Ocean Friendly Meals - Summertime Seafood Cioppino
My Summertime Cioppino is a light twist on the classic, highlighting ocean-friendly fish and seafood. In addition to the incredible sustainability story of Kvarøy Arctic, I’ve also utilized locally sourced farmed clams and sustainably harvested shrimp to round out this seafood celebration.
These clams from Cedar Key, Florida are raised by Chef Peter Stefani and are delicious! Hard clams farmed worldwide are a Seafood Watch "Best Choice." The shellfish aquaculture is considered a highly sustainable practice because the environmental impacts of farming plankton-filtering species are minimal. Feeds, fertilizers and chemicals are not used, and effluent and habitat impacts are very low. The White Canaveral Shrimp are fresh, local and harvested under the highest standards for safety and sustainability.
Serves 6-8
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 large fennel bulb, thinly sliced
1 onion, chopped
3 large shallots, chopped
2 teaspoons creole seasoning blend
4 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
¼ cup tomato paste
4 cups diced tomatoes (with all juice)
1 ½ cups dry white wine
5 cups fish stock (or use 3 cups chicken stock or water and 2 cups quality clam juice)
4-5 saffron threads
1 bay leaf
2 whole jalapeños
1 tablespoon honey
1 pound Cedar Key clams, scrubbed
1 pound mussels, scrubbed and de-bearded
1 pound uncooked large Canaveral or Domestic shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 ½ pounds salmon, cut into 2-inch chunks
2 tablespoons fresh herbs (parsley, fennel fronds, cilantro, basil)
Hot grilled garlic toasts, for dipping
DIRECTIONS
Heat the oil in a very large pot over medium heat. Add the fennel, onion, shallots and creole seasoing blend. Sauté until the onion is translucent, about 10 minutes.
Add the garlic and sauté another minute, and then stir in the tomato paste and let brown for 1-2 minutes. Add wine to deglaze the pan, and then add tomatoes with their juices, fish stock, saffron threads, bay leaf and whole jalapeños. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and bring to a simmer. Simmer until the flavors blend, about 30 minutes.
Stir in honey and add the clams and mussels to the cooking liquid. Cover and cook until the clams and mussels begin to open, about 5 minutes. Add the shrimp and salmon. Simmer gently until the fish and shrimp are just cooked through, and the clams are completely open, stirring gently, about 5 minutes longer (discard any clams and mussels that do not open). Gently stir in fresh herbs.
Remove bay leaf and jalapeño peppers from the pot and season the soup, to taste, with more creole seasoning blend, or kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
Mash the softened jalapeño peppers into a paste, and serve as garnish for guests who like their Cioppino spicy.
Ladle the soup into bowls and serve. Delicious with hot grilled garlic toasts for dipping.
