Cioppino

The great Italian-American fisherman’s stew from San Francisco:

• 2 T olive oil
• 1 yellow bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and cut into large chunks
• 1 large clove of garlic
• 1 large plum tomato, sliced
• 3 T fresh lemon juice
• 1 lb. mussels, scrubbed and beards removed
• 1 1/2  Manilla clams or small little necks, scrubbed
• 1/2  lb. snapper, rockfish or other mild, firm fish, cut into chunks
• 1/2  lb. shrimp, in-shell
• 1 (about 2 lbs.) cooked Dungeness crab (or other crab), cleaned and cracked with the body section cut into pieces
• 1/2  lb. squid mantles cut into rings
• Sweet pepper sauce

Heat olive oil in large Dutch oven or kettle over medium-high heat.  Add yellow pepper, onion and garlic and sauté 5 minutes or until soft.  Add tomato slices and lemon juice;  cook 2 minutes.  Add mussels, clams, fish and prawns; cover and cook over medium heat 5 minutes.  Add crab and sweet pepper sauce (see sidebar); cover and simmer 5 minutes. Stir in squid; cover and cook 2 to 3 minutes longer or until squid is opaque throughout, shrimp is pink and opaque, fish is cooked through, crab is hot and mussels and clams have opened.  Discard any unopened mussels or clams.  Serve Cioppino in a tureen or large soup bowls, dividing the various ingredients among the bowls. Serves 4–6.