| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 1 hr 55 min |
| Prep: | 25 min |
| Cook: | 1 hr 30 min |
| Yield: | 8 to 10 servings |
Ingredients
- 4 pounds whole Dungeness crabs
- 1 head garlic, cut through the middle
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon dried red chili flakes
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 4 cups diced yellow onions (about 4 medium onions)
- 1 1/2 cups thinly sliced fennel
- 1 cup chopped red bell pepper
- 1/2 cup minced garlic
- 1/2 cup tomato paste
- 6 cups tomato sauce, such as San Marzano
- 1 1/2 cups dry red wine
- 1/2 cup clam juice
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons sambuca liqueur
- 1 cup coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 2 tablespoons red chili flakes
- 2 tablespoons fine sea salt
- 1 tablespoon dried basil
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon freshly cracked black pepper
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 pounds littleneck clams, cleaned and scrubbed
- 2 pounds firm white fish, such as cod or halibut, cut into 2-inch pieces
- 2 pounds shrimp (16/20 count), shell-on, deveined
- Sourdough bread, for serving
Instructions
- Begin by poaching the whole crabs: To prepare the crabs, set a large pot of cold water with the garlic, bay leaves, black peppercorns, kosher salt and chili flakes over high heat. Bring to a boil, and then drop in the crabs. Once the water starts to boil again, reduce the heat and simmer for 12 to15 minutes. When the crabs are done, shock them in cold water so they stop cooking. Then break each one into 4 pieces, with the pieces cracked to let the sauce in.
- For the cioppino: In a large stockpot over medium heat, heat the oil and cook the onions, fennel and bell peppers until lightly browned. Add the minced garlic and tomato paste and cook until it browns, stirring often. Add the tomato sauce, 4 cups water, wine, clam juice, lemon juice, sambuca, half the parsley, the chili flakes, salt, basil, oregano, pepper and bay leaves, and simmer for 1 hour.
- Add the pieces of cooked crab to the sauce and simmer for 20 minutes. Add the clams and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the fish and shrimp and cook until the shrimp turn pink, 4 to 5 minutes. DO NOT STIR. Remove the bay leaves, stir in the remaining chopped parsley and serve immediately with bread.
Reviews
I’ve made good cioppino before but think this one is better! Right amount of everything for my taste. I used crab claws that I bought already cooked. Cracked the shells before adding to sauce so liquid could get inside. Will make this one often.
Alright. I followed this recipe exactly except that I halved the red chili flakes. TOO SPICY EVEN THEN. I thought the amount looked like way too much so I figured I’d half it and add the rest in later after it simmered a bit if it seemed like it needed it, but even with only half the flakes, it was WAAAYYY to spicy. My guy thought it was the right amount of spice but he’s one of those who doesn’t flinch at the most extreme spice. I can handle my heat. If you try this, reduce the chili flakes by A LOT. Even beyond that, the flavors just weren’t that great. I love seafood, which is the only reason this got two stars instead of one, and the seafood was cooked well.
OMG! I need a new tab in my recipe collections for OMG RECIPES! I am NOT a seafood person and rarely have all the ingredients requested, but I substituted chicken and kielbasa. Still – this is all about the sauce – OMG! I don’t do fennel, clam juice, no sambuca but used my grilled chicken juice that comes out after searing and resting, and marsala for the sambuca. Red cat wine is the best addition to most of my meals. BUT I credit Guy for all this flavor…he had me at 2T red chili flakes : so i had to add a couple slices of chorizo too cuz i DO like the heat! Way to go Guy!!!
I made this recipe for my husband and I so I cut down on the amounts, we still had left overs and that was a good thing. It is wonderful. I am going to omit the crab next time. It was very messy to eat the crab and not really worth the effort. I used clams, mussels, cod and shrimp with an olive oil chiabatta bread for dippping. Yum! I will make again soon.
I made this recipe with a few minor changes…..first I cut the amounts in half as I did not need 8 to 10 servings…..second I did not use any crab so I was able to omit the first step in boiling the crab which I am not so sure I would have done anyway, if I did use crab I think I would have cooked it right in the Cioppino.
Anyway I used shrimp, clams, mussels, and cod and the sauce came out wonderful. Next time I might ad more fennel I like to have chunks of onions and fennel come out into the shells of the mussels so it can be eaten all together.
Also bread to eat with sauce is a must…..would make this again.
Anyway I used shrimp, clams, mussels, and cod and the sauce came out wonderful. Next time I might ad more fennel I like to have chunks of onions and fennel come out into the shells of the mussels so it can be eaten all together.
Also bread to eat with sauce is a must…..would make this again.