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    Home » Recipes » Seafood Recipes

    Ligurian Seafood Stew with a Basil Saffron Cream Sauce

    Published: Jan 10, 2012 · Modified: Feb 21, 2022 by Chef Dennis Littley

    302 shares
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    5 from 6 votes
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    How to make Ligurian Seafood Stew.

    ligurian seafood stew

    For the seafood, I seared the scallops, and shrimp but broiled the flounder. I steamed the mussels with a little olive oil, and heated the jumbo lump crabmeat in butter so every item would retain its flavor!

    The sauce started with the juices left from cooking the mussels. Adding basil and saffron seemed like a good choice to bring the flavors together.

    ligurian seafood stew

    I have to tell you, it’s hard to surprise myself with something I cooked, but this dish was incredible if I do say so myself, the only thing I would have changed would have been my choice of pasta,  I used pappardelle, and a thinner noodle would have gone better with this dish.

    ligurian seafood stew

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    5 from 6 votes

    Ligurian Seafood Stew with a Basil Saffron Creme Sauce

    My Ligurian seafood stew with pan seared scallops, shrimp, flounder, jumbo lump crab meat and roasted vegetables topped with a delicate basil saffron cream will wow your guests.
    Try my restaurant-style dinner in your home this weekend.
    Prep Time15 mins
    Cook Time25 mins
    Total Time40 mins
    Course: Entree
    Cuisine: Italian, Italian – American
    Servings: 2
    Calories: 1413kcal
    Author: Chef Dennis Littley

    Ingredients

    Seafood

    • 4 oz flounder or fish of your choice
    • 4 oz shrimp peeled and deveined
    • 4 oz Sea Scallops
    • ½ lb mussels
    • ¼ lb jumbo lump or lump crabmeat

    Roasted Vegetables

    • 1 bulb fennel sliced sliced
    • 2 stalks celery stew cut
    • 2 carrots stew cut
    • 2 potatoes stew cut
    • 4 cloves garlic
    • 1 onion stew cut
    • 1 tbsp olive oil
    • sea salt and black pepper

    Basil -saffron cream sauce

    • 1 tbsp chopped basil
    • pinch of saffron threads
    • 1 cup heavy cream
    • 1 tbsp butter
    • 1 tbsp flour
    • ½ pound of linguine or spaghetti
    US Customary – Metric
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    Instructions

    • preheat oven to 350 degrees
    • Cook pasta al dente per instruction on box, then set aside

    Roasted Vegetables

    • cut vegetables and place in roasting pan with olive oil, salt and pepper to taste and toss to coat with oil and seasonings
    • roast for 20-25 minutes

    Seafood

    • place flounder on baking pan drizzle with olive oil, sea salt and pepper, add a little water to the pan and bake for 20 minutes
    • add mussels to saute pan with 2 tbsp of olive oil, cover with lid or another pan and allow to steam open (about 8 minutes)
    • let mussels cool then remove from shells and place in a bowl, and discard shells, but save the juices in the pan!
    • add heavy cream, ¾ of the basil, and the saffron to the mussels juices, bring to a boil then reduce heat to a simmer, allow sauce to reduce by ⅓
    • get a saute pan very hot with a little oil and sear the scallops until you get some crusting for color, cook on each side and remove from pan.
    • Sear shrimp until almost done, remove from pan
    • In another saute pan, gently heat the crabmeat

    Bring it all together

    • timing is everything with this dish, vegetables, and flounder should be done.
    • reheat pasta in a pan with a little olive oil or return to boiling water briefly, which ever method you prefer.
    • Place scallops, shrimp, and mussels in saute pan and reheat gently but quickly, in just a little oil or water.
    • take the butter and roll it in the flour to make a beurre manie and place in the sauce to finish thickening*

    Assemble

    • Place pasta in a mound at the bottom of a bowl or center of a plate
    • place roasted vegetables around outside pasta
    • place flounder in center of pasta
    • pour sauce over flounder, splitting it evenly between the two dishes
    • place scallops and shrimp around the flounder
    • sprinkle with remaining basil and serve immediately!

    Notes

    *if sauce is too thick skip the flour and just add the butter, if its still too thick add additional cream or a little white wine or chicken stock.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 1413kcal | Carbohydrates: 144g | Protein: 69g | Fat: 63g | Saturated Fat: 33g | Cholesterol: 400mg | Sodium: 1732mg | Potassium: 2662mg | Fiber: 15g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 12615IU | Vitamin C: 60.7mg | Calcium: 417mg | Iron: 14mg
    Tried this Recipe? Pin it for Later!Mention @askChefDennis or tag #askChefDennis!

    More Seafood Recipes

    • Baked Garlic Butter Salmon
    • New England Clam Chowder Recipe
    • Crab Stuffed Mushrooms
    • Easy Pasta with Red Crab Sauce

    About Chef Dennis

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    Chef Dennis is a semi-retired Chef, writer/blogger, photographer, recipe developer and creator of A Culinary Journey with Chef Dennis aka Ask Chef Dennis®. Chef Dennis worked professionally in White Table Cloth Restaurants for 40 years and has been developing easy to make, restaurant-style recipes since 2009. The second phase of his reinvention from chef to blogger has earned him a place at the Worlds Dinner Table. Join him on his Culinary Journey enjoying his easy to make Restaurant Style recipes and travel adventures. For more details, check out his About page.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Erin @ Dinners, Dishes, and Desserts

      January 13, 2012 at 11:19 am

      What an incredible meal! Love your tips on getting more seafood at home. I always buy frozen shrimp too, but wasn’t sure that was the best way – now I know! I am going to have to buy scallops that way too; i have avoided them because of the cost of fresh ones up until now!

      Reply
    2. Inessa

      January 13, 2012 at 1:06 am

      5 stars
      This looks soo delicious! Love all the ingredients you used. I will deft try this dish. thanks for sharing. 🙂 I will be back to your site for some more Delish recipes!!!!

      Reply
    3. Jill@MadAboutMacarons

      January 12, 2012 at 1:10 pm

      5 stars
      Dennis, I’m going to casually leave your blog post open for hubby to see as a hint: I LOVE eating out and would do anything for you to be able to serve me this for a change. Other than that, you’ve posted the recipe – looks fabulous. If I’m not taken out, high time hubby cooked for a real change!

      Reply
    4. deana@lostpastremembered

      January 12, 2012 at 12:56 pm

      The stew looks wonderful… but adding the saffron cream would make it divine… must try this combo, Dennis!

      Reply
    5. Culinary Cache

      January 12, 2012 at 11:16 am

      5 stars
      This is a fabulous recipe, I love your use of saffron, which as we know sets off seafood incredibly well. I also love the variety of seafood used in this dish. Absolutely beautiful one I will have to try soon!

      Reply
    6. deniz

      January 12, 2012 at 2:44 am

      5 stars
      thanks dannıs

      Reply
    7. Janet@FCTC

      January 11, 2012 at 9:30 pm

      As I eye this, I wish my husband liked seafood but alas, he doesn’t. So that means…. MORE FOR ME!!! Cause there is no way I’m NOT making this because he won’t eat it. I’ll just make him something else 😀

      Reply
    8. FreeSpiritEater

      January 11, 2012 at 8:53 pm

      5 stars
      Wow Chef! I could devour the entire pot of this seafood stew, it looks sooo decadent! Thanks for sharing such a drool inducing dish. Have a great night =]

      Reply
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