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Cioppino (Italian-American Seafood Stew)

Cioppino is a seafood lover’s dream come true. Use this easy cioppino recipe as a guide, adding the seafood you have on hand, or prefer to have in the dish. As long as your seafood is fresh, it’s a winner!

Cioppino overhead shot

I don’t share too many American-Italian dishes because my mother was born in Italy.

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Most of you know that the food I grew up with is a lot more authentic Italian. However, that doesn’t mean that’s all I make. I’m open to any type of cuisine, as long as it’s good quality, and delicious! What does burn my cookies is when non-Italian food is labeled as “Italian” or worse, “traditional, or authentic Italian”!

cioppino with bread

I mean, if someone who loves seafood is presented with a piping hot bowl full of this beautiful cioppino, along with some grilled or crusty bread, how could they refuse? If you love seafood, this is for you!

You may find that my recipe is a bit more Italian than the typical American-Italian dish. I do not use clam juice (there’s enough seafood flavor from the fresh seafood that I feel it’s unnecessary). I also do not add oregano, or any other herbs, other than fresh, Italian parsley.

cioppino on Catalina Island
A bowl of cioppino on Catalina Island, California.

Why does this make it more “Italian” you ask? Typically, Italians do not make dishes that are “full of herbs and spices”, contrary to popular belief. I also prefer to enjoy cioppino with plain, fresh crusty bread, versus toasted, or garlic bread, but obviously you can choose your favorite.

scallop and clams in cioppino

What is Cioppino?

Cioppino is a seafood stew that was created by Italian immigrant fishermen in San Francisco in the late 1800s. They used whatever was in the “catch of the day”. It’s quite probably a form of the Ligurian cacciucco (seafood stew). So most seafood can go in your cioppino, such as fish, shellfish, squid, shrimp, scallops and crab. You could even add prime pieces of seafood like lobster tail.

fresh seafood
Fresh seafood .

Using Good Quality Seafood

If you have been following me for any amount of time (Christina’s Cucina will be 10 years old later this year), you will know that I am constantly on my soapbox about the quality of ingredients. One of the most important times that this comes into play is with seafood. Fish should never smell, or taste “fishy”. If you’ve had fresh seafood, you know this is true. There is nothing worse than smelly, poor quality fish, shellfish, or other seafood.

clams and mussels in a bowl

So be sure you’re buying top quality seafood, and I can now highly recommend GET MAINE LOBSTER (incidentally, they don’t only sell lobster!) You’ll also receive 10% off your entire order if you use the link above!

bowl of cioppino

I love wild caught Mexican shrimp and PEI mussels.

shrimp in cioppino

Love seafood? What about trying my dad’s fish recipe from his chip shop in Glasgow?

fish and chips in newspaper

The fresh haddock reminded me of the fish my dad used to get at the fish and chip shop in Scotland.

My seafood pasta recipe is another great meatless meal that’s ready in minutes, honest!
(Read all the rave reviews!)

seafood pasta with shrimp and scallops in cast iron pan

I hope you enjoy my cioppino recipe as much as I do. Since there is just my husband and me at home now, I made the recipe for two. Just double or triple the ingredients for a larger pot and more servings. If you want something more simple, try my shrimp and garlic pasta. Buon appetito!

overhead cioppino and bread

Cioppino (Italian-American Seafood Stew)

Recipe loosely adapted from Bluewater Grill             serves 2

FULL PRINTABLE RECIPE BELOW

Prepare the Seafood 🦐

  • Clams and mussels: scrub the shells, de-beard the mussels by pulling the “beards” towards the back of the shell, and place them in a bowl of water (you can add salt if you like, or not) for 20 minutes.
  • Scallops: brine the scallops for about 10 minutes (1.5 Tbsp Kosher salt in 8 oz of water). Afterwards, place them on a rack to dry.
  • Shrimp: although some cioppini are made with the whole shrimp, I prefer to remove the shells (devein them if they haven’t been cleaned) and just leave on the tail.
  • Fish: slice the haddock (or cod, salmon or whatever fish you prefer) into medium sized pieces.
  • Crab: put the amount of lump crab meat you’ll be using in a bowl and set aside.
slices of haddock

Prepare the Cioppino Base 🌶

Have all of your ingredients chopped and ready to use. Put the extra virgin olive oil in a heavy pot over medium heat. I used this Staub braiser. When hot, add the garlic, onion and red pepper; add about a ¼ teaspoon of Kosher or sea salt.

ingredients ready for the pot

Sauté for about 3 minutes, then add the chopped celery leaf.

adding chopped celery leaf

If you cannot source celery leaves, add a little chopped celery and Italian parsley, instead.

chopped celery leaf in pan

Increase the heat to medium high and cook for another 3 or 4 minutes. Next, add the white wine.

adding white wine

When the mixture is simmering, add the tomato puree or chopped tomatoes. Be sure to use good quality tomatoes; this is so important! You don’t want to ruin all your beautiful, fresh seafood with acidic, bitter tasting tomatoes.

