Brodetto di Pesce

Brodetto di pesce is the Adriatic coast's great fish stew—a vibrant, saffron-tinted or tomato-based preparation of mixed local fish served in a generous broth that varies dramatically from town to town along the coast from Rimini down to Vasto, with each port fiercely defending the superiority of its own version. The Marche's brodetto tradition, centred on the fishing ports of Fano, Ancona, Porto Recanati, and San Benedetto del Tronto, uses the catch of the day's trawl—scorpionfish, gurnard, sole, mullet, cuttlefish, mantis shrimp (canocchie), mussels, and clams—cooked together in a sequence determined by each fish's cooking time. The base typically begins with olive oil, garlic, and onion, to which white wine vinegar (a defining Adriatic touch, absent from Tyrrhenian fish stews) is added, followed by tomato (in the southern Marche versions) or saffron (in northern versions, closer to the Romagna tradition). The fish are added in stages—cuttlefish first, firm fish next, delicate fish and shellfish last—and the stew cooks gently for 15-20 minutes, during which the fish release their juices into the broth. The finished brodetto is a vibrant, slightly tangy, deeply oceanic stew served over slices of toasted bread or polenta, the various fish still identifiable despite having shared their flavours with the broth. The vinegar is the distinctive element—it provides an acidity that lifts the heavy richness of the fish stew and gives Adriatic brodetto its particular bright, clean character. Every coastal town has its version, and the rivalries between them are the stuff of local legend—particularly the ancient feud between Fano (vinegar-based, no tomato) and Porto Recanati (saffron-tinted).

• French bouillabaisse (Mediterranean fish stew)
• Livornese cacciucco (Tyrrhenian cousin)
• Croatian brudet (Adriatic relative)
• Spanish zarzuela