Cioppino

Ingredients

• 1 cooked Dungeness or brown crab, about 900g, cleaned and cut into sections
• 450g clams, scrubbed
• 450g mussels, scrubbed and debearded
• 350g large raw prawns, shell on
• 450g firm white fish such as cod or halibut, cut into 4cm chunks
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 1 fennel bulb, finely chopped
• 6 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 1 tsp chilli flakes
• 3 tbsp tomato puree
• 300ml dry white wine
• 800g tinned plum tomatoes, crushed by hand
• 700ml fish stock
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• Salt and black pepper
• Large handful flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 1 lemon, cut into wedges
• Sourdough bread, to serve

Before you cook

• Scrub the clams and mussels and discard any that will not close when tapped
• Cut the fish into even chunks and keep it cold
• Chop the onion and fennel and slice the garlic
• Crush the tinned tomatoes with your hands in a bowl

Steps

1. Warm the olive oil in a very large pot over medium heat.
2. Cook the onion and fennel for 10 minutes until soft and sweet without browning.
3. Add the sliced garlic and chilli flakes and stir for 1 minute.
4. Stir in the tomato puree and cook it for 2 minutes until it turns brick red.
5. Pour in the white wine and let it bubble hard for 4 minutes to cook off the alcohol.
6. Add the crushed tomatoes, the fish stock, the bay leaves and the oregano.
7. Simmer the broth uncovered for 25 minutes so it reduces slightly and the flavours knit together, then season it well.
8. Add the crab sections and the clams, cover the pot, and cook for 5 minutes.
9. Add the mussels, cover again, and cook for a further 3 minutes.
10. Scatter the fish chunks and prawns over the surface, put the lid back on, and cook for 4 minutes until the fish flakes and the prawns are pink.
11. Discard any clams or mussels that have not opened.
12. Stir in most of the parsley and taste the broth one final time.
13. Ladle the stew into wide bowls, finish with the rest of the parsley, and serve with lemon wedges and thick slices of grilled sourdough.