Pacific Northwest Cioppino

Cioppino belongs to the fishermen. Italian immigrants working the waters around San Francisco created this stew in the late 1800s, tossing whatever the day's catch yielded into a communal pot. The name likely comes from ciuppin, a Ligurian fish stew, though some say it derives from the fishermen calling out to chip in their portion. Either way, the dish tells a story of immigrants adapting Old World traditions to New World abundance.

In the Pacific Northwest, we've inherited this tradition and made it our own. Our waters run cold and clean. They yield Dungeness crab with meat so sweet it needs nothing but heat to shine. Clams and mussels filter these pristine currents, developing a salinity that Europeans cross oceans to taste. The salmon runs that sustained Native peoples for millennia still return each year, though we must now be thoughtful stewards of what we take.

This version honors the regional bounty while respecting the Italian soul of the dish. The broth builds on a soffritto of onion, fennel, and celery. San Marzano tomatoes provide body without overwhelming the seafood. A healthy pour of dry white wine cuts the richness. The cooking itself takes barely an hour, but the eating should stretch much longer. Put the pot in the center of the table. Give everyone a bowl, a spoon, and permission to make a mess.

I've served this at dinner parties where conversation stopped entirely, replaced by the sounds of shells cracking and bread sopping up broth. That's the highest compliment a cook can receive.