Bouillabaisse
Sumptuous bouillabaisse recipe that will fill tummies and draw smiles.
If you opted to try making my fish stock recipe, then hopefully you have among your leftovers, four lovely sea bass fillets looking for a purpose. Well I have just the recipe for you. A marvellously flavourful bouillabaisse that is sure to knock the socks off anyone who tries a bowl.
It is hearty, with a full fillet of sea bass per serving. I like to use an immersion blender at the end to cream it up a bit, but it is also perfectly fine to leave it as an unblended broth.
I serve it with savoury, buttered toasts, or with bread spread with rouille. The taste is just sumptuous. If you're a fish lover, I really hope you give this a try and let me know what you think down in the comments below.
Ingredients
(Makes 4 servings)
1 leek, white portion only, chopped
1 medium carrot, diced
1 bulb fennel, diced, no greens
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1/2 yellow bell pepper, diced
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 teaspoons salt, divided
3 cloves garlic, minced
pinch saffron
2 whole allspice
2 star anise
1, 14.5 oz can San Marzano tomatoes, crushed
1/2 cup dry white wine
6 cups fish stock
1/4 cup heavy cream
4 sea bass fillets, deboned and skinned
Directions
In a large pot over medium heat, add the oil. Once the oil begins to heat, add the leek, carrot, fennel, bell peppers and 1 teaspoon salt. Mix well then let the vegetables brown, forming a fond on the bottom of the pot. Once the vegetables are golden brown (about 15 minutes), add the garlic and continue sautéing for an additional minute to allow the garlic to become aromatic.
Add the saffron, and star anise, along with the crushed tomatoes and white wine. Bring to a simmer and continue simmering for about 10 minutes, stirring to work the fond off the bottom of the pot. Add the fish stock, remaining salt, and cream, then again allow the soup to come to a simmer for an additional 5 minutes. Taste for salt and adjust as needed.
Turn off the heat, but leave the pot on the hot element uncovered for 15 minutes. If a lot of oil has accumulated on the surface of the soup while it sits, you can skim it off at this time if you desire. I will often use an emersion blender to lightly puree the soup at this time, but that step is completely optional. This will give the bouillabaisse a more creamy texture rather than a thinner, liquid base.
Submerge the fillets one at a time into the pot ensuring that each fillet comes in full contact with the soup on both sides. Let sit for 15 to 20 minutes, with the heat off, until the fish is cooked and flakes apart easily with a fork. Adjust time based on the thickness of the fillets.
Break the fillets up into pieces and serve the bouillabaisse with savoury bread.
Nutritional Information Per Serving:
total calories = 311 | total fat = 13.04g | saturated fat = 2.61g | cholesterol = 50.13mg | sodium = 1,115.77mg | net carbohydrates = 8.55g | dietary fibre = 3.02g | sugars = 5.44g | protein = 30.68g
