My Sunshine State Cioppino is brimming with fresh Florida seafood cooked in a tomato and wine broth. Be sure to serve it with plenty of crusty bread on the side for dipping!
Now that the holidays are over, you may be looking for some delicious but lighter dinner recipes. My Sunshine State Cioppino definitely fits the bill. Packed with flavor and fresh, nutritious ingredients, it's the perfect post-holiday clean eating dish.
What is Cioppino?
broth that's infused with wine and served with plenty of crusty bread for dipping. I decided to make a version of cioppino using fresh Florida seafood. After all, I'm a Floridian now so why not take advantage of the bounty of fresh, local seafood?
Because the base of the stew only has a few simple ingredients, I wanted to be sure to use high quality products so I turned to Natalie's tomato juice. Natalie's Orchid Island Juice Company is a wonderful women owned and family operated company that produces only the highest quality juices. Their juices are clean, all natural and squeezed fresh every day. Their products are nutritious and they're environmentally friendly- even their packaging is 100% recyclable.
How to Make Sunshine State Cioppino
What Type of Seafood to Use in Cioppino
After 15-20 minutes, I add the seafood to the soup. I typically use a mixture of fresh Florida grouper, shrimp and mussels but you can use any combination of seafood that you like. You can substitute clams or even crab for the mussels. Whatever type of fish you do use, just make sure it is a firm fish so that it doesn't disintegrate in the liquid. If you don't have grouper, then halibut or cod are good choices.
The fish cooks in minutes, so keep an eye on it. You'll know it's ready when the fish is opaque and the mussels open. Because seafood cooks so quickly, this dish is a good option for weeknight meals.
What to Serve with Cioppino
Be sure to serve this stew with plenty of crusty bread for dipping. Sourdough bread is traditionally served with cioppino but I like to use whatever bread looks good at my local bakery. If you want to try something different, make a batch of my AMAZING Cauliflower Cheesy Bread, which is one of the most popular recipes on my blog! It make it with nutrient-rich cauliflower and plenty of ooey, gooey cheese. It's low calorie, delicious, and gluten-free!
Looking for more tasty soups and stews? Check out my collection of the best Fall Soup Recipes to get more ideas. Some of the recipes included are:
Immunity-Boosting Carrot Turmeric Soup
Lentil Soup with Sausage and Greens
Orange-Scented Butternut Squash Soup
Recipe
Sunshine State Cioppino (Seafood Stew)
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 cup thinly sliced shallots (can substitute yellow onion)
- 1 cup thinly sliced fennel (reserve fronds for garnish)
- 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- ⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 can (14.5 oz) no salt added diced tomatoes
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 16 ounces (2 cups) tomato juice
- 2 cups seafood stock (can substitute clam juice)
- 1 bay leaf
- 3 sprigs parsley plus extra for garnish
- 1 sprig thyme (or ½ teaspoon dried)
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 pound fresh mussels, cleaned
- 1 pound firm white fish fillet like grouper or halibut
- ¾ pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
- Crusty whole grain bread, for serving
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large stockpot over medium heat. Add the shallots and fennel and sauté, stirring occasionally, until softened, 5-6 minutes. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook another minute until fragrant. Turn the heat up to high and add the diced tomatoes, white wine, tomato juice, seafood stock, bay leaf, parsley sprigs, thyme sprig, ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper. Stir to combine.
- Bring to a boil then lower to a simmer and cover the pot. Simmer 15-20 minutes to let the flavors meld. Then uncover the pot and stir in the mussels, fish and shrimp. Cover the pot and cook until seafood is cooked through and mussels are open, about 5 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper as needed. Garnish with fresh parsley and fennel fronds. Serve with plenty of crusty bread on the side for dipping.
Nutrition
CLICK BELOW TO PIN!
Lyubomira L says
Such a lovely dish! Love the flavors! Your daughter is so cute!
sonaliruder says
Thank you so much!
Erin says
I would really like to just reach into that first picture, grab the bread, and dunk it into the cioppino! Looks delicious!! Could you have that to Colorado by 5pm ? 🙂
sonaliruder says
Haha, wish I could Erin! Dunking the bread in the soup is my favorite part 🙂
crissy says
This looks wonderful! I'm hosting a traditional Italian Christmas Eve dinner this year and am making chippino, can't wait to try this recipe!
sonaliruder says
Thank you! I hope you had a great Christmas!
