FOOD & BEVERAGE TRENDS
However, some historians believe the name may derive from “ciuppin,” a word for a “little soup” or “chopped/torn” fish stew in Italian. While the exact story may be lost to the oceans of time, the fact that cioppino has endured as a favorite stew is indis- putable. Here’s where Chef Chris Dunham of Cal Poly Campus Dining comes in. He’s been making cioppino the same way for 30 years with his beloved aunt’s recipe. Thanks to the location of Cal Poly, he’s lucky to have access to the freshest California coastal seafood, just like those fishermen of olden days. Dunham’s cioppino is a living textbook example of the tradition, with a robust, garlicky tomato broth, each piece of seafood cooked just right and finished off with grilled bread (for dipping and sopping, of course). “My aunt was in the restaurant business her whole life,” Dunham says, adding that his first job was dishwasher in the kitchen of her pub in central California. “It was 1993 and it was a summer job. I was in junior high and my mom didn’t want me to get in trouble, so my aunt said she needed a dishwasher.” But soon, Dunham would realize the chef path was for him. “I was a young cat doing dishes, and some guy called in sick, so I got to cook. I said, ‘This cooking thing is way better than the dish thing.’” Dunham attended the Culinary University of America and was exposed to a whole world of new flavors. He bounced around the East Coast cooking in some fine kitchens and starting a family. Eventually the family moved to California, something that surprised even Dunham, who “thought I wanted to be an East Coast guy, but I love it back here in California, so…” Throughout his career, he always carried his aunt’s cioppino recipe with him. “Cioppino was one thing my aunt learned from a chef she had worked with. It’s the flavors…I just remember all the fresh seafood and the tomatoey, garlicky broth and then the bread to dip
Chef Chris Dunham grew up in the Bakersfield area of California, where a unique brand of country music was born. But it’s the culinary arts that are really music to his ears.
into it.” From then on, whenever someone says, “Make me something good,” Dunham heads straight to the stove and a pot. “You can’t go wrong.” He starts with aromatics, similar to the Cajun “Holy Trinity” of onions, peppers and “lots of garlic.” Once the pot gets hot with a sizzle of oil and the aromatics go in and start getting just translucent, Dunham seasons with thyme, oregano and chili flakes. In addition, he says, “I like a little bit of sherry and I like a little saffron. It gives it a little more flavor.” Dunham blooms the saffron threads, immersing them in a small dish of hot water to really get the maximum flavor (and color, too). “If you’re ever making risotto,” he adds, “be sure to bloom the saffron, it’s worlds better. The same is true for Asian cooking with porcini mushrooms in hot water.” Back to the cioppino on the stove, it’s time for a glug of dry white wine, tomato paste and crushed tomatoes with their liquid from the can. At this point, salt
and pepper are added. And next is the main event, the seafood. While seafood is no doubt expensive, cioppino has always been a good way to use up the bits and bops before they expire. So, Dunham adds mussels and clams first, then shrimp and scallops (after searing the shells in another hot pan for even more flavor) and finally the more delicate pieces of white fish. That gets simmering, and then the bread is buttered and toasted and herbed. “I pull some seafood out so I can place that nicely on top,” Dunham says, “and then fresh parsley and a little lemon and maybe a little finishing lemon zest. What makes a good cioppino is the broth that’s spicy and floral from the saffron.” And great news for FSD readers. In honor of My Signature Dish, Dunham is planning to serve his signature cioppino at a special Chefs Table event for some lucky Cal Poly students later this month. We’ll be sure to share a follow-up story once that happens, so stay tuned!
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QUARTERLY | Q2
PHOTO COURTESY OF CHARTWELLS
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