Cioppino, a great communal dish, demands a loosening of table manners as you toss spent clam and mussel shells, and sop up the juices with crusty bread. This is a perfect example of food and wine rules being mutable. Red wine is the ticket with this rich cioppino, because of the red wine and tomatoes in the stew. A spicy Zinfandel from Paso Robles or Sonoma’s Dry Creek Valley would be just perfect.
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- 4 garlic cloves
- 2 anchovies, mashed
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh oregano
- ½ fennel bulb, trimmed, cored, and finely diced (fronds reserved)
- 1 red bell pepper/capsicum, seeded, deveined, and finely diced
- 1 jalapeño chile, seeded and finely chopped
- 2 tbsp tomato paste/tomato puree
- 2 cups/480 ml dry red wine
- 2 cups/480 ml good-quality fish stock
- One 28-oz/800-g can whole tomatoes with juice
- 18 clams, scrubbed
- 18 mussels, scrubbed, and debearded if needed
- 1 lb/455 g red snapper, cut into 2-in/5-cm pieces
- 1 lb/455 g tiger shrimp/prawns
- 1 lb/455 g sea scallops, halved if large
- 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley for garnish
How to Make It
- In a large, heavy soup pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onion and sauté until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic, anchovies, bay leaf, and oregano and sauté for 2 minutes. Add the fennel, bell pepper/capsicum, and jalapeño and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes more, until slightly softened. Stir in the tomato paste/tomato puree, then the red wine, fish stock, and tomatoes, breaking the tomatoes up with the back of a wooden spoon. Adjust heat to a simmer, cover, and cook for 30 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning. The stew base can be made a day ahead, before adding the seafood.
- Add the clams and mussels to the simmering stew base, cover, and cook until the shellfish have opened, 3 to 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the clams and mussels to a bowl. Discard any shellfish that haven’t opened. Add the red snapper, shrimp/prawns, and scallops to the pot and cook for 3 minutes, or until the shrimp/prawns are evenly pink. Return the clams and mussels to the pot and heat for 1 minute. Serve in shallow soup bowls, garnished with the parsley and reserved finely diced fennel fronds.