Photo: Positively, Absolutely, Not Real Bouillabaisse Recipe
Ingredients
Fish Stock:
- 1 pound raw fish heads, bones, tail, and lobster tail shell
- 4 whole fresh bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon coarse sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
- 6 cups water
Stew:
- 1/2 cup olive oil, divided
- 6 ounces onion, coarsely chopped
- 3 ounces fennel bulb, coarsely chopped
- 1 teaspoon coarse sea salt, divided
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
- 1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
- 1 (3-inch) piece orange peel, optional
- 1/16 teaspoon saffron
- 8 ounces firm fish fillets, such as farmed cobia or wild striped bass (1 or 2 types), skin and bones removed, cut into 1-inch pieces, at room temperature
- 8 ounces flaky fish fillets, such as black cod, wild halibut, or black rockfish (1 or 2 types), skin and bones removed, cut into 1-inch pieces, at room temperature
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 8 ounces mussels, cleaned and beards trimmed, at room temperature
- 1 large raw lobster tail, shell removed and meat cut into 1-inch pieces, at room temperature
To Serve:
- 1 baguette, sliced
- 1 clove garlic, cut in half
- 1 recipe Rouille, recipe follows, optional
Directions
For the fish stock: Rinse the fish heads and place in a tall 6-quart pot with tails, bones, lobster shell, bay leaves, 1 teaspoon sea salt, black peppercorns, and water. Place over high heat, cover, and bring to a boil. Decrease the heat to maintain a bare simmer and cook for 25 minutes. Strain, discard solids, and set the stock aside.
To make the stew: Place 1/4 cup olive oil in a clean 6-quart pot and set over medium heat. When the oil shimmers, add the onions, fennel, and 1/2 teaspoon sea salt. Saute until semi-translucent, about 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Deglaze the pan with the wine and scrape any bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the reserved fish stock, tomatoes, parsley, orange peel and saffron, if desired. Place over high heat, cover, and bring to a boil. Decrease the heat to maintain a simmer and cook for 15 minutes. Increase the heat to high. Add the remaining 1/4 cup olive oil, the remaining 1/2 teaspoon sea salt, fish, garlic, and cayenne pepper. Boil rapidly, uncovered, for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the pot from the heat, add the mussels and lobster, cover, and let stand until the fish is cooked through and the mussels open, 2 to 4 minutes. Discard any unopened mussels.
To serve: Set the broiler to high. Lightly rub the baguette slices on both sides with the garlic. Place the prepared bread slices on a half sheet pan and broil, 1 inch away from the broiler, for 1 to 2 minutes. Turn the slices over and broil for another 1 to 2 minutes. Top with Rouille, if desired, and serve with fish stew.
Rouille:
- 1 large red bell pepper
- 3 large cloves garlic, peeled
- 1 fresh red chile, stem removed and seeded
- 1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt
- 1/2 cup olive oil
Cook the bell pepper over a gas burner set to high, turning every few minutes, until the skin blackens and is thoroughly charred. Remove the pepper to a metal mixing bowl, cover with a spare pot lid, and cool for 5 minutes. Remove the blackened skin from the pepper by rubbing with a clean kitchen towel. Pull out the stem and seed cluster and discard along with the skin.
Place the roasted and skinned pepper, garlic, chile, lemon juice, and salt in the bowl of a mini-food processor. Process until smooth, 1 to 2 minutes. Stop and scrape down the side of the bowl once or twice. With the food processor running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil until thick. Serve with fish stew.
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By t3hjoe
Fort Collins, CO
on April 10, 2013
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Really a fantastic soup, the rouille and the crouton bring the whole dish together and are necessities. Some people might find the difficulty rating on this recipe discouraging, but I found that it will not strain most peoples culinary skills. It does however take a considerable amount of effort and time. Start the thing more than two hours ahead of time if you're expecting company. The cost of the soup is also a little on the high side, even if it does make about eight servings.
By HJS III
chagrin falls, ohio
on March 21, 2013
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Excellent ! Whole Foods good source for bones. frozen mussel meat easier. Rouille is a must.
By daliandy42_12553978
New York, NY
on May 08, 2012
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Hmmm, when is the last time I had a can of soup? Thanks to food television and the internets, I don't rememeber.
This by far tops the list of soups I've made over the past few years. Followed by a Gullah recipe for chicken and dumplings, the of course Caldo de pollo which can be served several ways. But this is absolutely perfect as is, BUT due to the cost,(Since the only place I can find all the proper ingredients in one place is Chelsea Market, very pricey my wife lets me rarely make it. She calls it the hundred dollar bowl of soup. So I Cannot wait to make it this Sunday for her and my mother in law for Mother's Day.
What a great recipe, thanks for posting it....
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