Seafood Soup – Sopa de Mariscos
Seafood soup (Sopa de Mariscos) is one of our all-time favorite seafood recipes. It’s easy to make, can be made in one pot, and comes together in under an hour with minimal fuss. It’s the perfect blend of fresh seafood including clams, shrimp (or prawns), and white fish combined with a few simple pantry staples and some veg. Adding some texture and flavor is the Spanish Fideo noodle, similar to Italian vermicelli or thin small pieces of spaghetti.
There’s very little seasoning and the use of spices typically found in Spanish soups and stews has been paired back to give the fresh seafood and other ingredients room to shine. The result is impressive, with a rich color and flavor dish, and is an absolute delight to enjoy on a cool evening with lots of crusty warm bread.
This recipe makes a hearty serving for 4-6 people, and can be easily stretched to serve 8 people if you serve it with plenty of bread.
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Serving:
6-8 Main Meal
Ready in:
1 hour
Skill level:
Easy
Serve with:
Lots of fresh bread
Watch step-by-step recipe video
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How to Make Seafood Stew (Sopa de Mariscos)
Ingredients
- 500g (17oz.) White fish (Merluza, bacalao or rape tails are all good options)
- 500g (17oz.) Clams (we used small chrila mollusks, but any small clam or mussel will work fine)
- 500g (17oz.) Large raw shrimp (peeled, heads removed- keep heads for step below)
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 large carrot
- 2 tomatoes, grated and skin removed (or use a small can of pulped tomatoes)
- 1 cup of Fideo pasta (size no.1)
- Extra virgin olive oil
- 2-3 cloves of garlic (halved)
- 2 liters of low-sodium Seafood stock/broth
Equipment
- Large pot with lid
- 12 inch cast iron skillet
- Wooden cutting board
- Chef knife
- Box Grater (optional)
- Cooking Tongs
- Sieve or mesh strainer
- Ladle
Instructions
Prepare Seafood Broth
- Add 1.5 liters of water to a large pot with a lid. Then add the shells and heads from the shrimp, plus the fish bones, skin, or heads that you have (ask your fishmonger to save these for you).
- Add the onion peelings plus half a whole onion and one carrot, broken into small pieces. Add a bay leaf and some whole black peppercorns, plus around 1-2 teaspoons of fine salt.
- Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes to an hour.
- Keep seafood broth hot but not boiling.
Prepare Shrimp
- Add a splash of olive oil to a large skillet on medium-high heat, once the oil is hot, add the halved garlic cloves.
- Allow the oil to infuse with the garlic for 1-2 minutes, then add the shrimp and season lightly with salt.
- Fry for 2 minutes per side or until they get a little color (they will cook more later in the soup).
- Set shrimp aside for use later.
Prepare sofrito
- In the same pan, add the diced onion and saute until golden (around 4-5 minutes). Add the carrot and continue to saute for a few minutes until they soften.
- Add the grated tomato and a half cup of water, stir through, and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a low simmer.
- Season to taste and simmer until all the liquid has evaporated.
- The veg should be soft and starting to stick to the bottom of the pan. Give everything a good scrape to bring u the flavor.
- (OPTIONAL STEP) – If you prefer a smoother sauce, blend the veg and then return the smooth blended sauce back to the pan.
Add Broth, Fideos, and Seafood
- Add a few more ladles of the seafood broth and add the clams. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer.
- Cut fish into 1-inch pieces and add it to the pan with the other ingredients.
- Add the cooked shrimp and the fideo noodles and give everything a mix.
- Top up the pan with enough broth so that everything is covered by around 1cm (half an inch).
- Simmer for around 10 minutes, season to taste, and serve!
Cooking Tips:
🦞Don’t overcook the seafood:
Add the seafood and cook for around 10 minutes, 15 maximum. Overcooking will turn the shrimp hard and rubbery in texture and tend to flake apart the fish too much.
🐟 Can frozen fish be used?
Yes, fresh or frozen fish can be used. If using frozen fish, thaw and ensure all the excess liquid is removed.
🦪 Mussels or clams:
Both work fine for this recipe. Just ensure they are submerged in the seafood broth and are open once cooked. Discard any unopened clams or mussels before serving.
🍜 Fideo pasta:
Fideo pasta is a small pasta that comes in a few different sizes. We used Fideo no.1 size pasta for this recipe. is common in Spain and neighboring regions, and you can usually find it in any grocery store. If you can’t source fideo pasta, substitute it with vermicelli, angel hair pasta, or broken spaghetti.
