Werner’s Northwest Cioppino

A friend of mine, Verna Fenzl (formally Verna Eisen) and I were talking about great recipes.  She mentioned that her father, Werner Eisen, had a great Cioppino recipe.  He believed in a rich man's cioppino, meaning little or no fish.   He has included various amounts of ingredients depending upon the size of the crowd being fed.  Enjoy.

Ingredients

• ½ Cup Salt Pork
• ¼ Cup Olive Oil
• 2 Cups Onions, sliced
• 2 Stalks Celery, chopped
• 2 Cloves Garlic, minced
• 1 Bay Leaf
• Salt/Pepper (¼ Teaspoon each to taste)
• 1 Teaspoon Fresh Basil, chopped
• ½ Teaspoon Fresh Oregano, chopped
• ¼ Cup Fresh Parsley, chopped
• 1 Cup Clam Juice
• 28 Ounce can of Italian Tomatoes, undrained
• 8 Ounces of Tomato Paste
• 1-½ Pound of the following mix of seafood
• Mussels, in shell
• Clams, in shell
• Shrimp, peeled
• Scallops
• Oysters
• Fresh or Frozen Crab
• If you wish to add fish add Halibut, Lingcod, Rockfish or Seabass.  These would be included in the 1-½ pound mixture of seafood

Procedure

• Sauce the Salt Pork, Onions, Garlic and Celery in Olive Oil
• Add Clam Juice, Tomatoes, and tomatoe paste
• Add Salt and Pepper, Basil, Oregano, and Parsley
• Simmer Covered for 30 minutes
• If you include fish - Add fish, cover and simmer for about 10-20 minutes
• Add Scallops, Clams in Shell, Shrimp and Mussels and Oysters
• Simmer for about 10 minutes longer (or until fish flakes if fish was included). Othersise, until Mussel and/or Clam shells open. 

Now, Warner left a table of quanities for various numbers of servings.  The table below can be followed for large groups.