Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 bulbs fennel, diced, plus 1/4 cup chopped feathery fennel fronds, divided
- 1 large yellow onion, diced
- 6 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
- 2 Tbsp. tomato paste
- 4 cups seafood broth, fish broth, or bottled clam juice
- 1 (28-oz.) can crushed tomatoes
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 2 tsp. salt, plus more to taste
- 1 lb. firm white fish fillets, such as halibut, sturgeon, or swordfish, or a combination, cut into 1 and 1/2-in. pieces
- 12 oz. sea scallops (see notes)
- 12 oz. large raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 12 small clams, scrubbed
- 12 mussels, scrubbed and debearded
- 8 oz. cooked lump crabmeat (see notes)
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- In a large saucepan or small stockpot over medium-high, heat the olive oil. Add the fennel and onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, 6 to 8 minutes.
- Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring occasionally, until fragrant, 30 to 60 seconds.
- Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring almost constantly, until mixed in and fragrant, about 60 seconds.
- Add the broth, tomatoes, wine, and salt and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes.
- Arrange the fish, scallops, and shrimp on top of the broth. Arrange the clams and mussels on top. Increase the heat to medium-high and return to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook undisturbed until the clams and mussels are open and the fish, scallops, and shrimp are cooked through, 6 to 8 minutes (discard any clams or mussels that don’t open).
- Add more salt to taste, gently stirring to avoid breaking up the fish pieces.
- Add the crab, gently pressing it into the broth to warm it.
- Sprinkle with the parsley and fennel fronds.
Notes
Sea scallops are 1 and ½ to 2 inches large, as opposed to bay scallops, which are about ½ inch.
You can substitute cooked crab legs or smaller claws for the lump crabmeat, but getting the meat out of the shell at the table can make for slightly messy eating.