How to Make Bouillabaisse Soup
Bouillabaisse is a seafood stew originating from the fishing villages in France. It contains different varieties of fresh fish and shellfish and is traditionally served with a rouille sauce and toasted slices of French bread.
Ingredients:
- 3 pounds of at least 3 assorted kinds of fish fillets, fresh or quick frozen (thaw first)
- 1/2 cup Olive oil
- 1-2 pounds of Oysters, clams, or mussels
- 1 cup cooked shrimp, crab, lobster meat or rock lobster tails
- 1 cup thinly sliced onions
- 4 Shallots, thinly sliced OR the white parts of 2 or 3 leeks, thinly sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1 large tomato, chopped, or 1/2 cup canned tomatoes
- 1 sweet red pepper, chopped
- 4 stalks celery, thinly sliced
- 2-inch slice of fennel or 1 teaspoon of fennel seed
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme or 3/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 bay leaf
- 2-3 whole cloves
- Zest of half an orange
- 1/2 teaspoon powdered saffron
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 cup clam juice or fish broth
- 2 Tbps lemon juice
- 2/3 cup white wine
- Sliced French bread
Ingredients and Directions for Rouille sauce
- 1 Tbsp hot fish stock or clam broth.
- 2 cloves peeled garlic
- 1 small red hot pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup soft white bread, pulled into bits
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- Pour some fish stock or clam broth into a blender and then add garlic, red hot peppers, the bread bits and some salt.
- Blend all ingredients until you get a smooth consistency
- Slowly add olive oil while the blender is set to pulse mode and make sure that the olive oil is mixed well with the whole mixture
- Serve the rouille in a bowl and put alongside the bouillabaisse.
Instructions:
- Heat about ¼ cup of olive oil in a heavy saucepan. As soon as it is ready, start to sauté the onions, shallots or leeks and crushed garlic until the onions starts to soften. Add some sweet red pepper and wait until the mix starts to give off a fragrance.
- Add the vegetables in to the pan and stir well with a wooden spoon until the celery, tomato and fennel pieces are covered with oil.
- Add another ¼ cup of olive oil with the herbs like thyme, bay leaf, cloves and orange zest. Keep the pan on medium heat for about two minutes.
- Add the fish fillets that have been cut into two-inch pieces into the pan. Then pour about two cups of water and bring the whole mixture to a boil.
- After that, reduce the heat and allow it to simmer for about eight minutes. Make sure that you leave the pan uncovered.
- You can then start adding in the other fresh shellfish you have like oysters, clams, mussels, shrimp, crabmeat or lobster tails. Whatever you decide to put in your bouillabaisse is completely up to you.
- Allow the soup to simmer. Then add the saffron, some salt and pepper to taste, clam juice, lemon juice and white wine. Allow it to simmer again and leave the pan on the heat until all the shellfish are cooked.
- Serve the soup hot with some toasted French bread and rouille sauce if desired.
Serves 4 – 6