Natalie @ Obsessive Cooking says
Oooah, the cioppino was my fiance's and I's ultimate datenight dinner back when we were in the Bay Area at Stanford. He's gonna love this recipe 😀 Love it!
sonaliruder says
That's awesome! Glad I could bring back some nice memories 🙂
anne@cravingSomethingHealthy.com says
This is so gorgeous, I could dive in right now! Pinned 🙂
sonaliruder says
Thanks so much, Anne!
Diane Boyd says
Your photos are gorgeous, and btw your daughter is precious! I like most all seafood, by husband isn't crazy about fish. This meal would work for us, he could eat the shrimp and I could have the fish! Pinning!
sonaliruder says
Thanks Diane! That's the great thing about this dish- you can use whatever type of seafood you like!
Sarah Grace Spann says
wow YUM! Florida seafood is delicious, isn't it?? I love love love my seafood, so this is something I'll definitely need to try out 🙂
xo
sonaliruder says
Yes, it is! Thanks, Sarah!
Steph @ The Grateful Grazer says
Yum this sounds delicious. I don't cook much seafood at home but you are motivating me to give it a try! 🙂
sonaliruder says
That's great! I cook a lot of seafood because it's fast (and healthy)!
Alisa says
This looks amazing! The seafood in Florida looks every bit as delicious as what we have out west.I'll have to be on the lookout for that tomato juice - it's been ages since I've used that ingredient in recipes.
sonaliruder says
Thank you! The tomato juice really did add great, fresh flavor!
Christine says
Your daughter is so cute!! And this dish looks amazing and is totally what I'm in the mood for with the colder weather!
sonaliruder says
Thanks so much, Christine!
Kerri O says
This looks amazing! A bit outside my family's food comfort zone (which is perfect because I'm slowly trying to work my kids out of their food rut).
sonaliruder says
Thanks! It's actually quite easy to make and hopefully your family will love it.
Rebecca Pytell says
That's so lovely! I've never had any type of soup with seafood :O
sonaliruder says
Thanks, Rebecca! I hope you try it out.
Elizabeth Shaw says
Oh my goodness, that little girl, so adorable!!! I love that photo and those boots, so stickin cute! Okay, so while on my travels I saw a lot of menu items with the Seafood Stew but was fearful it would taste to seafoody lol! This makes me want to dive face first into a bowl of it now, I better venture out down to the San Diego Harbor and try this now! Maybe then I'll get the courage to make it 🙂
sonaliruder says
Haha, thanks Elizabeth! I'm sure you have plenty of awesome, fresh seafood in San Diego so you should try it out!
Cotter Crunch says
i love natalies! i used their grapefruit before. so good! i bet this soup is so refreshing too!
sonaliruder says
Yay for another Natalie's fan! Thanks Lindsay!
Sara Haas says
Wow! This just looks so amazing! Lovely recipe!
sonaliruder says
Thanks so much!
Amelia @ Eating Made Easy says
This looks so light, fresh and healthy - and SO TASTY. Just the kind of meal we need this time of year, between all the cookies & fudge!
sonaliruder says
Haha, so true! Thanks Amelia 🙂
Shashi at RunninSrilankan says
I swear I can smell this from here in Atlanta, Sonali! This sounds delicious - love your use of tomato juice!
BTW Sienna has good taste it sounds like - orange mango would be my fav too!
sonaliruder says
Haha, she definitely has good taste! Aside from orange-mango juice some of her other faves or chocolate chip cookies and blueberry pancakes 🙂
Julie Wunder says
How wonderful!!! This looks so tasty!!! And that juice sounds perfect.
sonaliruder says
Thanks Julie!
Jessica Levinson says
your daughter has gotten so big! She's adorable! I'm not a shellfish eater, but this stew looks delish and I can totally see making it without the shellfish!
sonaliruder says
Thanks Jessica! You can totally try it without the shellfish 🙂
Deanna - Teaspoon of Spice says
Ahhh, this recipe speaks to my seafood loving heart (and could your daughter be any cuter??) I'll have to look for Natalie juices.
sonaliruder says
Thanks Deanna! I hope you can find it!