Cacciucco alla livornese: the traditional recipe step by step

The ingredients of authentic cacciucco

Before talking about technique, let us talk about raw ingredients. Cacciucco alla livornese is a dish that is unforgiving when it comes to ingredients - not because it is technically difficult, but because its flavour depends almost entirely on the quality of the fish and on patience in cooking.

For a cacciucco for four people you need at least 1.2-1.5 kg of mixed fish, and then some. You do not make cacciucco with a single type of fish - the complexity of the broth comes precisely from the layering of different flavours that the various species contribute during cooking. Among the fish there must be at least one scorpionfish (indispensable for the structure of the broth), some octopus or cuttlefish (for texture and colour), and then fish for the broth and fish for the presentation.

Beyond the fish, the other essential ingredients are: canned peeled tomatoes (or fresh ripe tomatoes in summer), abundant garlic, fresh or dried chilli pepper, sage and rosemary for the soffritto, red wine for deglazing - a Morellino or a young Chianti, nothing precious -, Tuscan extra virgin olive oil, salt and black pepper. And then the Tuscan unsalted bread, stale by a day, to be toasted and rubbed with garlic.

A note on the oil: cacciucco is generous, not stingy. Quality extra virgin olive oil is not a finishing condiment - it is an integral part of the soffritto and the cooking. Do not stint.

The right fish: which varieties cannot be left out

The shopping list for an authentic cacciucco starts at the fish counter and requires a certain boldness. Not all the fish we need are the most attractive: scorpionfish is ugly and spiny, moray eel is intimidating, conger eel is not presentable. Yet they are what makes the broth.

Red or black scorpionfish: this is the king of the cacciucco broth. Its spines and gelatinous head release during cooking a flavour that has no equivalent. A 400-500 gram scorpionfish is sufficient for four people, but the larger it is, the more intense the broth will be.

Octopus or cuttlefish: octopus requires long cooking and gives an almost chewy texture that contrasts well with the more delicate fish. Cuttlefish cook faster and release their ink, which dyes the broth a characteristic dark colour. Ideally both are used.

Presentation fish: slipper lobster (cicale di mare), red mullet, smooth-hound. These are added in the final phase of cooking because they cook in just a few minutes. Slipper lobster, cut lengthwise, is the most beautiful and most traditional presentation.

Medium-cooking fish: sea robin (gallinella), weever fish, monkfish. Added mid-cooking, when the broth has already formed.

The soffritto and tomato base: the secret of the flavour

The soffritto of cacciucco is not the soffritto of any other dish. It starts with abundant extra virgin olive oil in a wide, capacious pot - a terracotta casserole is ideal, but thick-bottomed steel also works. The garlic - four or five whole cloves - goes into the cold oil and heats slowly. It must not burn: the bitterness of burned garlic compromises the entire broth.

When the garlic is golden, the chilli (whole or chopped, depending on how much heat you want) arrives, then the sage with a sprig of rosemary. The smell that rises at this moment is already that of cacciucco - herbal, warm, with the spicy note that tingles the nose.

At this point the red wine is added - a full glass, without timidity - and it is allowed to evaporate over a high flame. The steam that rises is violent and fragrant. Then comes the tomato: whole canned peeled tomatoes broken by hand, or fresh diced tomatoes in summer. The soffritto becomes sauce and the sauce must cook over medium heat for at least twenty minutes before touching the fish, until the oil rises to the surface and the tomato has fully integrated.

The cooking: timing, order and attention

The order in which the fish is added is the technical heart of cacciucco. You do not throw everything in together - each fish has its own timing and respecting it is the difference between a cacciucco where each fish is perfectly cooked and one where half is falling apart and half is raw.

First phase (40-50 minutes): octopus in pieces and cleaned cuttlefish. These are added to the tomato sauce when it is ready, covered and left to cook over low heat. Octopus needs time to soften without becoming rubbery.

Second phase (20 minutes): the cleaned and scaled scorpionfish, whole or cut in half. It enters the sauce with the octopus and cuttlefish. From this point hot water or fish stock is also added - enough to cover everything - and the broth begins to take shape.

Third phase (10 minutes): sea robin, smooth-hound in slices, monkfish. Medium-textured fish that hold cooking well but do not last indefinitely.

Fourth phase (5 minutes): slipper lobster, whole red mullet, prawns if available. These are arranged on the surface of the cacciucco, the pot is covered and the heat turned off after five minutes. The residual heat finishes cooking them without stressing them.

Never stir vigorously - the fish breaks apart. Move the pot with circular motions if needed.

The toasted bread: how to serve it correctly

The bread is not a side dish. It is an integral part of cacciucco alla livornese, and its preparation deserves as much attention as the broth.

Use Tuscan unsalted bread - pane sciocco - stale by at least one day. The slices must be thick, one and a half to two centimetres, and toasted under the grill or on a hot griddle until they are crisp on the surface and still soft in the centre. As soon as they come off the grill, while still hot, rub them vigorously with half a garlic clove - the garlic almost dissolves into the hot bread and releases its fragrance without the aggressiveness of raw garlic.

The bread is placed in the bottom of the deep bowl (in Tuscany a single-portion terracotta pot is often used). The cacciucco is poured over it - broth and fish together - so that the bread is immersed but not completely covered. The top of the bread should remain slightly visible, with that crust that slowly softens in contact with the broth as the meal progresses.

Some Livornese tratttorie serve the bread separately, with the cacciucco in the bowl. This is an acceptable variation, but it loses the magic of the bread absorbing the broth from the bottom.

Cacciucco at the restaurant: what is different from home

Making cacciucco at home is possible and deeply satisfying, but there is something that restaurants with long practice can do better than almost anyone else: managing multiple fish in large quantities, choosing the best catch daily, and that depth of broth that comes from years of experience with the same dish.

At Ristorante Alcide in Poggibonsi, cacciucco is a dish the kitchen knows at every step. The fish arrives fresh every morning from the Tyrrhenian ports, the broth is built patiently and the cooking respects the timing of each species. What is gained by eating it at the restaurant - at least in a restaurant that really makes it well - is the ease of not having to manage three hours of cooking and being able to focus on what matters: the pleasure of a dish that tells the story of coastal Tuscany from an inland land that looks toward the sea from afar, with respect and passion.

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Want to taste it for real?

At Ristorante Alcide you will find it on the table - made the right way, with fresh ingredients and the care of the Ancillotti family since 1849.

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