Zuppa di Pesce alla Livornese

Livorno's celebrated fish soup is a direct descendant of the humble seafarer's pot — whatever the boats brought in was thrown into a tomato and white wine broth with good olive oil and Tuscan bread. Today it is a centrepiece dinner-party dish from the Ligurian coast, showcasing the finest Mediterranean fish and shellfish in a flavourful, rustic broth.

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 400g (14 oz) firm white fish fillets (sea bass, cod or monkfish), cut into large chunks
• 300g (10½ oz) raw shell-on prawns
• 300g (10½ oz) mussels, cleaned and debearded
• 200g (7 oz) squid, cleaned and sliced into rings
• 4 tbsp (60ml) good extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 small dried red chilli, crumbled
• 150ml (⅔ cup) dry white wine
• 400g (14 oz) tin crushed tomatoes
• 250ml (1 cup) fish stock or water
• 1 tsp (3g) sugar
• Small bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• Salt and black pepper
• 4 thick slices Tuscan bread (or sourdough), toasted and rubbed with garlic

Instructions

1. In a large, wide, heavy casserole heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic and chilli; cook gently 2 minutes without colouring. Add white wine and let it bubble fiercely for 2 minutes to cook off the alcohol.
2. Add crushed tomatoes, stock and sugar. Season and simmer 15 minutes until the sauce is reduced and flavourful.
3. Add the squid rings first; stir into the sauce and cook 5 minutes over medium heat.
4. Nestle the fish chunks into the broth; cook 3 minutes. Add the prawns and push the mussels in around the edges, hinge-side down. Cover tightly with a lid and cook 4–5 minutes, shaking the pan occasionally, until mussels are fully open and prawns are pink. Discard any mussels that remain shut.
5. Taste the broth and adjust salt. Scatter generously with chopped parsley.
6. Place a garlic-rubbed toasted bread slice into each deep bowl. Ladle the soup over the top, ensuring each serving has a mix of all the seafood.

Cook's Notes: The bread at the bottom of the bowl is not optional — it is structural to the dish, soaking up the broth and transforming into something extraordinary. Different fish can be used depending on the season and availability. Add the fish in order of cooking time: squid first, firm fish second, delicate shellfish last.