By Mary Jane Miller
Every July 14, France celebrates Bastille Day, the day in 1789 when peasants stormed the notorious Bastille prison in eastern Paris and sparked the revolution. There are parades, fireworks and, of course, great food.
I celebrate because it happens to be my birthday. In 2020, when all the restaurant closures forced us to eat at home, I decided to make bouillabaisse, a very French dish.
What started as humble fisherman’s stew in Marseille is now a luxe bowl of seafood in a rich fish broth flavored with saffron, fennel and white wine. In restaurants, a bowl often costs $35 or more. At home, it cost me about $50 to make a pot for six.
Bouillabaisse (BWEE-yuh-bess) is as easy to make as vegetable soup, and the directions are right in its two-step name, a combination of “bouillir” (to boil) and “abaisser” (to reduce). But the ingredients are just a little trickier to find in landlocked Iowa.
I called up Waterfront and asked about getting fish trimmings, specifically, 2 pounds of bones and heads from whitefish. (The bones of oily fish, like salmon, are better for other dishes, like salmon chowder.) Shawn Hanke, the owner, told me he’s glad to see them put to use. “I’m happy to give bones for free to regular customers,” he said. “If they’re not regular customers, I’ll charge them.” I just moved back to Iowa after being away for 25 years, but I guess I counted as a regular after I bought the rest of my seafood.
Bouillabaisse
The broth
Makes about 8 cups
Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
5 cloves garlic, chopped
1 leek, chopped
2 tablespoons tomato paste
Strips of orange zest from 1 orange
Pinch of saffron
Pinch of red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon fennel seed
2 sprigs each, parsley and thyme
1 bay leaf
2 cups chopped tomatoes (canned are fine)
2 cups dry white wine
2 pounds fish bones from red snapper, halibut or other whitefish
Instructions
Heat a little olive oil in a large stock pot. Cook the onion, garlic and leek until they just start to soften. Move the veggies over to the side and add the tomato paste to the space you just made; cook a few minutes longer until it begins to darken.
Add the rest of the ingredients. Stir well and bring to a boil, then cook for 5 minutes.
Add the fish bones (cut to fit, if necessary), then enough water to just barely cover the bones. Bring the pot to a boil again and cook for another 5 minutes.
Reduce the heat and simmer 30-40 minutes or until the meat starts to fall from the bones. Strain the broth into a clean pot and discard the solids. You can make the broth up to three days ahead or freeze it for six months.
The seafood
Plan on about 2 pounds of seafood per person. Choose a firm whitefish, like cod, flounder, halibut, monkfish or red snapper, and cut it into serving pieces of about 4 ounces each. I round out the mix with mussels, clams and shrimp. Crab, scallops, and lobster are delicious, too. Bring the broth to a simmer, gently add the fish and allow it to poach until the fish just flakes. Remove the fish to a serving platter and keep it warm. Add the rest of the seafood to the broth, cover it, and cook until the shells open and the shrimp are pink. Remove to the serving platter.
The rouille
This garlicky, peppery sauce is classic with bouillabaisse and perfect on toasted baguette slices.
Ingredients
2 cloves garlic, finely minced garlic
Pinch of saffron
¼ cup stale breadcrumbs
1 egg yolk
2 roasted red bell peppers (jarred is fine)
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
In a food processor or blender, mix the first five ingredients until smooth. With the motor running, drizzle in the olive oil. Add salt to taste. Cover and refrigerate for up to three days.
This is great buffet fare. Each guest can pile seafood into a soup plate or pasta bowl. Grab a piece of toast from the basket, smear on some of the rouille and tuck it alongside. Then ladle the broth over it all. Add a salad to start and cake for dessert, and you’ve got one heck of a birthday or Bastille meal.
