by Louis & Annette Bignami
Traditional bouillabaisse comes from the Mediterranean, and the most common type served in what often seem rather pretentious French restaurants harks to Marseilles. It's useful to remember that this dish is authentically prepared with whatever is left from the fish stall at the end of the day. So there are a host of types. Here's one that works particularly well with Southern California catches. It feeds eight, or more! Just add a green salad, hot from the oven sour dough bread and your favorite wine. It's simple to cook once you round up the ingredients. Do the first section ahead of time and the whole dish cooks in less than 20 minutes. Note: we like flavor so we double the listed herb and garlic amounts.
3 teaspoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
3 sweet onions, sliced (we mix white and red)
1 pound of potatoes, scrubbed and sliced (optional stretcher if needed)
2 leeks or four green onions, chunked
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoons savory
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds (optional, but authentic)
One bay leaf
4 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped
3 tomatoes, roughly chopped
2 stalks celery, roughly chopped
big pinch of saffron (optional, expensive, authentic and worth it!)
1/4 teaspoon hot pepper -- cayenne
3 pounds of halibut in 2-inch chunks and whatever other fish is handy (save trimmings)
1 pound shrimp, cleaned
1 pound mussels or clams or oysters or other shellfish
Two medium to small crabs and/or lobsters, cooked
1 bottle of white wine
In a big pan heat olive oil and butter over medium-high heat. Fry chopped onions, and the white part of green onions or leeks without letting them brown. Add a couple of cups of wine and two cups of water. Toss in tomatoes, garlic, thyme, bay leave and saffron. Add heads, tails and trimmings of fish. Cook for 20 minutes and strain. Note: this can be done ahead.
Pour stock over fish, crab or lobster, mussels or clams. Tip: set the fish flat in the bottom of the stock pan and set shellfish on top. Season with salt and pepper, sprinkle with a little olive oil and add extra wine or water to barely cover fish.
Cook over medium heat for about 15 minutes.
Steam clams or mussels separately, strain stock, and add shellfish and stock to main pan. Note: you can add two tablespoons of butter at the last minute.
Serve fish over grilled bread slices that have been rubbed with garlic and olive oil. Pour on stock at last minute. Top with green of onion or leeks.
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