Bouillabaisse Marseillaise
This is a dish of the waterfront, built on the reality that fish have different textures and cooking times. Do not attempt this with delicate fillets; you need the backbone and structure of rockfish, rascasse, and conger eel to withstand the boil.
Commit to the boil
The emulsion of the broth is what separates a true bouillabaisse from a common fish stew. Use a wide, heavy-bottomed pot so the fish are not crowded and have room to poach evenly.
- wide, heavy-bottomed stockpot
- sharp filleting knife
- fine-mesh sieve
- mortar and pestle
What goes in.
- 4 lbassorted firm-fleshed rockfish, gutted and cleaned
- 1/2 cupextra virgin olive oil
- 2leeks, white parts only, sliced
- 1large fennel bulb, sliced
- 4garlic cloves, smashed
- 3tomatoes, peeled and seeded
- 1 pinchsaffron threads, crushed
- 1 stripdried orange peel
- 1 sprigfresh thyme
- to tastesea salt and black pepper
- 1 loafcrusty sourdough bread, sliced
The rolling boil
Unlike most stews, bouillabaisse must be cooked at a aggressive, rolling boil. This motion forces the oil and water to bond into a thick, opaque orange-gold liquid.
The method.
Prepare the base
Heat half the olive oil in your pot. Sauté the leeks and fennel until soft. Add the tomatoes, garlic, orange peel, and herbs.
Build the broth
Add the smaller, bony fish (the 'soupe' fish) and cover with boiling water. Boil hard for 15 minutes, crushing the fish against the sides of the pot to extract the collagen.
Strain
Pass the liquid through a fine-mesh sieve, using the back of a ladle to push every drop of liquid through the solids. Return the liquid to the pot.
Poach
Bring the broth back to a violent boil. Add the firmest fish first, wait 3 minutes, then add the more delicate pieces. Cook until the flesh flakes easily from the bone.
Serve
Rub bread slices with a raw garlic clove. Serve the broth in a separate bowl from the fish, and layer the two together.
Other turns to take.
Bourride style
Finish the broth by stirring in a heavy dollop of garlic-rich aioli just before serving to increase the thickness.
When it doesn't go to plan.
Never overcook the fish; if the eyes are white and the flesh pulls away from the backbone, it is done.
The quality of the olive oil is critical, as it provides the base notes for the broth.
Use a mortar and pestle to grind the saffron into a fine powder with a pinch of salt before adding it to the broth for better color distribution.
The ones that keep coming up.
Can I use salmon?
Avoid salmon. Its fat content is too high and it lacks the connective tissue necessary to create the proper texture in the broth.
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