Delicious Ways to Use Fish Stock: Soups, Paella and More

Co-authored by Janice Tieperman Reviewed by Jennifer Levasseur

Last Updated: April 22, 2025 References

While not quite as well-known as chicken, beef, or vegetable stock, fish stock can pack a punch in a wide variety of recipes. Typically used in seafood-heavy dishes, fish stock can help enhance the flavors a lot more. You can make your fish stock or use pre-made stock in a variety of tasty dishes that you share with your friends and family.

Things You Should Know

Fish stock is a versatile and flavorful base that can elevate both seafood and vegetarian dishes.
Use fish stock to flavor soups, stews, sauces, risottos, pies, and paellas.
If you made too much fish stock, pour it in an airtight container and freeze it for 4-6 months.

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Cook up a tasty fish stew with your stock.^{[1]
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Fish stock is perfect for fish stew, since it will bring out all of the briny flavors. While most recipes call for clam juice, you can substitute fish stock as a base for your stew instead. Mix your favorite fish into the recipe, like halibut, cod, or tilapia to create a delicious stew you can share with both friends and family.^{[2]
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- Depending on the recipe, you can throw together a great fish stew in less than an hour.
- For a really simple recipe, simmer some diced tomatoes in your fish stock with some white wine. Add seafood of your choice, simmer some more, and you’re done!^{[3]
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Simmer clams in fish stock for a tasty dish.^{[4]
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Mix some saffron into your fish stock to make it extra flavorful. Use your saffron-infused stock as the base for the recipe. Add some minced garlic, olive oil, onion, or white wine based on your preferences. Cook the clams in this fish stock base, which will give them a delicious, briny flavor. Wait until the clam shells have opened before you serve them.^{[5]
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- You can soften up the garlic, olive oil, and onion first by cooking them over high heat if you’d like.
- The clams should open after 6 minutes or so.

3

Poach fish in fish stock for extra flavor.^{[6]
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This may seem strange, but fish stock can provide an excellent base for poached fish recipes. Combine fish stock with bay leaves, thyme, coriander, or parsley and bring it to a boil. Simmer for 20 minutes and poach your fish in the aromatic stock until it’s cooked through. If you’d like to jazz up your fish a bit more, pair it with a buttery buerre blanc sauce, which you can drizzle on top.^{[7]
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- You can garnish your fish with some fresh parsley if you’d like.

4

Steam crab legs in fish stock for an impressive dish.

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The stock will bring out the crab legs' natural sweet seafood taste. Melt a little butter in a large skillet or flambé pan, and use it to saute some garlic. Then add the fish stock, crab legs, salt, and pepper. Cover the pot and let the stock simmer for 5-6 minutes—the crab legs are already cooked, so they just need to be heated through. ^{[8]
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- Fish, mussels, and clams are also delicious steamed!

5

Shake up that clam chowder recipe with fish stock.^{[9]
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Heat some oil and butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add diced potatoes, leeks, and celery for that classic clam chowder base. Stir for 5 minutes or so, add some dry white wine, and bring it to a boil. Then, add your fish stock and some heavy cream. Cook until the potatoes start falling apart, which should take 50-60 minutes. Add your clams to the pot and cover. Simmer until the clams all pop open.^{[10]
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- You can poach some fish filets in your chowder for a heartier dish if you’d like.
- Season with salt, pepper, thyme, hot sauce, or lemon wedges based on your personal preferences.

6

Make a spicy fish soup with your stock.^{[11]
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Cook some onion, garlic, chili powder, and cayenne for 17 minutes or so. Soak some saffron in white wine, tomatoes, and the stock. Add it to your onion as it cooks and bring the stock to a boil. Lower the heat and let it simmer for 45 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. There are a lot of varieties you can try with fish soup, so feel free to get creative.^{[12]
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- If you really want to get fancy, heat some anise liquor in a saucepan, burn off the alcohol, and pour it into your soup right before serving. Be careful. Don’t burn your kitchen down if you do this!
- If you’re going to make fish soup, don’t use a stock with flat-fish bones as the base. Fish like flounder and sole tend to turn bitter when you cook their stock for more than 20 minutes.