Origin of this Seafood Soup Recipe
A close friend recently made me this recipe and was fortunate enough to watch the cooking process from start to finish. I’ve made plenty of seafood stews and soups, but this recipe is perhaps one of the easiest to prepare. The trick is to use fresh and good quality ingredients, including making your own seafood broth, and keep the seasoning light.
We used some white fish fillets (Merluza, but any white fish would work well). For the seafood element, we used Italian chrila mollusks (small clams) and some large langostinos (shrimp or prawns).
Seasoning is minimal and only a small amount of salt and pepper are used, allowing the rich seafood flavors to shine through without interruption.
Seafood Broth and Sofrito
The backbone of this recipe is the use of a good quality seafood broth and a rich and flavorful sofrito sauce. The good news; both can be made easily at home with a little preparation.
Homemade seafood broth
Making a good quality homemade seafood broth is very simple and only requires a little extra time and some fish and seafood scraps which can be used from the shrimp heads and shells, plus any fish bones or heads, so be sure to ask your local fishmonger for the head, bones, and skin when they fillet the fish for you).
Simply add the shells and fish bones to a large pot, add half an onion, 1 carrot, and some aromatics such as whole black peppercorns, a bay leaf, and some fresh herbs, and season with some salt. Then add water and simmer for 30 minutes to an hour.
Sodium content of fish broth
For every liter of broth we make we use around 1 heaped teaspoon of salt. For stocks and food seasoning, we use fine Pink Himalayan Salt.
Can store-bought broth be used?
Short answer, yes. However, make sure you use a good quality brand and ensure it is low-sodium broth.
Here are a few good low-sodium seafood broths we recommend:
Homemade Sofrito
The sofrito is a simple combination of 1 diced onion, and 1 diced carrot, that are sauteed in some oil that has been lightly flavored with a few whole cloves of garlic (the cloves are removed after flavoring the oil). Then some grated tomato is added with around half a cup of water. Bring everything to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until the liquid evaporates.
The result is a rich, chunky sofrito that requires only a little seasoning with some salt and pepper to taste.
Tips for making the best homemade sofrito sauce:
We suggest letting the veggies simmer down for at least 30 minutes to give the most flavor to the sauce. If you have plenty of time, simmer on a very low heat for around an hour and give the pan a scrape every ten minutes. You’ll be amazing at home much flavor can be achieved with just a few simple veg and some salt and pepper for seasoning.
Check out our complete step-by-step cooking video on how to make the perfect homemade sofrito sauce.
Fideo Pasta and Fideua Noodles
Much like pasta in Italy, fideuà pasta comes in a variety of different shapes and sizes. Two main types of pasta are commonly used for this dish. If you’re living anywhere in Spain, you’ll have no issue finding these. In other parts of the world, a Spanish grocery store will stock them or you can find them online.
A Little History of Fideua and Fideo noodles
Hailing from the Valencian region, fideuà owes its creation to a picturesque Mediterranean town called Gandia, a loyal cook, starving sailors, and a fat captain! Fideuà was made in an attempt to curb the captain’s gluttonous interest in the dish, substituting rice with noodles.
However, the new noodle dish failed miserably and many a sailor were left hungry. Nowadays, the dish is now highly regarded the world over!
Fideos
The most common is the thin vermicelli-like noodle, and this is often referred to by many brands as ‘Fideo’, and there are often 3 or 4 different sizes or ‘grades’ of the fideo pasta, usually cataloged as Fideo No. 1, 2, 3, 4, or No. 5.
These thin fideos cook a little faster than the fatter round-shaped fideuà pasta, so it’s worth trying out a few different types to see what you like best.
Fideuà
Spanish fideuà pasta looks a lot like small macaroni elbow pasta in shape and size. It takes a little longer to prepare compared to the thinner variety of fideo mentioned above. I prefer the fideuà pasta, mainly because of the lovely texture of the noodles and how they blend well with the seafood and other ingredients.
Noodle Substitute for Fideuà
If you find it difficult to find the fideo or fideua noodles, don’t despair. There are a few cheats that can get you through your noodle drought! Thin rice vermicelli noodles can also be substituted if you break them into pieces around an inch long. Just monitor them during cooking time.
