This satisfying seafood stew is loaded with flavor from fennel tomato broth, parsley, and red pepper flakes. It's complex, nutritious, and delicious, but takes less than 30 minutes to make!
In a large soup pot or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the sliced fennel and diced onion, and cook for 4 to 5 minutes until softened. Stir in the minced garlic and red pepper flakes, and cook for a few more minutes. Season generously with salt and pepper.
Add the dry white wine and parsley, and cook, stirring frequently, for 2 to 3 minutes until the wine starts to cook off. Pour in the canned tomatoes with their juices and vegetable stock, and increase the heat to bring to a gentle boil. Season with salt and pepper.
When the broth has reached a gentle boil, add the shrimp and cook for about 3 to 4 minutes until opaque and cooked through. You can cut the shrimp into bite-size pieces if desired before adding them to the pot. I used jumbo shrimp and cut them in half and some into thirds.
Remove the stew from heat, and ladle into bowls. Garnish with freshly shaved parmesan and fennel fronds if you have them. Serve with crunchy bread or even over pasta. Enjoy!
Notes
This serves about two people as a main dish and four people as an appetizer or first course.
To make this stew vegetarian, omit the shrimp and use white beans or butter beans instead.
This dish is best served right away, but leftovers will last in the fridge for a couple of days. Reheat in a saucepan until warmed through.
I prefer to use frozen shrimp for this recipe (that have been peeled and deveined prior to being frozen). It's really easy to cut frozen shrimp into smaller pieces, and they cook nicely without becoming too mushy.