 | |
| Type | Fish stew |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | Italy |
| Region or state | Tuscany |
| Main ingredients | Broth,fish,shellfish |
Cacciucco (Italian:[katˈtʃukko]) is anItalianfish stew native to the western coastal towns ofTuscany.[1] It is especially associated with theport city ofLivorno, in Tuscany,[2][3] and the town ofViareggio north of it.[3]
Cacciucco is a hearty stew consisting of several different types offish andshellfish;[2][3] one tradition holds that there should be five different types of fish in the soup, one for each letterc incacciucco.[3] A wide variety ofMediterranean fish and shellfish may be used, such asred gurnard,[3]armored gurnard,[3]scorpionfish (scorfano),[2] smallclams such aslittleneck ormanila,[1] firm-fleshed fish such asmonkfish or otherwhitefish,red snapper,John Dory, orgrouper,[1][4]mussels,[1][4]shrimp,[1] andcalamari.[1] Traditionalist chefs add astone taken from the sea to the dish.[3]Crabs,eels,cuttlefish,octopus,bream, mullet, or anything else caught that day might be used.[5]
A wide variety of other ingredients are used in thebroth, including various vegetables (which might includeonions,tomatoes,leeks,zucchini, oryellow squash), spices (which might includegarlic,aniseed, driedcrushed red pepper,kosher salt,black pepper,parsley,thyme, orbay leaf) and other ingredients (which might includefish stock,tomato paste,vermouth, orwine, either white or red).[3][4][5] There are many variants ofcacciucco, varying by region and availability of ingredients.[4]
Pellegrino Artusi, in his 1891 cookbook, gave a recipe using onions, garlic, oil, parsley, salt, and pepper, with:
whatever fish you may have on hand, includingsole,red mullet,gurnard,dogfish,mantis shrimp, and other types of fish in season, leaving the small fish whole and cutting the big ones into small pieces. Taste for seasoning; but in any case it is not a bad idea to add a littleolive oil, since the amount ofsoffritto was quite small
and served "on two separate platters: on one you place the fish... and on the other... finger-thick slices of bread to soak up all the broth.[6]
Cacciucco is similar to other types of fish stew, such as the Frenchbouillabaisse, Greekkakavia, Spanish zarzuela, and Portuguesecaldeirada and the Vietnamese canh chua cá that is very similar also phonetically.[3][7][8]Cioppino, another fish stew, was created byItalian American fisherman inSan Francisco, who used the localDungeness crab in a variation of thecacciucco recipe.[9][5]
