seafood stock

Best seafood stew EVER! San Francisco-style Cioppino with halibut, sea bass, Dungeness crab, shrimp, and mussels.

Cioppino

halibut, sea bass,

(2 lb

(or more) of large shrimp

extra virgin olive oil

onion (1 large onion)

chopped bell pepper (1 large bell pepper)

garlic,

salt

tomatoes

Broth from the mollusks

red wine

tomato juice

stock

Salt and pepper

parsley

"Oh man, eating Cioppino in San Francisco totally ruined Cioppino anywhere else for me, but  because of the rave reviews from the folks in the Bay area, I will definitely give this a try!"

"Looks delicious and is straightfoward to make.  I live in the Bay Area.  People should be cautious of the origin source (country) of seafood.  Or buy US frozen if you can’t source it fresh by where you live."

"One fav soup of everyone in my family. Specially since we moved to coastal area. Pictures look delicious. Thanks for sharing."

"How would oysters be best incorporated?"

clams and mussels: Steam mollusks (clams and mussels) in a small amount of water (about two cups) until they just open. Set aside. Strain and reserve the cooking broth.

Prepare the cooked crab: Remove the crab legs from the body and use a nutcracker to crack the shells so that the meat can be easily removed once it is served (leave the meat in the shell).
Break the body in half, and then cut each half again into either halves or thirds. You can opt to keep the crab meat in the body segments and serve it that way (more work for the eater) or you can pick out the crab meat from the body segments.
If you pick out the crab meat, try to keep it in big chunks. Keep the top shell of the crab for making stock.
Note you can use prepared fish or shellfish stock, or you can make your own. If you are not making your own stock, you can discard the crab top shell body. If prepared shellfish stock is not available, I would combine some prepared fish stock (available at many markets, including Trader Joe's) with clam juice.

Prepare the shrimp: Split the shrimp shells down the back and remove the black vein. (See how to peel and devein shrimp.) I found the easiest way to do this, without removing the shell, is to lay the shrimp on its side and insert a small knife into the large end of the shrimp, with the blade pointing outward from the back (away from the shrimp and your hands).
Once you have split the shrimp shells, you can turn the knife toward the shrimp, and cut in a little to find the black vein. Pull out the vein as much as you can. You can probably also use a pair of kitchen scissors to cut the backs of the shrimp.
Alternatively, you can shell the shrimps and devein them. Shell-on imparts more flavor; shell-off is easier to eat.

Make the soup base: In a deep 8-quart covered pot, sauté onions and bell pepper on medium heat in olive oil until soft. Add the garlic, sauté 1 minute more.
 
Add tomatoes, broth from the mollusks, red wine, tomato juice, fish or shellfish stock, the herb bouquet, and salt and pepper to taste.
Bring to a simmer and cook, uncovered, for 20 minutes. Remove herb bouquet. Taste and correct seasoning.

Add fish and shellfish: Add the fish and cook, covered, until the fish is just cooked through, about 3 to 5 minutes.
Add the steamed mollusks, crabmeat, and shrimp. Heat just until shrimp are cooked (just 2-3 minutes, until they are bright pink). Do not overcook.

Serve: Serve in large bowls, shells included. Sprinkle with minced parsley. Serve with crusty French or Italian bread and a robust red wine.
Have plenty of napkins available, a few extra bowls for the shells, and nut crackers and tiny forks for the crab.

"I love this recipe! It has become our family tradition. I buy my seafood at Costco during the holidays. I make two kettles full and share with friends and family."

Make your own shellfish stock with the shells from crabs, shrimp, and lobster.  Homemade shellfish stock recipe with photos and step-by-step instructions.

How to Make Shellfish Stock

dry white wine

yellow onion, sliced or chopped

carrot,

celery stalk,

tomato paste

thyme

bay leaf

peppercorns

"May I use mussel shells to make my stock.We consume large number of them and never thought about ising the shells?"

Break up larger pieces of shell: Break thick shells (lobster or crab) into smaller pieces by putting in a sealed, thick plastic bag and either rolling with a rolling pin or hitting with a meat hammer to crush.
Cut up thinner shrimp shells with a chef's knife. Don't crush or cut too small. You can even skip this step if you want, if you are already dealing with broken up shell pieces (like cracked crab).

Roast shells (optional): Place in a large roasting pan and roast at 400°F for 10 minutes (this step you can skip, but it greatly enhances the flavor).

Cover shells with water and heat to not quite a simmer: Put the shells in a large stock pot and add enough water to cover the shells with an inch of water. Heat the water on high. As soon as you see that little bubbles are starting to come up to the surface, reduce the heat to medium.

Do not let the water boil! You want to maintain the temperature at just at the edge of a simmer (around 180°F), where the bubbles just occasionally come up to the surface.
Do not stir the shells! Stirring will muddy up the stock.
Skim the foam. As the bubbles come up to the surface a film of foam will develop on the surface. Use a large metal spoon to skim away this foam. Let the shells cook like this for about an hour; skim the foam every few minutes. The foam comes from shells releasing impurities as their temperature increases.

Add the wine, onions, carrots, celery, tomato paste, herbs, peppercorns: Once the stock has stopped releasing foam, add the wine, onions, carrots, celery, tomato paste, thyme, parsley, bay leaf, and peppercorns.
 
