Brodetto di Mare

By Flyer920

This Italian shellfish stew is one of the most popular dishes I made in my home kitchen. I like to serve it over Risotto Bianco, but it’s equally good with crusty bread, or spooned over garlic toast or over rigatoni. If you don’t have a skillet large enough to accommodate the scallops and shrimp without crowding them, cook them separately, dividing the oil between them.
This pairs well with an Italian Montepulciano D’Abruzzo, such as the Anfra Nero Due Mori 2005.

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound sea scallops
• 1/2 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
• Sea salt, preferably gray salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 2 tablespoons Pernod
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 3/4 pound clams, scrubbed
• 1/2 pound mussels, scrubbed and debearded
• 2 cups peeled, seeded, and finely diced tomato
• 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Preparation

Step 1

Season the scallops and shrimp well with salt and pepper. Heat a 14-inch skillet over high heat. When hot, add 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Add the scallops and shrimp and brown well on one side, about 2 minutes, then turn and cook about 1 minute on the second side. Transfer the shellfish to a platter and return the skillet to moderate heat.

Add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil and the garlic to the skillet over moderately high heat. Sauté until the garlic begins to color, then add the Pernod. Simmer until the Pernod evaporates, then add the wine and simmer until reduced by half.

Add the clams and mussels, cover, and raise the heat to high. Cook until they open, 3 to 5 minutes, checking occasionally and removing them to the platter as they open. Discard any that fail to open.

Add the tomato to the skillet along with any accumulated shellfish juices on the platter. Simmer for about 2 minutes to soften the tomato, then reduce the heat to moderately low and stir in the tarragon and butter. When the butter melts, return all the shellfish to the sauce and reheat briefly. Serve immediately.