We have long wanted to prepare this dish. Firstly, to expand our culinary experience, and secondly – to try one of the most famous fish soups in the world. Tom Yum we have already cooked several times, so this time we decided to focus on another culinary legend – bouillabaisse (Bouillabaisse), a true gastronomic calling card of the south of France. The history of this dish begins in Marseille. Originally, bouillabaisse was not a restaurant delicacy at all, but food for local fishermen. After selling the best fish at the market, they kept the small, less valuable, or damaged fish, boiling it together with vegetables, aromatic herbs, and spices, resulting in a thick and surprisingly rich soup. Over time, the recipe was refined, and more expensive types of fish, seafood, and saffron were added, turning bouillabaisse into one of the most famous dishes of French cuisine. We set ourselves a slightly different task – not to recreate an absolutely authentic recipe, but to prepare a version as close to the classic as possible with the ingredients we could find. We bought white sea fish, a fish broth kit, various seafood, fennel, and celery. Unfortunately, we couldn't find leeks and saffron. But this did not stop our ambitions – we wanted to make a delicious, aromatic, and French-style cozy fish soup.

For the soup:

Any good fish soup starts with the broth.

In a large pot, we place the head and backbone of the fish, shrimp shells, and heads. We add the bay leaf, a bit of salt, black pepper, and French herbs. We cover with water and simmer for about 1.5 hours over low heat.

This broth will become the base of the entire future soup, so there’s no need to rush here.

While the broth is cooking, we deal with the main ingredients.

We cut the fish into large portion pieces. We peel the shrimp, and all the seafood goes into one bowl.

We add a bit of salt, drizzle with the juice of half a lemon, gently mix, and leave to marinate.

We sauté the vegetables

We cut the fennel in half and remove its tough core. After that, we chop it together with the celery and onion.

In a large skillet, we heat olive oil.

First, we sauté the fennel and celery, as they need a little more time. After a few minutes, we add the onion and cook the vegetables until soft.

Then we add finely chopped garlic, previously blanched and peeled tomatoes, and half of the orange zest.

We let the vegetables stew for a few minutes, after which we pour in about 200 ml of dry white wine.

We let the alcohol evaporate completely. At the end, we add salt, pepper, French herbs (or thyme with rosemary), and the remaining orange zest.

At this stage, the kitchen starts to smell so good that it’s hard to wait for the finale.

While we were busy with the vegetables, the fish broth has already absorbed the aromas.

We transfer the vegetable mixture to the pot with the broth and cook everything together for another 40 minutes.

After that, we strain the soup through a sieve, and the vegetables are thoroughly mashed. This gives the broth a thicker texture and richer flavor.

Final stage

We return the strained fish-vegetable broth to the stove.

When it boils, we add the fish and all the seafood.

We cook for only 3-5 minutes.

This time is quite enough for the seafood to remain juicy and tender. If cooked longer, they may become tough.

Traditionally, bouillabaisse is served with toasted baguette croutons and the famous French sauce rouille – a thick garlic-pepper sauce that is spread on crispy bread or added directly to the soup.

We also adhered to this tradition. Hot aromatic broth, large pieces of fish, juicy shrimp, mussels, and scallops, crispy croutons, and rouille sauce – this is how we imagined this French classic.

Was our bouillabaisse absolutely authentic? Probably not.

We didn’t find saffron, didn’t use mussels in shells, and adapted the recipe somewhat to the products available in our stores.

But was it delicious? Definitely.

We got a very aromatic, rich fish soup with distinct notes of fennel, citrus zest, and white wine. It’s such experiments that motivate us to keep cooking: to explore new cuisines of the world, to get acquainted with unusual combinations of flavors, and to once again convince ourselves that even seemingly complex dishes can be easily prepared at home.

So if you have long been eyeing bouillabaisse but were afraid of its “restaurant” reputation – don’t postpone. Perhaps it will become your new culinary discovery just as it became ours.