Come along with me, take my hand and have a deep breath... we are by the sea, feel the breeze in your hair and that particular salty smell... today's dish is Buouillabaisse, one of the richest fish soups ever.Original from Marseille, this soup started as a fishermen dish and it ended up at the best Paris Restaurants. Now you can find it anywhere in the world... give it a try and enjoy such flavourful seafood tastes, its amazing and rich smell filled my kitchen for hours. The recipe is not complicated at all but it will take some hours to have it ready. So worth to try! Is this afternoon a rainy and cold one? Get the fresh products from your fishmonger, a good glass of wine and be ready to spend 4 to 5 hours in the kitchen... you won't regret it!
See hereunder Tossa de Mar's view in the background, one of the Costa Brava's most beautiful villages.
Let's walk a bit further north and take a look to Cadaqués, another Costa Brava village. One of Salvador Dali's favourite spots!
Let's now go south and head to Barcelona's port.
I did some research before I decided to post about this soup and I found as many recipes on bouillabaisse as books and magazines I consulted. I tried to be as close to the original as I could... but who knows if my choice was the right one? Any french readers who want to share their knowledge on this dish?Very important! Buy the freshest ingredients and high quality ones... this will get your guests to perform "the wave" while seating at your dining room's table ;D.
Ingredients for 4 servings: A fish called: Scorpaena scrofa (called cabracho) is a fish of the family of escorpénidos red and covered with thorns. Their weight can reach nearly 3 kg but are rare copies of more than 1,5-2 kg. Usually found at depths from 10 to 500 m, although it is possible to find a little water. (text and picture from wikipedia).
For the dish: Nowadays this fish is hard to find and that's why I used these others: monk fish and hake (1 kilo and half. Ask your fishmonger to cut it in thick slices), 4 shrimps and 4 Norway lobsters, 8 medium monalisa potatoes, olive oil, 1 green pepper, 1 leek, 1 branch of thyme, 1 bay leaf, 3 table spoons of concentrated tomatoe sauce, 3 red onions, 3 carrots, 6 saffron strings, 3 garlic cloves.
For the fish stock: 5 to 6 beach fish (your fishmonger will recommend what's best for a white stock), 5 galeres (take a look at the pics and see if you find its name in English, I couldn't). Also, use the head of the hake for this stock.
For the rouille (sauce): 1 sandwich bread slice without the crust, 1 teaspoon of Pimiento chorizero meat (you could use ñora here or pimiento morron asado - roasted morron pepper). If you cannot find it in your habitual shop check La Tienda., 1 eggs' yolk, salt and pepper, olive oil and 8 thin baguette slices.
Easy when you see it in pics, isn't it?
- Start the fish stock: Clean the fish you will use for the stock or ask your fishmonger to do it for you. In a big deep pot, have 5 liters of cold water and place all the fish in there. Bring to boil, take the white foam out and let cook for 25 to 30 minutes maximum. Strain, squeeze the fish in a strainer and take all the juice you can out of it. Reserve this first fish stock.
- In a big sauce pan pour enough olive oil to slowly cook the veggies. Add them clean and cut (pepper, leek, carrots, onions). Once they start getting tender add the herbs (thyme and bay leaf). Stir for 2 minutes and then add the saffron and the tomatoe. Stir for another 2 minutes and add the fish stock we had reserved. Let it boil for 1 hour and half. Strain and squeeze the ingredients in the strainer and you will get the stock base for the bouillabaisse.
- Now, peel the potatoes and break them in small pieces. Clean the monkfish and hake and leave over a strainer. In a big deep casserole pour the bouillabaisse base and when it starts boiling add the potatoes. 8 minutes before they are completely cooked, add the fish in thick slices and the seafood.
- To serve this soup, the fish/seafood and the potatoes are served aside and the soup goes with some toast bread and rouille sauce on top.
- To prepare the rouille sauce: soak the sandwich bread in the bouillabaisse base and put into a blender, add the 3 peeled garlic cloves, the meat of the pimiento chorizero, 1 eggs' yolk, salt and pepper to fit your taste and blend. Place in a bowl and add some extra virgin olive oil until you get a mayonnaise texture.
- Pour the bouillabaisse soup in a plate, prepare some toasted baguette slices and spread the rouille sauce on top. Place in the plate and also add the bodies of the shrimps and Norway lobsters.
- The recipe didn't mention clams, squid nor mussels, but I steamed some bibalves and added the strained juice to the bouillabaisse and the clams and mussels to the soup. I added the squid to the base together with the fish.
- Also if you use an earthenware dish to present the Bouillabaisse you will touch perfection!!!
Hope you enjoy it as much as we did! It was amazing... so rich in flavours and a delicious contrast with the rouille sauce toasts. Please give it a try... your guests will be there next weekend ;D
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