Provençal Fish Soup Recipes

FISH SOUP PROVENCALE

Steps:

• Cut the fish into 1-inch cubes.
• Heat the oil in a heavy casserole or skillet. Add the onions, leeks, garlic, red and green pepper and the saffron. Cook, stirring over medium high heat, until wilted.
• Add the wine, canned tomatoes, water, thyme, bay leaf, anise seed, red pepper flakes and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes.
• Add the fish and the mussels; stir gently; bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes. Check for seasoning. Remove the thyme and bay leaf. Make sure all the mussels are open. If not, cook a bit longer. Sprinkle with the basil and serve.

PROVENCAL FISH SOUP

Steps:

• In a medium stockpot, cook onion in oil over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes or until translucent. Stir in garlic, and cook for additional 7 minutes. Stir in chili powder and cayenne. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
• Soak saffron in 1/4 cup white wine for a few minutes. Stir saffron wine, tomatoes, fish stock, thyme and bay leaf into onions. Bring to boil, lower heat, and simmer for 45 minutes.
• Remove bay leaf. Pass soup through food mill fitted with medium disk. Return soup to pot. Season with salt and pepper. Soup can be made ahead up to this point and refrigerated.
• In small saucepan, heat anise liquor. Set it on fire, and allow alcohol to burn off. Pour anise liquor into soup. Stir in additional wine. Bring to boil. Serve immediately.

PROVENCAL FISH SOUP

Steps:

• Make the Fish Stock
• Separate the shells and heads of the cleaned tiger pawns.
• There are many ways to make a wonderful fish stock. My way is a simplification of a friend's recipe using a whole lobster. For reasons of budget and a lack of lobsters here in the Mediterranean, I used the shells of the large prawns/shrimp to make the stock. If you'd rather present the dish with the shells still on the prawns, or prefer not to use them altogether, ask your fishmonger for some fresh good quality fish stock.
• Remove the shells from the prawns, clean them, and re-refrigerate the prawns.
• Throw the shells into a hot pan with a glug of olive oil and a small knob of butter.
• Fry the shells on a medium-high heat until they start to take on some colour. Don't be shy.
• When they're browned, add 1 litre of water and make sure to deglaze the pan by scraping off all the tasty bits on the bottom.
• Leave to simmer on a low heat for 1 hour, skimming the surface every so often to remove the impurities.
• Strain and set aside to cool.
• Passing the fish through the food mill requires patience- but it's worth it!
• Chop all the vegetables and place in a bowl ready.
• Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a large pan. Add the vegetables and cook on a medium heat until softened.
• Meanwhile, rinse the rock fish well.
• Deglaze the pan with the white wine, scrape the bottom of the pan.
• Add the rest of the herbs and spices except the saffron.
• Add the rock fish.
• Cover to the top of the ingredients with the fish stock.
• Simmer on a low heat, stirring occasionally, for 1 hr.
• Periodically skim the scum off the surface with a spoon.
• Take off the heat, allow to cool.
• Ladle the cooled mixture into your food mill with the second to smallest metal strainer. Turn the handle until what remains in the top is quite dry. Remove this and start again with the next batch. Continue until done. Now you have the base (broth) for bouillabaisse!
• *The easiest thing to do next would be to reheat the soup, and poach the fish until just cooked (no longer) in the broth. However, for presentation purposes, I chose to pan-fry my fish in butter separately.
• Reheat the soup.
• Peel and boil the small potatoes so that they're ready for serving. We boiled them separately because we found their yellow colour a welcome contrast to the soup. However, you can always throw them in the pot and boil them in the soup.
• Pan fry or poach the cod filets (about 10 minutes depending on thickness).
• Pan fry or poach the tiger prawns (about 3 minutes).
• Add the mussels to the soup.
• Add the saffron to the soup.
• At this point, season the soup to taste with salt. Note: The mussels will add some salt, especially if they're Mediterranean mussels, so wait until they open.
• Add another chilli pepper if you like the heat.
• Add the cod to the bowls.
• Carefully ladle the soup around the cod, add the tiger prawns and mussels.
• Place the chervil on the cod.
• Serve with rouille on croutons and dry white wine from Cassis.

PROVENCAL FISH SOUP WITH SAFFRON ROUILLE

Steps:

• Wash leeks .
• Cook leeks, fennel bulb, carrots, celery, and garlic in oil with herbes de Provence, bay leaves, cayenne, saffron, 1 tablespoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in an 8-quart heavy pot over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 10 minutes.
• While vegetable mixture cooks, cut fish crosswise into 2- to 3-inch lengths.
• Add tomatoes, wine, and zest to vegetable mixture and bring to a boil, then boil 30 seconds. Add fish, water, and tomato paste and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until fish completely falls apart, about 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle.
• Arrange baguette slices in 1 layer on a baking sheet and bake until golden brown and thoroughly dried, about 20 minutes.
• Force soup through food mill into a large heavy pot, discarding solids. Reheat soup over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
• Mound rouille on croutons and put 1 in bottom of each soup bowl. Pour soup around croutons.

FISH SOUP PROVENCALE

Steps:

• Remove any skin and cut the fish into one inch cubes.
• Heat the oil in a heavy casserole or skillet and add the onion, leeks, garlic, red and green peppers and the saffron and cook over medium heat until softened.
• Add the wine, tomatoes, water, thyme, bay leaf, anise seed, pepper flakes and salt and pepper and bring to a boil.
• Simmer for ten minutes.
• Add the fish and the mussels, stir gently and simmer for 5 minutes.
• Remove thyme sprig and bay leaf and taste for seasoning.
• If any mussels are unopened, cook for a bit longer.
• Sprinkle with basil (or parsley) and serve.