7

Warm up a cold day with fisherman's pie.

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This comforting dish is a staple in Irish and British kitchens. Fisherman's pie is similar to a shepherd's pie, except you start by poaching fish like cod or haddock in fish stock mixed with cream. Add the mixture to a dish with sauteed veggies like leeks, shallots, and spinach, and top the whole thing with buttery mashed potatoes.^{[13]
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- If you'd like, you can also include seafood like prawns or scallops. Some people also top the dish with cheddar cheese.^{[14]
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8

Whip up a flavorful seafood risotto using fish stock.^{[15]
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Cook your risotto rice in fish stock to give the dish a delicious base. Add some squid, sea scallops, clams, mussels, or other shellfish to your risotto. There are a ton of ways to spice risotto up, so don’t hesitate to experiment! A little white wine and crushed tomatoes can give your risotto a little Italian flair if you’re in the mood for a heartier dish.^{[16]
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- You can make your risotto a little creamier by stirring in a little butter when your recipe is almost done. Stirring continuously before stirring will release some of the starches and result in a richer dish.

9

Make a complex lobster bisque with fish stock.^{[17]
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Lobster bisque is typically made with a lobster stock, but fish stock makes a great substitution. It’s also much cheaper! Melt your butter down, add your chopped onions, carrots, and celery, then stir in some tomato paste and garlic. Pour in some dry white wine, and add your fish stock. Finish by stirring in your heavy cream and lobster bits to craft a bisque with a slightly umami finish.^{[18]
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- If you really want a budget option, substitute the lobster for shrimp, tilapia, or cod. You could even make a crab bisque if you feel like doing something really different!

10

Craft a seafood paella with your stock.^{[19]
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If you’re really ambitious, paella is the perfect dish for fish stock. Heat some onion, saffron, fennel, and spring onions in your fish stock until they start to caramelize. Add tomatoes, paprika, and some tomato paste or puree. Stir in some brandy, thyme, and bay leaves. Bring the ingredients to a boil and then simmer for 45-60 minutes.^{[20]
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- There are tons of options when it comes to seafood paella. Feel free to get creative with your recipe.
- You can use a 2 to 1 ratio of chicken stock to fish stock for a recipe that’s a little softer on the seafood notes. Feel free to add chorizo to your dish if you do this!

11

Show off your culinary skills with a fish velouté.

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Velouté is one of the 5 mother sauces of French cuisine. It's a velvety white sauce that you can serve over fish, vegetables, pasta—or almost anything you can think of! It sounds fancy, but it's really simple. Bring your stock to a simmer over low heat, then make a roux by whisking together flour and butter over medium heat. Once the roux thickens, whisk in the stock, then season your sauce with salt and pepper.^{[22]
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- "Mother sauce" means that this is a basic recipe that you can adapt into other types of sauces. For instance, you can turn your velouté into a sauce suprême by adding cream, mushrooms, and butter.^{[23]
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Freeze your fish stock for 4-6 months if you can’t use it now.^{[24]
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If you made too much fish stock, freeze it for later use. Pour your fish stock into an airtight container or heavy-duty freezer bag. Label the container or bag with the date and set it in your freezer. When you’re ready to use it, thaw it in your fridge. If your fish stock develops an odd odor, flavor, or appearance, toss it out.^{[25]
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- You can store fish stock in the fridge for 3-4 days after making it if you plan on using it soon.

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Tips

It’s a myth that you can’t eat mussels, clams, or oysters that won’t open while they cook. These shellfish occasionally don’t open even when they’re cooked through. If you pry a shell open after the others have popped and the meat isn’t jelly-like or stuck to the shell, it’s perfectly safe to eat.^{[26]
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Always wash your seafood thoroughly before cooking it and adding it to your recipes.^{[27]
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Steamed mussels, Maryland crab soup, and stuffed calamari are also great options if you have leftover fish stock.

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