Bring to a low simmer and reduce heat so that the stock continues to barely simmer, but not boil, for 30 minutes. If more foam comes to the surface, skim it off. Add salt and remove from heat.

Strain through a lined sieve: Use tongs, a large slotted spoon, or a spider strainer to lift out and remove most of the solids from the stock. (Later put in a plastic bag and put outside in the trash! Shellfish shells have a way of stinking up a kitchen.)

Dampen a few layers of cheesecloth and place over a large, fine mesh strainer, over a large pot or bowl.
 
Pour the stock into the strainer. Either use the stock right away, or cool for future use.
If you aren't going to use in a couple of days, freeze (remember to leave some headroom at the top of your freezer container for the liquid to expand as it freezes.)

"Easy and delicious. I added garlic because I don’t make anything without it. I will never buy stock again."

"This recipe is absolutely phenomenal!  I had more shells than what you called for so my stock came out really really deep in flavor.  It tastes like bisque already but in the consistency of broth.  My first batch I did with all crab shells.  I will use the same recipe for my lobster shells and for shrimp at a later time.    This recipe deserves 10 stars!  Thank you for sharing."

"Making lobster stock now. I have an American Pressure canner. I was going to do quarts. I added tomatoe paste &amp; lemon juice to the stock as it cooks. I know I pressure can French onion soup for 90 minutes. How long should I pressure cook this? Should I add more lemon juice when I go to can? Thank you for any help. Cheers!"

This easy-to-make, Rich Homemade Lobster Stock recipe is great when wanting to add depth of flavor to seafood soups, stews, risotto, chowders and sauces.

Rich Homemade Lobster Stock

water

lobster

white wine

celery,

onion

salt, divided

bay leaves

seafood seasoning (Old Bay)

Heat the water in a large stockpot just to under a boil. Add a teaspoon of salt.

Add any uncooked, shelled lobster to the water.

Once the shells turn red, and the meat is almost cooked through, transfer the lobsters to an ice bath to stop the cooking process.

If using precooked lobster, add them to the water to thaw or warm through, for just a minute or two.

Once cooled to the touch, remove the meat from the shells and refrigerate the lobster meat for later use.

In the same water used to cook the lobster, add in the white wine, lobster shells, celery, onion, garlic, salt, thyme, parsley, bay leaves, seafood seasoning and peppercorns.

Allow the mixture to simmer over medium to medium-low heat for about 45 minutes, allowing the flavors to meld together.

Using a mesh strainer, carefully strain the stock to remove any solids. For a clearer stock, double strain if desired.

If using the lobster stock immediately, keep warm in a saucepan.

If storing, allow the stock to cool completely before transferring it to storage containers. Store in the refrigerator for up to a 5 days, or freeze for longer storage.

Lobster and Corn Chowder Recipe! Homemade lobster stock sends this recipe over the top! Each spoonful is filled with huge chunks of lobster meat! #chowder #lobster #lobstertok #soup #soupseason #souprecipe #DinnerIdeas #comfortfood  #cookwithme #shrimp 

Homemade shrimp stock is so flavorful, and easy to make! It adds extra flavor to the seafood dish you add it to. It’s a great way to use up those shrimp shells.

Rich Homemade Shrimp Stock Recipe

shrimp

carrot

celery

garlic

cooking sherry

black peppercorns

PEEL: Peel shrimp, and set aside in the refrigerator for later use. Rinse shells in a colander with cold water. Set aside to drain well.

PREP: Peel and quarter onion. Rinse celery and carrot, and cut into 2 inch chunks. No need to peel carrot. Smash and peel garlic cloves. Remove stems from parsley.

SAUTÉ: Heat a dutch oven over medium-high heat and add 1 teaspoon olive oil. Sauté onion, celery, carrot, and garlic with a pinch of salt for about 5 minutes until veggies start to brown. Add in shrimp shells and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

CARAMELIZE: Make a well in the center of the pot and add in tomato paste. Gradually stir into the other ingredients and cook for about 1 minute until paste is darkening.

DEGLAZE: Deglaze the pot with sherry and stir in. Let simmer for 1-2 minutes to let alcohol burn off, scraping up any browned bits (fond) in the pot.

SIMMER: Add in water, parsley stems, bay leaf, and peppercorns. Bring up to a gentle simmer, and cook on low uncovered for 30 minutes. Stir and gently press down on ingredients occasionally.

STRAIN: Remove from heat and cool slightly. Pour stock through a fine mesh strainer into a heat safe large measuring cup or container. Press down on ingredients in the strainer with a wooden spoon to extract all the liquid. It should yield about 4 cups.

USE: Use shrimp stock in your favorite seafood recipes, or save for later use.

Made this recipe exactly as written. Amazing flavor. I used it in my shrimp scampi recipe instead of wine, and it was the best shrimp scampi I have ever made!

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Top Tags

Cioppino

How to Make Shellfish Stock

Rich Homemade Lobster Stock

Rich Homemade Shrimp Stock Recipe

Top 4 seafood stock recipes from across the web

The most viewed seafood stock recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 20,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

Top Tags

Cioppino

How to Make Shellfish Stock

Rich Homemade Lobster Stock

Rich Homemade Shrimp Stock Recipe

The most viewed seafood stock recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 20,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine