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French · Marseille, Provence

Bouillabaisse

A Provençal fish soup-stew built on rockfish, saffron, fennel, and rouille — the preparation that defines Mediterranean coastal cooking and that provokes more heated argument about authenticity than any other preparation in the French canon. The Marseille Bouillabaisse Charter (1980) specifies the exact fish required for the authentic version; but every coastal village from Nice to Sète has its own interpretation. What is settled in all versions: the saffron, the fennel, the olive oil, the violence of the boil that emulsifies the olive oil into the broth, and the rouille on toasted bread that floats on the surface.

‹Swipe for the next dish›
Serves4
Total90 min
Sourced1of 17 in BC
Cook
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I

The Market List

The benchmark for each ingredient, and who stocks it near you. Tap a stockist to go straight to the product.

1 kg
mixed Mediterranean fish
rouget, baudroie, St. Pierre, cleaned and cut into 5 cm pieces
Your own market
300 g
mussels
cleaned, beards removed
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
300 g
clams
purged
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
200 g
squid
cleaned, cut into rings
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
400 ml
fish stock
from bones and heads
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
800 ml
whole milk
Your own market
4
large saffron threads
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1
orange
zest and juice
Your own market
4
garlic cloves
minced
Your own market
1
large fennel bulb
sliced
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1
large onion
sliced
Your own market
200 g
San Marzano DOP tomatoes
crushed
Origin · ItalyBosa Foods · Vancouver →
120 ml
extra virgin olive oil
Your own market
100 g
baguette
sliced
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
8 g
fine sea salt
Your own market
2 g
Aleppo pepper
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1
bay leaf
Your own market

Each tap is counted, so the stockist sees the demand Provenance sends them.

II

The Method

1
Heat 60 ml olive oil in large, heavy pot over medium; add onion, fennel, and half the garlic; cook 8 minutes until softened.
2
Add tomatoes, orange zest and juice, bay leaf, salt, and Aleppo pepper; simmer 10 minutes.
3
Add fish stock; bring to boil; reduce to gentle simmer.
4
Toast saffron threads 30 seconds in dry pan; steep in 120 ml warm milk off heat 10 minutes.
5
Add firm white fish pieces to broth; simmer 4 minutes; add softer fish, mussels, and clams; simmer 4 minutes until shells open and fish flakes easily.
6
Stir in saffron milk and squid; simmer 2 minutes; taste and adjust seasoning.
7
Toast baguette slices in oven at 180°C until golden; rub with remaining garlic and drizzle with remaining olive oil.
From the canon — France's daily bread — a long (55–65cm), thin (5–6cm diameter), lean wheat bread with a shattering crust, irregular open crumb, and mild tang from a slow, co… Baguette →
8
Ladle bouillabaisse into wide bowls; serve with toasted garlic croutons and rouille (saffron-garlic mayonnaise) on the side.
From the canon — Rouille is the rust-coloured saffron and garlic emulsion served with bouillabaisse — a Provençal condiment so essential to the experience of Marseille's grea… Rouille →
IV

Sensory Tests

◇Where it lives or dies. The moment where bouillabaisse lives or dies is the saffron quality — use enough saffron to make the broth deeply golden. Cheap or stale saffron produces a pale yellow broth with little flavour. Spanish Mancha or Iranian saffron is correct. The broth should be aggressively seasoned with salt and Pernod (pastis) — it should taste of the sea and of Provence simultaneously.
Pillar V
Cross-cuisine parallels are part of membership.
The dishes this one teaches you, across the cuisines — on every recipe.
Enter · from $49 a year
VI

What to Pour

The pairing
El Silencio Espadin Mezcal
El Silencio Mezcal · Oaxaca — Mezcal
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
Agave spirit
From British Columbia
Fort Berens Riesling
Fort Berens Estate Winery · Lillooet
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
Wine
Without alcohol
GT's Synergy Organic Kombucha — Gingerade
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
Non-alcoholic

Why each one works is part of membership — Enter · from $49 a year →

The whole pairing
Pillar VII
Origin and lineage are part of membership.
Where the dish comes from and how it came to be — on every recipe.
Enter · from $49 a year
Sourced through Provenance

The hands behind the plate.

Bosa Foods
Vancouver · San Marzano DOP tomatoes
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