Easy Cioppino Recipe

You don’t have to be a chef to make this recipe for the Barefoot Contessa’s authentic cioppino, a tomato-based seafood stew loaded with shrimp, cod, mussels, and clams for a healthy soup and surprisingly easy dinner that goes from fridge to table in just about an hour.

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes

Servings 6

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 cups fennel bulb white part only, cut into 1/2-inch dice
• 1 1/2 cup yellow onion 1 large, cut into 1/2-inch dice
• 3 garlic cloves pressed or minced
• 1 teaspoon whole fennel seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
• 4 cups seafood stock
• 1 1/2 cups dry white wine such as Pinot Grigio
• kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 pound cod fillets skin removed, cut into 2-inch dice
• 1 pound large shrimp peeled and deviened
• 1 pound sea scallops halved crosswise

• 1 dozen mussels scrubbed
• 1 dozen littleneck clams or other small clam
• 1 tablespoon anise flavored liqueur such as Pernod or Pastis
• 3 tablespoons parsley minced

Instructions

1. Heat the olive oil in a heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the fennel and onion and sauté for 10 minutes, until tender.
2. Stir in the garlic, fennel seeds, and red pepper flakes and cook for 2 minutes, until fragrant.
3. Add the tomatoes, stock, wine, 1 tablespoon salt, and 1 teaspoon black pepper. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. 
4. Add the seafood in the following order: first the cod, then the shrimp, scallops, and finally the mussels. Do not stir. Bring to a simmer, lower the heat, cover and cook for 10 minutes until the seafood is cooked and the shellfish open.
5. Stir in the liqueur, being careful not to break up the fish; cover and set aside for 3 minutes for the flavors to blend. Discard any mussels that have not opened.
6. Ladle into large, shallow bowls, sprinkle with parsley and serve with slices of sourdough baguette. 

Recipe Notes

• To make this cioppino even faster to cook on weeknights or for an easy get together, prepare the soup base up to 2 days before, refrigerate, then reheat and add the seafood before serving.

Credit to: foodiecrush