Sunday, July 27, 2008

Cioppino, Glacier Bay Style






Being from San Francisco, its not hard to think of how to serve fresh dungeness crab, But when in Glacier Bay Alaska and we are pulling crabs out of the water, this was my first, but not last way of serving them. Cioppino the classic San Francisco seafood stew of crab and shellfish in a garlic tomato broth. In Alaska I used fresh bay crab, halibut, salmon, scallops and prawns with a saffron garlic and tomato broth. The stew is made by quickly steaming the crab for 15 minutes then cleaning and cracking all the legs to let the broth flavors penetrate, next chopped garlic is sauteed in olive oil, all fish and shellfish are added, next a splash of white wine for the stew and for my glass. Saffron and chopped tomatoes are added, the stew simmers till everything is cooked and then spooned into bowls with a pinch of chopped herbs on top. Crusty rustic bread is very good for dipping into the broth.

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