Bouillabaisse

Filed under Seafood Stews

Prep: 40 min | Cook: 75 min | Servings: 6

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown, 2011. Serves 6 to 8. Serve with Rouille (its own recipe), if you like.

Inactive prep: 5 minutes.

Ingredients

  • 1 lb Fish, raw heads, bones and tail, plus the lobster tail shell, for the stock
  • 4 Bay leaf, whole fresh, for the stock
  • 1 tsp Sea salt, coarse, for the stock
  • 1/2 tsp Black peppercorns, whole, for the stock
  • 6 cup Water, for the stock
  • 1/2 cup Olive oil, divided
  • 6 oz Onion, coarsely chopped
  • 3 oz Fennel, bulb, coarsely chopped
  • 1 tsp Sea salt, coarse, divided
  • 1/2 cup White wine, dry
  • 1 can Diced tomatoes, 14 1/2-ounce, undrained
  • 1/4 cup Parsley, fresh flat-leaf, chopped
  • 1 piece Orange, 3-inch piece of peel, optional
  • 0.06 tsp Saffron
  • 8 oz White fish, firm fillets such as farmed cobia or wild striped bass, skin and bones removed, 1-inch pieces, room temperature
  • 8 oz Halibut, or other flaky fillets such as black cod or black rockfish, skin and bones removed, 1-inch pieces, room temperature
  • 2 clove Garlic, crushed
  • 1/4 tsp Cayenne pepper
  • 8 oz Mussel, cleaned and beards trimmed, room temperature
  • 1 Lobster, large raw tail, shelled, meat cut into 1-inch pieces, room temperature
  • 1 Baguette, sliced
  • 1 clove Garlic, cut in half, for the toasts
  • Rouille, optional

Directions

  1. For the fish stock: rinse the fish heads and put them in a tall 6-quart pot with the tails, bones, lobster shell, bay leaves, 1 teaspoon salt, peppercorns and water. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat, then hold at a bare simmer 25 minutes. Strain and set aside.
  2. For the stew: heat 1/4 cup olive oil in a clean 6-quart pot over medium heat. Saute the onions, fennel and 1/2 teaspoon salt until semi-translucent, about 10 minutes, stirring often. Deglaze with the wine, scraping the bottom.
  3. Add the stock, tomatoes, parsley, orange peel and saffron. Cover, bring to a boil over high heat and simmer 15 minutes.
  4. Raise the heat to high and add the remaining 1/4 cup oil, the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, the fish, garlic and cayenne. Boil rapidly, uncovered, 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  5. Off the heat, add the mussels and lobster, cover and let stand until the fish is cooked and the mussels open, 2 to 4 minutes. Discard any that don't open.
  6. To serve: heat the broiler to high. Rub the baguette slices on both sides with the cut garlic and broil 1 inch from the heat 1 to 2 minutes per side. Top with rouille, if you like, and serve with the stew.