Seafood Soup – Sopa de Mariscos

Click here to go to printable recipe:  Seafood Soup – Sopa de mariscos

In Mexico, there are many ways to prepare a comforting seafood soup: different fish, molluscs and shellfish may be chosen; potatoes and other veggies may be added or not; and the broth may be clear, tomato or hot-pepper based, or even creamy, as I have shared in another post as seafood chowder.  For this recipe, I was inspired by the seafood soup my husband enjoyed at 5Rabanitos Mexican restaurant while we were in Chicago, Illinois last month, as pictured below:

For my version, I have tried to include everything my husband mentioned his soup had, except I omitted shrimp since I am allergic, but any assortment of seafood will be good.  The soup takes its bright red colour from dry red peppers, and the spiciness may be adjusted to taste by choosing mild guajillos, or hot chiles de árbol, or a mix; I chose to use one guajillo and five chiles de árbol, for medium hotness.

Seafood Soup – Sopa de Mariscos

Printable recipe:  Seafood Soup – Sopa de mariscos

Ingredients (for 8 portions)

¾ lb (340 g) white fish filets, such as cod or halibut

Some or all of the following seafood, to taste:
¼ lb (112 g) octopus; gutted and cleaned
¼ lb (112 g) mussels or clams; cooked, shells discarded
½ lb (225 g) small squid; gutted and cleaned
½ lb (225 g) small shrimp (25-30); peeled and black strip removed

5-6 red dry peppers; mixed to taste, mild guajillo and hot de árbol
2 carrots
2 zucchini
1 chayote, or omit
1 large potato
1 large tomato
6-8 radishes
1 bunch cilantro
2 avocados (optional)
4 limes
1 onion (red or white); peeled
2 cloves garlic; peeled
2 tbsp olive oil
8-10 cups hot water
Salt and pepper, to taste

Wash and dry ingredients on the list,  from dry red peppers to limes.  

Place dry peppers in a bowl with one cup of freshly boiled water, and allow to soak for 10-15 minutes (photo below, left).  Remove and discard stems (and seeds, optional, for milder taste) from hydrated peppers; process peppers with their soaking water in a blender, for about one minute, until very smooth (photo below, right):  

Reserve this sauce.

Photo below, clockwise from top, left: Remove stem spot from tomato, and slice in half; slice radishes, then cut into matchsticks; finely chop garlic; chop onion; chop cilantro, including stems; leave potato whole until it is time to use:

Photo below, from left: Peel carrots, remove ends, cut into quarters lengthwise, then slice into cubes; remove ends from zucchini, cut into quarters lengthwise, then slice into cubes; slice chayote in half lengthwise, peel and remove hard edges, slice lengthwise into half-inch (1.25 cm) strips, then cut into bite-size blocks:

I started with frozen seafood, so I thawed, rinsed and patted dry (photo below, clockwise from left):  squid tubes, already cleaned; mussel “meat” pre-cooked and shelled; wild caught cod filets; and octopus tentacles, already sliced:

Prep the seafood (photo below, clockwise from left):  Slice squid tubes into rings (and if using, tentacles into bite-size pieces); if from raw, boil and shell mussels (as mentioned, mine were already cooked and shelled); slice fish into bite-size pieces; slice octopus into bite-size pieces (as mentioned, mine was already cut):  

Bring two cups of water to boil in a small pot over high heat, then add octopus (photo below, left).  Cook until tender; a medium whole octopus takes between 35 and 40 minutes to cook, and these cut-up tentacles took 20 minutes.  Check with a fork or toothpick; there should be very little resistance (photo below, right):

Remove from heat and reserve.

Warm up oil in a large pot over medium heat.  Add half the chopped onions (reserve the other half as a topping), and sauté until translucent.  Add carrots, and stir, cooking for another two minutes (photo below, left); add garlic in the middle of the pot, stirring, for a few seconds, then pour in one cup of hot water (photo below, right):

Tuck in tomato halves, cut side down, cover pot and allow to cook for a couple of minutes.  Uncover, and using tongs or a fork, check if tomato skins have loosened up, then remove and discard (photo below, left).  Break up peeled tomato halves with the fork or tongs (photo below , right):

Add four cups of hot water to the pot (photo below, left) and bring back to boil.  Meanwhile, peel (optional, I did not) and slice potato into sticks, then cut into cubes; add them to the pot, along with the chayote (if using), allowing to cook for about three minutes, so they are a little soft, but have not lost their shape (photo below, right):

Add squid, mussels and fish, allowing to cook without stirring (photo below, left).  Once fish is cooked, it may be removed and reserved until serving, for a chunky finish, or left in the pot, where it will break up and add texture to the broth (I did the latter).  Once squid is cooked (about five minutes), add shrimp (if using), and reserved octopus with its cooking liquid (photo below, right):

Add zucchini and reserved sauce, incorporating by gently stirring (photo below, left).  Add more hot water, as needed, one or two cups, and season with salt and pepper, to taste (photo below, right:

At serving time, slice limes into wedges, and slice avocado (if using); add fish chunks to the pot (if reserved). Scoop seafood and veggies into a large soup bowl, then pour in broth; sprinkle cilantro, onions, avocado (if using), and radishes on top, and serve with lime wedges on the side:

The combination of flavours was well balanced, with abundant seafood and veggies, and looked very pretty; with a platter like the one above, looking like a sculpture, you do not need candelabra or a centrepiece at the table.  I also like my soup with lots of broth, and to add the sliced avocado at the last minute: 

I thought it was very tasty, and had the right level of hot pepper flavour.  My husband said this soup had a lot of veggies, more of a “farmer‘s soup”, but liked it as much as the restaurant version, and he did not miss the shrimp; he also said it was not as spicy!  He added bottled hot sauce to his bowl, which is actually a good option, to please all family members. 

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I am bringing my recipe to Thursday Favourite Things #666 with Bev @ Eclectic Red Barn, Pam @ An Artful Mom, Katherine @ Katherine’s Corner, Amber @ Follow the Yellow Brick Home, and Linda @ Crafts a la Mode.

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I am sharing my recipe at  Full Plate Thursday #700 with Miz Helen @ Miz Helen’s Country Cottage.

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I am joining Fiesta Friday #543 with Angie @ Fiesta Friday.

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I am also sharing my recipe at What’s for Dinner? Sunday Link-Up #478  with Helen @ The Lazy Gastronome.