Nutrition Facts
|
Servings: 8 |
|
|
Amount per serving |
|
|
Calories |
346 |
|
% Daily Value* |
|
|
Total Fat 13.7g |
18% |
|
Saturated Fat 2.2g |
11% |
|
Cholesterol 184mg |
61% |
|
Sodium 586mg |
25% |
|
Total Carbohydrate 28.2g |
10% |
|
Dietary Fiber 1.7g |
6% |
|
Total Sugars 4.1g |
|
|
Protein 28.6g |
|
|
Vitamin D 0mcg |
0% |
|
Calcium 130mg |
10% |
|
Iron 1mg |
8% |
|
Potassium 444mg |
9% |
|
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calorie a day is used for general nutrition advice. |
|
Seafood Soup - Sopa de Mariscos
Equipment
- Large pot with lid
- 12 inch cast iron skillet
- Wooden cutting board
- Chef knife
- Box Grater (optional)
- Cooking Tongs
- Sieve or mesh strainer
- Ladle
Ingredients
- 500 g 17oz. White fish (Merluza, bacalao or rape tails are all good options)
- 500 g 17oz. Clams (we used small chrila mollusks, but any small clam or mussel will work fine)
- 500 g 17oz. Large raw shrimp (peeled, heads removed- keep heads for step below)
- 1 onion diced
- 1 large carrot
- 2 tomatoes grated and skin removed (or use a small can of pulped tomatoes)
- 1 cup of Fideo pasta size no.1
- Extra virgin olive oil
- 2-3 cloves of garlic halved
- 2 liters of low-sodium Seafood stock/broth
Instructions
Prepare Seafood Broth
- Add 1.5 liters of water to a large pot with a lid. Then add the shells and heads from the shrimp, plus the fish bones, skin, or heads that you have (ask your fishmonger to save these for you).2 liters of low-sodium Seafood stock/broth
- Add the onion peelings plus half a whole onion and one carrot, broken into small pieces. Add a bay leaf and some whole black peppercorns, plus around 1-2 teaspoons of fine salt.
- Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes to an hour.
- Keep seafood broth hot but not boiling.
Prepare Shrimp
- Add a splash of olive oil to a large skillet on medium-high heat, once the oil is hot, add the halved garlic cloves.2-3 cloves of garlic, Extra virgin olive oil
- Allow the oil to infuse with the garlic for 1-2 minutes, then add the shrimp and season lightly with salt.500 g 17oz. Large raw shrimp (peeled, heads removed- keep heads for step below)
- Fry for 2 minutes per side or until they get a little color (they will cook more later in the soup).
- Set shrimp aside for use later.
Prepare sofrito
- In the same pan, add the diced onion and saute until golden (around 4-5 minutes). Add the carrot and continue to saute for a few minutes until they soften.1 onion, 1 large carrot
- Add the grated tomato and a half cup of water, stir through, and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a low simmer.2 tomatoes
- Season to taste and simmer until all the liquid has evaporated.
- The veg should be soft and starting to stick to the bottom of the pan. Give everything a good scrape to bring u the flavor.
- (OPTIONAL STEP) - If you prefer a smoother sauce, blend the veg and then return the smooth blended sauce back to the pan.
Add Broth, Fideos, and Seafood
- Add a few more ladles of the seafood broth and add the clams. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer.500 g 17oz. Clams (we used small chrila mollusks, but any small clam or mussel will work fine)
- Cut fish into 1-inch pieces and add it to the pan with the other ingredients.500 g 17oz. White fish (Merluza, bacalao or rape tails are all good options)
- Add the cooked shrimp and the fideo noodles and give everything a mix.1 cup of Fideo pasta
- Top up the pan with enough broth so that everything is covered by around 1cm (half an inch).
- Simmer for around 10 minutes, season to taste, and serve!
Video
Notes
Cooking Tips:
🦞Don't overcook the seafood: Add the seafood and cook for around 10 minutes, 15 maximum. Overcooking will turn the shrimp hard and rubbery in texture and tend to flake apart the fish too much. 🐟 Can frozen fish be used? Yes, fresh or frozen fish can be used. If using frozen fish, thaw and ensure all the excess liquid is removed. 🦪 Mussels or clams: Both work fine for this recipe. Just ensure they are submerged in the seafood broth and are open once cooked. Discard any unopened clams or mussels before serving. 🍜 Fideo pasta: Fideo pasta is a small pasta that comes in a few different sizes. We used Fideo no.1 size pasta for this recipe. is common in Spain and neighboring regions, and you can usually find it in any grocery store. If you can’t source fideo pasta, substitute it with vermicelli, angel hair pasta, or broken spaghetti.Love this recipe?
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