adding tomato sauce

Finally, add the stock, or water. The amount of salt you add will vary depending on if you use stock (which already has salt) or water. If using water, add at least 1 1/2 teaspoonfuls of Kosher or sea salt. Simmer for 15 minutes or so.

cioppino base simmering

Cook the Seafood 🐟

Start by adding the clams as they take the longest to cook. After adding the clams, put the lid onto the pot and set a timer for 5 minutes.

adding clams to cioppino

When the timer is up, add the mussels and pieces of fish, sprinkle the pieces of fish with a little salt and put the lid on again. Set the timer for another 3 minutes.

adding mussels and haddock

When the timer sounds, add the shrimp and scallops and cook with the lid on for a few more minutes, until all the seafood is cooked and shellfish are open. Taste for seasoning and add salt and/or pepper.

adding shrimp to cioppino

As I stated above, all of my shellfish were good, so there was no need for me to remove any. You can top the cioppino with the crab meat at this point, and put the lid on to warm it. I didn’t do this simply because I wanted to take photos of the cioppino in dishes with the crab on top. Finish the dish with chopped parsley.

adding chopped parsley to the dish

That’s it–so easy, isn’t it?

staub pot with cioppino

Serve the Cioppino and Bread 🥖

cioppino and bread

Spoon the cioppino into large bowls and serve with your choice of bread. It’s so, so good!

cioppino and bread

Enjoy!

spoonful of cioppino

Have the urge to splurge? Try this easy lobster pasta recipe!

lobster pasta

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Cioppino overhead shot

Cioppino (American Italian Style Seafood Stew)

Servings: 2
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
A classic Italian-American seafood dish which originated in San Francisco consisting of a melange of many types of fish and shellfish.
4.9 from 33 votes

Special Equipment

  • 1 Staub braiser (optional)

Ingredients

  • 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 medium onion diced
  • 4 cloves garlic minced
  • ¼ cup red pepper diced
  • 1 bunch of leaves from stalk of fresh celery chopped (or ¼ cup chopped celery and parsley)
  • ½ cup white wine
  • ¾ cup fish stock or veg stock, or water
  • ½ cup tomato puree or chopped tomatoes
  • ¼ tsp sea salt to taste
  • tsp crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
  • 6 oz white fish like haddock
  • 6 Littleneck clams
  • 6 mussels
  • 6 medium to large shrimp
  • 2 to 4 scallops depending on size
  • 2 oz to 4 oz lump crabmeat (fresh)
  • ½ tsp Italian parsley chopped

Instructions

Prepare the Seafood:

  • Clams and mussels: scrub the shells, de-beard the mussels by pulling the "beards" towards the back of the shell, and place them in a bowl of water (you can add salt if you like, or not) for 20 minutes.
  • Scallops: brine the scallops for about 10 minutes (1.5 Tbsp Kosher salt in 8 oz of water). Afterwards, place them on a rack to dry.
  • Shrimp: although some cioppini are made with the whole shrimp, I prefer to remove the shells (devein them if they haven't been cleaned) and just leave on the tail.
  • Fish: slice into medium sized pieces.
  • Crab: put the amount of lump crab meat you'll be using in a bowl and set aside. 

Prepare the Cioppino Base:

  • Have all of your ingredients chopped and ready to use. Put the extra virgin olive oil in a heavy pot over medium heat. I used this Staub braiser. When hot, add the garlic, onion and red pepper; add salt.
  • Sauté for about 3 minutes, then add the chopped celery leaf.
  • If you cannot source celery leaves, add a little chopped celery and Italian parsley, instead.
  • Increase the heat to medium high and cook for another 3 or 4 minutes. Next, add the white wine.
  • When the mixture is simmering, add the tomato puree or chopped tomatoes. Be sure to use good quality tomatoes; this is so important! You don't want to ruin all your beautiful, fresh seafood with acidic, and bitter tasting tomatoes.
  • Lastly, add the stock, or water. The amount of salt you add will vary depending on if you used stock (which already has salt) or water. If using water, add at least a teaspoon of Kosher or sea salt. Simmer for 15 minutes or so.

Cook the Seafood:

  • Start by adding the clams as they take the longest to cook. After adding the clams, put the lid onto the pot and set a timer for 5 minutes.
  • When the timer is up, add the mussels and pieces of fish, sprinkle the pieces of fish with a little salt and put the lid on again. Set the timer for another 3 minutes.
  • When the timer sounds, add the shrimp and scallops and cook with the lid on for a few more minutes, until all the seafood is cooked and shellfish are open. Taste for seasoning and add salt and/or pepper.
  • You can top the cioppino with the crab meat at this point, and put the lid on to warm it. Finish the dish with chopped parsley.

Notes

  • Make this cioppino dish your own by using the seafood you most enjoy and omitting those you don’t.
  • GET 10% OFF YOUR TOP QUALITY SEAFOOD ORDER FROM GET MAINE LOBSTER!

Nutrition

Serving: 1 dish | Calories: 417kcal | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 38g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Cholesterol: 115mg | Sodium: 1059mg | Potassium: 1063mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 1030IU | Vitamin C: 41mg | Calcium: 121mg | Iron: 4mg

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4.88 from 33 votes (33 ratings without comment)

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