Fish Soup With Bread And Rouille Recipes

FISH SOUP WITH BREAD AND ROUILLE

Steps:

• Make broth:
• Wash green and white parts of leek separately in a bowl of cold water, then lift out with a slotted spoon and pat dry. Heat 3 tablespoons oil in a 6-quart heavy pot over moderate heat until hot but not smoking, then cook leek greens, onion, celery, and carrots, stirring, until beginning to soften, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, 3 minutes. Add saffron, bay leaves, and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, 2 minutes. Add fresh tomatoes and tomato purée and cook, stirring, 4 minutes. Add wine and simmer, uncovered, until liquid is reduced by about half, about 30 minutes.
• Stir in stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 30 minutes. Carefully pour through a fine sieve into a bowl, then discard solids.
• Prepare croûtes while broth simmers:
• Preheat oven to 300°F.
• Heat a well-seasoned ridged grill pan over moderately high heat until hot. Brush bread with remaining 2 tablespoons oil, then grill on all sides until grill marks appear. Tear bread into rough 3-inch pieces and bake on a baking sheet in middle of oven until crisp outside but soft inside, about 10 minutes. Cool croûtes.
• Heat butter in a 4-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat until foam subsides, then cook white part of leek, stirring, until beginning to soften, about 2 minutes. Add fish, hot broth, and salt and bring to a simmer (fish will be cooked through). Remove from heat and stir in 1/2 cup rouille.
• Put croûtes in soup plates and ladle soup over. Sprinkle with oregano and parsley and serve remaining rouille on the side.

ROUILLE

Steps:

• Lay bell peppers on their sides on racks of gas burners and turn flame on high. (Or put on rack of broiler pan about 2 inches from heat.) Roast, turning with tongs, until skins are blackened, 8 to 12 minutes. Transfer peppers to a bowl, then cover and let steam 20 minutes. Remove skin and seeds from peppers and tear flesh into large pieces.
• Mash garlic to a paste with salt using a mortar and pestle (or mince and mash with a large knife).
• Purée bell peppers, garlic paste, jalapeño, and bread crumbs in a food processor. With motor running, slowly add oil, then lemon juice and pepper, blending until very smooth (it will look like an orange-pink mayonnaise).

FISH SOUP WITH AïOLI CROUTONS

Steps:

• Whisk first 5 ingredients and 3 tablespoons oil in small bowl to blend. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (Aioli can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)
• Heat remaining 3 tablespoons oil in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add leeks, carrots, fennel, and shallots; sauté until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Add garlic and sauté 2 minutes. Mix in tomatoes, tomato paste, thyme, and saffron. Add wine and boil 5 minutes. Add 5 cups stock and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes to blend flavors. Add fish and simmer until fish is cooked through, about 5 minutes. Cool slightly.
• Working in batches, puree soup in blender. Working in batches, strain soup through coarse sieve set over large bowl, pressing firmly to force as much of solids as possible through sieve. Return soup to pot. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.)
• Spread enough aioli over each toast to cover. Bring soup to simmer, thinning with more stock, if desired. Ladle soup into bowls. Top each with 2 toasts. Sprinkle with parsley and serve.

SUMMER FISH STEW WITH ROUILLE

Steps:

• Twist the heads from the prawns, then peel away the legs and shells, but leave the tails intact. Devein each prawn. Fry the shells in 1 tbsp oil for 5 mins, until dark pink and golden in patches. Add the wine, boil down by two thirds, then pour in the stock. Strain into a jug, discarding the shells.
• Heat the rest of the oil in a deep frying pan or casserole. Add the fennel, onion and garlic, season, then cover and gently cook for 10 mins until softened. Meanwhile, peel the potato and cut into 2cm-ish chunks. Put into a pan of cold water, bring to the boil and cook for 5 mins until almost tender. Drain in a colander.
• Peel a strip of zest from the orange. Put the zest, star anise, bay and ½ tsp harissa into the pan. Fry gently, uncovered, for 5-10 mins, until the vegetables are soft, sweet and golden.
• Stir in the tomato purée, cook for 2 mins, then add the tomatoes and stock. Simmer for 10 mins until the sauce thickens slightly. Season to taste. The sauce can be made ahead, then reheated later in the day. Meantime, scrub the mussels or clams and pull away any stringy beards. Any that are open should be tapped sharply on the worktop - if they don't close after a few seconds, discard them.
• Reheat the sauce if necessary, then stir the potato, chunks of fish and prawns very gently into the stew. Bring back to the boil, then cover and gently simmer for 3 mins. Scatter the mussels or clams over the stew, then cover and cook for 2 mins more or until the shells have opened wide. Discard any that remain closed. The chunks of fish should flake easily and the prawns should be pink through. Scatter with the thyme leaves.
• To make the quick rouille, stir the rest of the harissa through the mayonnaise. Serve the stew in bowls, topped with spoonfuls of rouille, which will melt into the sauce and enrich it. Have some good bread ready, as you'll definitely want to mop up the juices.