Seafood Stew: Italian

Like my as-yet-unfinished Study in Fried Chicken, I've long wanted to do a study comparing seafood stews because every culture and nationality has (at least) one. I've done a few that I haven't written about here yet, but plan to eventually- Brazilian, Vietnamese, Korean, Japanese, French, etc. But for now, here is:

Italian Seafood Stew

What makes this stew unique is that the squid broth is to die for! Normally, squid is cooked fairly quickly- a couple minutes in the pan, deep fried, or grilled over high heat. This recipe slow cooks the squid with aromatics like onion and fennel before deglazing and fully reducing white wine and then adding puréed tomatoes and oregano. The squid imparts the lovely flavor of the sea, and the cooking method gives its texture a perfect snap without being tough or chewy.

* Funny side story- at the seafood counter, a couple next to me remarked, "Ew, look! They have squid tubes and tentacles!" Immediately after that the fishmonger asked what I wanted and I said, "A pound of squid tubes and tentacles, please." The couple ultimately ordered a bunch of bottom-feeding bivalves, scallops (which I also love).  It was just coincidence, but I laughed inside. Maybe they like "calamari" better ;-)

Anyway, the broth is slow cooked with strips of lemon zest and the whole stew is topped for brightness with a simple parsley and lemon zest gremolata (just a basic lemon and herb topping, often with garlic).

This version also includes mussels, shrimp, and firm white fish. Kara is allergic to clams (and only clams!) so I doubled the mussels and used seafood stock instead of clam juice. I also left just one intact mussel on each plate as garnish and shelled the rest just before serving so the dish didn't have a pile of shells on it requiring bowls just for refuse. I splurged for halibut as the fish component, but with so many flavors here, I think I'll use more affordable cod next time or... SCALLOPS!

Served with a baby kale and spinach side salad with homemade lemon vinaigrette and grilled bread with a compound butter made with roasted garlic to sop up the broth. And that wraps up this version of seafood stew. Hopefully I'll be able to write more about others later and then collect and consolidate my comments across all cultural takes on this popular dish.