What do you do when you announce that you will be cooking one thing, and then change your mind and decide to cook something else? Combine the two together, of course!
Risotto is an absolute classic Italian dish made with beautifully creamy rice, some white wine, a little cheese, and often with fresh seasonal vegetables. Cioppino is a staple seafood stew originating in San Francisco and often served with a nice thick loaf of sourdough bread.
Combining them was a culinary evolution and resulted in an INCREDIBLE meal with plenty of leftovers!
This may look like something that is super difficult to make yet I assure you neither dish is all that difficult to produce. You can even make the Cioppino broth ahead of time and add the seafood just prior to sitting down for dinner, allowing you to focus on the more technical and more-important-to-make-fresh Risotto.
Risotto of Cioppino
Torn between making Cioppinno and Risotto, I combined them both into an absolutely delicious fusion of Classic San Francisco with Classic Italy. Enjoy!
Equipment
- Dutch Oven
- Saucepot
- Skillet
Ingredients
Cioppinno
- 1 medium White Onion
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil
- 32 oz Seafood Stock
- 1 medium Fennel
- 3 cloves Garlic
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- 1 cup Dry White Wine keep it chilled
- ¼ cup Tomato Paste
- 1 pound Bay Scallops
- 1 pound Prawns
- 1 large Dungeness Crab
- 1 large Red Bell Pepper
- 28 oz Diced Tomatoes
- ¼ cup Flat Leaf Parsley chopped
- 1 large Bay Leaf
- 6 sprigs Thyme
- 1 pound Mussels
- 1 pound Littleneck Clams
Risotto
- 32 oz Chicken Stock
- 3 ribs Celery
- 1 large Shallot
- 1 cup Dry White Wine
- 2 cups Risotto
- 1 cup Green Peas
- 1 tbsp Mascarpone Cheese
Instructions
Cioppino
- Heat the dutch oven and 1/4 cup olive oil over medium heat. Dice white onion and fennel bulb and add to the dutch oven, season, and simmer until translucent.
- Mince garlic cloves and add to the pot, season with salt and pepper, and stir through.
- Add tomato paste to the dutch oven and stir through.
- Deglaze the bottom of the pot with the white wine. Allow to simmer until the wine has reduced by half.
- Heat your skillet over medium high heat and make sure your scallops are as dry as possible for a good sear. Add 1 tbsp olive oil to the skillet and season your scallops with salt, then place your scallops flat against the cooking surface pressing them down lightly.
- While the scallops are searing, dice bell pepper and add to dutch oven along with can of diced tomatoes.
- Flip scallops once the first side is nicely seared and cook the second side then remove and set aside for now.
- Roughly chop parsley and stir into the Cioppino broth. Add bay leaf and thyme then add seafood stock and bring to a low simmer. Simmer, covered, for 45 minutes to 1 hour.
- Make the risotto while the Cioppino broth is simmering.
- Clean and crack the crab and peel and de-vein the prawns. Keep refrigerated until the Cioppino broth has finished cooking.
- Once the broth has simmered for enough time, remove thyme and bay leaf from the Cioppino broth.
- Add cracked crab, mussels, clams to the Cioppino broth and stir through. Gently fold the shrimp and scallops into the Cioppino.
Risotto
- Heat skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and once it shimmers dice and add the shallot and slice and add the celery until softened.
- Deglaze the pan with white wine and then add the risotto, stirring through to absorb the wine.
- Once the wine has absorbed and the risotto is dry, add 1 cup of chicken stock and stir through. Bring to a very low simmer and allow the risotto to absorb the stock.
- Add 3/4 cup of chicken stock every time the risotto finishes absorbing the previously ladled liquid and allow it to absorb it completely each time, stirring regularly.
- Once all of the stock has been absorbed, add the peas and stir through until heated.
- Turn off the heat and stir in the mascarpone cheese. Stir in a ladleful or two of the Cioppino broth and allow the risotto to absorb it completely. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Plating
- In a warm shallow bowl, scoop a large spoonful or two of Risotto and top with seafood from the Cioppino bowl. Top with freshly diced parsley.
- Serve with a hearty slice of sourdough bread if you have some. Enjoy!
Video
Nutrition
Calories: 529kcalCarbohydrates: 63gProtein: 38gFat: 9gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 133mgSodium: 1202mgPotassium: 1299mgFiber: 6gSugar: 10gVitamin A: 1449IUVitamin C: 57mgCalcium: 179mgIron: 7mg
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