Cioppino - San Francisco's World Famous Signature Dish

In the 1880s, when Italian immigrant fishermen settled into the San Francisco Barbary Coast neighborhood of North Beach, they developed a fish stew from their daily catch that was destined to become San Francisco's most famous dish.

Cioppino was a fixture in the 'Little Italy' restaurants, including Enricos, where I first tasted it as a child while on vacation in The City with my family. The rich and healthy fish stew embodies its atmospheric neighborhood of origin where writers like Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg, and musicians like Janis Joplin once drank espressos in outdoor cafes while cable cars clanged past loaded with laughing tourists bound for the Wharf, the Financial District, Chinatown or Russian Hill. In this colorful area Joe Dimaggio once lived with his wife, Marilyn Monroe, and it is where many Hollywood movies have been shot.

North Beach was favorite area to explore after I moved to San Francisco as an adult, always eager to try new versions of Cioppino, and create my own. It's easy to make and incredibly delicious. Serve it like a native with wine and hot sourdough bread. Two bell-ringing wine suggestions follow:

San Francisco Cioppino

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large red onion, diced
6 cloves garlic, chopped
5 carrots, peeled and diced
5 stalks celery, diced
1 can whole peeled tomatoes, including the juice
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 cup white wine
2-8 oz bottles clam juice
1-t dried oregano, crushed
4-5 sprigs fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon dried basil leaves
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper to taste

1/2 cup finely chopped fresh Italian parsley, reserve for garnish

½ pound mussels, cleaned and de bearded
½ pound large sea scallops
½ pound rock shrimp
½ pound regular shrimp peeled
½ pound crab chunks
¾ pound firm white fish cut into chunks

In a large soup pot heat 3-tablespoons good quality olive oil and then add onions, garlic, carrots and celery and sauté for 9-minutes. Add tomatoes, white wine and clam juice, oregano, thyme, basil, bay leaves, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for 30-minutes.

Add in all the seafood, cover and cook until the clam and mussels open in about 5-7 minutes. Discard any unopened shellfish. Ladle into large bowls and garnish with chopped fresh parsley. Serves 6.