Northwest Fish Veggie Cioppino
Submitted by ruru41
Northwest fish veggie cioppino simmers tomatoes, white wine, and chicken broth with peppers, carrots, celery, and garlic before folding in flaky fish fillets. Hearty Pacific-style stew, ready in under an hour.
YIELD
8 servingsPREP
15 minCOOK
30 minREADY
50 minNorthwest fish veggie cioppino is the Pacific cousin of San Francisco’s classic, leaning leaner with more vegetables and any firm white fish from the cold northern waters. The base starts with a quick sauté of onions, green pepper, carrot, celery, and garlic in olive oil to soften and sweeten before the liquids hit the pan.
Crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, white wine, and chicken broth go in next with oregano, bay leaf, and a splash of hot pepper sauce, then a 20 minute simmer marries the flavors. The fish drops in last and poaches gently in the broth, just 7 to 10 minutes until it flakes with a fork. Any longer and it falls apart.
Serve in deep bowls with crusty sourdough for sopping.
Chef Tips
- Cut the fish into uniform pieces so it cooks evenly. Pieces around 1½ to 2 inches hold their shape best.
- Halibut, cod, rockfish, or lingcod all work beautifully here. Avoid delicate flatfish like sole, which will disintegrate.
- Pull the bay leaf before serving. It’s there for flavor, not chewing.
- A dry, crisp white wine like Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio gives the broth real depth. Skip cooking wine.
Variations
- Toss in a handful of small clams or shrimp in the last 5 minutes to make this a full seafood cioppino.
- Stir in a cup of sliced mushrooms with the other vegetables for extra earthiness.
- Finish with a spoonful of pesto or chopped parsley and lemon zest right before serving for a bright herbal lift.
Ingredients
Directions
In 3½ or 4 quart saucepan heat oil; add onions, green pepper, carrot, celery, and garlic and sauté, stirring frequently, until vegetables are tender, about 2 minutes.
Add remaining ingredients except fish and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat and let simmer until flavors are blended, about 20 minutes; stir in fish and cook until fish flakes easily when tested with fork, 7 to 10 minutes.
Remove bay leaf before serving.
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