The MAX AC Channel #137: Cioppino

Hello everyone and welcome back to another episode of the Max AC Channel. For this month, since we are once again in the Lenten Season this year, I thought we could continue our theme of making Lenten food and do another round of Meatless March, where we will be making five more recipes that are as delicious as they are meatless. For our last week’s episode, we will be making some Cioppino.

In the comments below, let me know how it went if you decide to make it and let me know if there’s anything you want to make next. Like the video, share it with your friends and family, and subscribe to this channel for more episodes of the MAX AC Channel.

And remember, if you want to stay cool in the kitchen, turn your AC to the max and watch the MAX AC Channel.

(And check out SirRank0Productions.com for full recipe!)
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CIOPPINO (4-6 Servings)
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 shallots
- 1 large onion
- 1 large fennel
- 4 cloves garlic
- Some red chili flakes
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 sprig fresh thyme (or 1/4 tsp dried)
- 1 sprig fresh oregano (or 1/4 tsp dried)
- 2-6 oz tomato paste
- 1 cup or so white wine (or if you are avoiding alcohol this Lent, you can substitute with white grape juice or apple juice to add some sweetness or seafood or vegetable stock to emphasize the savory flavors)
- 2 cups clam juice
- 3-4 tomatoes
- Some salt and pepper
- Some Fresh or Frozen Seafood
- 1-2 lbs clams
- 1-2 lbs mussels
- 1-2 lbs shrimp
- 1-2 lbs squid
- 1-2 lbs Dungeness crab (or other crab)
- 1-2 lbs firm white fish (cod, halibut, etc.)
- 3 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley (for garnish)
- Some crusty bread for serving

Instructions:
1. First, if you are using frozen seafood, make sure to defrost anything you need to by defrosting it overnight in the fridge or by running it under some room temperature water until it fully defrosts. While we wait for our seafood to be ready, we’ll prepare our other ingredients, so for your fennel, cut off the stalks, setting them aside for later, and then slice this into thin slices like an onion. Speaking of, for the shallots and onions, chop these into thin, small slices, as well. And for your garlic, mince this up as well. Then, you may peel and chop up your tomatoes into pieces at this time also, or wait a little bit to do it while waiting for things to warm up to save some time.
2. Once your vegetables are ready, in a large pot or dutch oven, heat up the olive oil over medium heat, then add in the chopped shallots, onions, fennel, and some salt and sauté this for 5-10 minutes, until they soften. Then, add in the garlic, chili flakes, fennel stalks, bay leaf, thyme, and oregano, and sauté this for another 2-3 minutes, until fragrant.
3. Then, add in the tomato paste and stir this in until everything is incorporated and then lightly season this with some salt and pepper. Adding the seafood later will flavor the soup with natural saltiness, so err on the side of less salty for now. Then, add the white wine (or substitutes) and clam juice, then bring this to a simmer and cook for about 5 minutes until the liquid has reduced some.
4. Then, add in the chopped tomatoes, smushing them up a bit with a wooden spoon. And then, cover the pot, leaving a bit of a gap to let steam escape and simmer this over low heat for 20 minutes.
5. Once your soup is ready, remove the lid and add in the mussels and clams. Stir them around to fully cover them with the liquid, and then cover the pot again and let them cook for about 5 minutes, or until they start to open (if they haven’t been cooked yet). Then, add in the shrimp, squid, and crab, and give this another toss, then lay the fish fillets on top, dicing into pieces beforehand, if desired, without mixing these in since the fish is a bit more delicate. Add some seasoning to the fish if needed and then cover and cook for another 3-5 minutes, or until the shrimp and fish are fully cooked and opaque.
6. Then, once that’s done, turn off the heat and stir in the butter until it fully melts, removing any clams or mussels that you see that haven’t opened as well as any herbs that haven’t broken down, if desired. Give the broth a taste and add more salt and pepper, if needed. Then, sprinkle with parsley and serve immediately with some crusty bread on the side for dipping, if desired, and with that, your Cioppino is ready to eat.