Seafood Stew (Crock Pot)

ellie_'s Note:

This is very good, hearty and low cal/low fat! I made this when I wanted to use what I had on hand -- all the seafood and chicken was in the freezer and the cans of tomatoes (which I always have on hand) in the pantry plus some celery and peppers from the fridge - and dinner was on its way! I made a few changes to the original recipe from The Healthy Slow Cooker based on what I had on hand and spiced it up a bit. I used 1 can of tomatoes w/ green chiles (but the original recipe calls for 19 oz of canned tomatoes) and some tomato juice I wanted to use up. The recipe below is how I made the recipe - but this recipe is very adaptable to personal tastes or what is on hand.

• Total Time: 5 hrs
• Prep Time: 30 mins
• Cook Time: 4 hrs 30 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 6

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 onions, diced
• 4 stalks celery, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon peppercorn, cracked
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 3 cups vegetable broth (or chicken broth)
• 1 (10 ounce) can tomatoes and green chilies (see note in description)
• 1 -2 cup tomato juice (see note in description)
• 1 lb chicken breast, cut into bite size pieces
• 8 ounces shrimp, thawed (if frozen)
• 5 ounces clams (I used frozen, thawed, but the original recipe suggests canned clams, drained)
• 2 bell peppers, diced (I used red bell peppers, but the original recipe suggests 1 red and 1 green bell pepper)
• 1 jalapeno pepper, chopped
• 1/2 cup parsley, chopped (I used a lot less)
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 pinch cayenne pepper
• 8 ounces scallops, halved
• 1 tablespoon butter
• hot pepper sauce

Directions:

1. In a large skillet heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add onions and celery and cook stirring for 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender.
2. Add garlic, oregano, peppercorns and cook stirring for another minute.
3. Stir in tomato paste and flour and cook another minute.
4. Add vegetable broth (or chicken broth), tomatoes and tomato juice and bring to a boil. Continue to cook for about 3-5 more minutes. Remove from heat and transfer mixture to crock pot.
5. Add chicken and stir to combine. Cover and cook on high for 3 hours or low for 6 hours.
6. Stir in shrimp, clams, peppers, and parsley. Cover and cook on high for 30 minutes.
7. Meanwhile in a baggie combine chili powder and cayenne. Add scallops and toss to coat.
8. In a skillet over medium heat melt butter and add scallops and cook, stirring for 3-5 minutes or until scallops are opaque.
9. Add scallops to crock pot, stirring in well.
10. Spoon soup in bowls and serve with hot pepper sauce if desired. I thought this was spicy enough without the Tabasco sauce - but my son added a lot to his serving.

Reviews

[Noor.Khalid]

An absolutely tasty dish. Here are my modifications: First of all, I was too lazy to saut? anything, so I dumped it all in the crockpot. I omitted all of the oil and butter as I'm looking to eliminate as many fat grams as possible--they weren't missed. Left out the tomatoes, added a bottle of clam broth to the mix as well as a whitefish filet instead of the chicken, and used bay scallops. This recipe is extremely adaptable and is so easy to make. Hubby and I really enjoyed it and will make again! Thanks for posting, ellie!

[Maito]

This made a great meal! I took the lazy route and threw everything in the crock pot (skipped the sauteing and the oil). For this reason I subbed 2 tablespoons of quick cooking tapioca for the flour. I used smoked chicken, and it imparted a great flavor. I also used more clams in lieu of the shrimp. It is much like a meaty Manhattan clam chowder. The scallops kind of get lost in it, so I would say they aren't a must, especially if you are watching your budget. I added baked potatoes to the leftovers for lunch the next day, and that was super too!

[Dolf Cakes]

This was absolutely fantastic. A bit of prep work with all the chopping but it was all worth it. I used bay scallops and I would definitely use smaller shrimp next time. I had some extra large so I used them but they made for quite a mouthful. I'd go with twice as many mediums. If you want to impress anyone with a dinner, the smell and taste of this will knock any seafood lovers socks off. And the chicken was an excellent addition.