather than caramelize them.
SEASONING
The seasoning for this seafood stew recipe is a mix of four essential flavour enhancements. They are; chili flakes, fennel seeds, kosher salt and black pepper. Fennel seeds have an almost licorice flavour to them and add an earthy but sweet taste to this dish. That said, we understand fennel seeds might not be to everyone’s liking. Feel free to leave them out or swap them for a few bay leaves if you’d like.
BROTH
The broth for this CIOPPINO incorporates fish stock, white wine and canned, diced tomatoes. We suggest following our lead and using store-bought fish stock available in the soup section of most grocery stores. Failing that, look for frozen containers at your favourite fish store. For the white wine, we used an Italian Pinot Grigio but Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay will work too. Last element of the broth is our use of canned, diced tomatoes. They’re loaded with flavour and using the canned variety is way easier than prepping whole tomatoes.
SEAFOOD AND SHELLFISH
Here comes the main attraction; fresh seafood and shellfish. We developed this recipe using fresh cod, scallops and squid, plus jumbo shrimp, razor clams and mussels. You can also make it using halibut, crab, littleneck clams and white fish. We suggest checking with your favourite fishmonger or seafood store a day or two before you plan to prepare this dish. They’ll be able to share what they have on hand to create a rich and flavourful stew.
Preparing the seafood for the pot is straightforward; simply cut large pieces of fish and squid into bite-sized chunks. The shrimp and shellfish needed a bit more attention. First, we divided our sea scallops in half, widthwise. This doubles the quantity of scallops but also creates pieces that are easier to eat. Next, we then shelled the shrimp – ours were already deveined. We removed the beards from the mussels and gave both the clams and the mussels a good scrub to remove sand from their shells. This is interesting; we also placed the clams in a bowl of cool water, coaxing them to expel sand from within.
FISHERMAN’S STEW
Making this stew is easy, but we suggest watching this VIDEO before you begin to simplify the directions down below. Make sure to pay close attention to the sequence of adding the seafood and shellfish to the pot, as well as their cooking time.
Ensuring the clams and mussels have opened in the gently simmering broth before adding the tender shrimp, scallops, squid and cod is a good idea too. Following our tested methodology will ensure your glorious pot of CIOPPINO turns out perfectly. Prepare to be amazed!
GREMOLATA
If you’ve never tried or prepared a GREMOLATA, this is your lucky day. This extremely flavourful green sauce is traditionally served on osso bucco, the famous Milanese veal shank dish. Usually prepared with chopped parsley, lemon zest, and garlic, we decided to create a version for this stew recipe that added anchovies to heighten the flavour.
You can make the gremolata a day or two in advance and refrigerate until you serve this soup. It’s also perfect spooned onto grilled steak, tossed with boiled potatoes, or drizzled onto toast with scrambled eggs.
GRILLED BREAD
Speaking from experience, this soup is best enjoyed and served with a side of warmed bread. You can present it with our famous MENNONITE POTATO ROLLS or these flaky TEA BISCUITS, but why not serve it as we did with grilled bread? Divide slices of SOURDOUGH, brush with olive oil and toast on a hot grill for about a minute. Then rub each slice with a garlic clove and sprinkle with chopped flat-leaf parsley. Amazing!
SERVE
And just when you’re super excited to get cooking, here’s one final little twist to our take on CIOPPINO; a splash of Pernod. Circling back to that weekend when Heather Lynn and I worked up this recipe, we wanted to elevate the presentation of our fish stew.
So, here’s the deal on the garnish; add a splash of Pernod, a dollop or two of the gremolata and then the frond from the fennel. Make sure to invite guests to enjoy the aroma of the stew before taking their first bite. It’s all quite fantastic.
CIOPPINO is the best fish stew you’ll ever make. Buon appetito!
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Ingredients
For the fish stew:
1 pound cod loin, cut into 2-inch pieces
½ pound sea scallops, divided widthwise
½ pound jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 small squids, cut into rings, tentacles divided
1 dozen mussels, scrubbed
1 dozen clams, scrubbed
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 white onion, finely diced
2 small carrots, finely diced
3 celery ribs, finely diced
¼ fennel bulb, finely diced, about 1 cup
3 garlic cloves, finely diced
2 teaspoons fennel seeds
½ teaspoon chili flakes
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 28-ounce cans crushed tomatoes
1½ cups dry white wine
4 cups fish stock or broth
For the gremolata:
1 bunch flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped, about 1 cup
2 garlic cloves, finely minced
3 anchovy fillets, dried and finely chopped
zest from 1 lemon
2 teaspoons lemon juice
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
To serve:
Pernod
fennel fronds
For the garlic bread
6 slices sourdough, halved
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 large garlic clove
finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
Directions
Prepare the gremolata: Stir the parsley, garlic, anchovies, lemon zest, salt and pepper together in a medium bowl. Add lemon juice and enough olive oil to create a thick sauce. Cover and refrigerate until use.
Prepare the stew: Heat large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add olive oil and, once shimmering, add onions and fennel. Cook until soft and translucent. Add carrot, celery, and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes, until tender. Stir in fennel seeds, chili flakes, salt and pepper and cook for 1 minute. Add the fish stock, wine and tomatoes. Bring to a boil.
Add clams and mussels to boiling broth. Reduce to simmer, cover and cook for 10 minutes or until the clams and mussels are open. Discard any that remain closed. Gently stir the cod, scallops, shrimp and squid into the stew. Cover and cook for 5 minutes more.
Prepare the toasted bread: Preheat barbecue or grill to 500°F. Brush both sides of the sourdough bread slices with olive oil. Place onto grill and toast for about 1 minute, then turn and toast the other side. Remove from grill and rub with a cut garlic clove. Sprinkle with chopped parsley.
To serve: Ladle stew onto large soup plates. Add a a splash of Pernod, a dollop or two of gremolata and 1 or 2 two fennel fronds as garnish.
Serve with toasted bread and remaining gremolata on the side.
