Bouillabaisse and Rouille

by Hugh Gallagher

METHOD

Warm the olive oil over a moderate heat and gently cook the fennel without colour or caramelisation for around 5 minutes.

Add red peppers and seasoning and cook for another 3 or 4 minutes.

Add the fish bones and water (or stock) and the plum tomatoes, bring to a slow boil and skim.

Add saffron and tomato paste, bring to a simmer and cook for 90 minutes or until reduced by 30%.

Using a stick blender, bring the contents to a smooth sauce and pass through a fine sieve. Throw away any solids, pass again without pressing through the sieve and you should have a smooth soup.

Add lemon juice, pour into a blender and add the butter. Transfer to a pot and keep warm.

For the rouille, whisk in a bowl the egg yolks, salt, pepper, lemon juice, saffron and cayenne. Add the oil in a steady stream whilst continuing to whisk until it is all combined in an emulsion.

Stir in the chopped garlic.
If the emulsion is too thick then thin out with a little warm water.

Cut the cod and salmon into 8 pieces.

Heat around 800ml of the soup to a simmer, add 4 tablespoons of the rouille, whisk well and add the fish.

Cook for 6/7 minutes, remove with a fish slice and arrange on 4 warm soup plates.

Pour the soup around the bowl to serve.

Garnish with some roasted baby tomatoes, fresh basil and the feathers from the fennel bulbs.

Serve with crusty bread and some more of the rouille on the side.

INGREDIENTS

For the soup
200ml olive oil
2 fennel bulbs (cleaned to remove any soil), chopped
2 red peppers (pith and seeds removed), cubed
20g fresh tarragon
1 kg white fish bones, washed
1 kg chopped fresh plum tomatoes
40g tomato paste
2/3 pinches saffron
Juice of 2 lemons
40g butter
Salt and black pepper to season
1.5 litres of water (or replace the fish bones and water with a good quality fish stock)

Rouille
3 egg yolks
Juice of 1 lemon
1 pinch saffron
1 pinch cayenne pepper
200ml olive oil
200ml vegetable oil
3 cloves garlic, chopped

Fish
12 mussels
200g cod
200g salmon
4 crayfish