Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Nunu's Kitchen - Bouillabaisse

Food I make!


A reader recently asked me for this recipe, and as per usual, I procrastinated for as long as possible before finally sitting down to write this up.
I'm hoping all these food posts will make up for the severe lack of beauty posts on this here blog. I've been unable to do any FOTDs lately as I was recently anointed with a sprinkling of spots of a miraculous and divine nature. Why are they miraculous? because they developed mysteriously over night, like a crop circle, all on the right side of my face. I certainly did not put them there, so SOMEONE/SOMETHING must have! If I start seeing manifestations of the Virgin Mary, I'm calling Fox Mulder.
Anyhoo, a bouillabaisse (pronounced bu-yeh-bay) is a French Provençal fish stew, and is essentially made up of a combination of various types of fish, crustaceans, molluscs and vegetables in a tomato saffron broth. Some restaurants add curry and coconut milk to their bouillabaisse and it ends up tasting like a Tom Yum Goon instead T.T
Without further ado, here is the Nunu version.

Bouillabaisse


You will need:

  • 1kg of various types of fish, crustaceans and molluscs - Aim for at least 3 different types of fish. Fish with firm hard flakes are perfect, such as cod, snapper, haddock etc. Oily fish like salmon are good too. You can get either fillets or steaks. With steaks, remove the flesh and reserve the bone. Boil the bones in a pot with some water to make fish broth. Crabs, prawns and lobster are the typical crustaceans used in bouillabaisse, however, if using, remember to add the crustaceans last as they tend to cook faster. Fresh or frozen mussels and clams are great, if using fresh ones with the shell on, blanch them first in a bit of boiling water to partially release the sea water, before adding to the stew. Or be cheap like me and just buy a bag of frozen seafood medley, that way you won't have to buy all the different crustaceans and molluscs.
  • 3 stalks of celery - diced.
  • 1 small onion - diced.
  • 5-6 baby potatoes - cut into halves.
  • 1 can crushed tomato.
  • 2 fresh roma tomatoes - diced.
  • 1 tsp fennel seeds.
  • 2 cloves garlic - minced.
  • 2 bay leaves.
  • 1 generous pinch of saffron threads - soaked in a little bit of water
  • 1 handful of coriander - chopped.
  • Fish broth - make your own by boiling the fish bones in water.
  • Splash of white wine.
  • Olive oil.
  • Salt & pepper to taste.

La methode:

  • In a deep pan (as always I used my wok xD), sauté the celery, potatoes, onion, garlic and fennel seeds in some olive oil until they are slightly translucent and soft.
  • Transfer sauted vegetables to a large pot. 
  • Add crushed tomatoes, fresh tomatoes, fish broth and bay leaves, bring to a boil.
  • Turn heat to low, add the saffron threads and the water you soaked them in, allow to simmer for 10 mins.
  • Add the fish, crustacean and molluscs.
  • Add wine, allow to simmer 15-20mins.
  • Add salt and pepper to taste.
  • Just before serving, sprinkle with chopped coriander.


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9 comments:

  1. Thanks for the recipe, this looks super delicious!! :)

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  2. I can taste it in my mouth..and smell it through my computer screen >__< Looks SO good!

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  3. Looks super yummy! Love the colors too!

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  4. wow... how long did that take for you to make??? something simple like vegetable soup takes me at least an hour (TO PREP)... so looking at this recipe makes me very very intimidated

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  5. That looks so good! I wish we could get together and have a potluck... hehe~ :)

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  6. This is my mom's favorite! You make me hungry again!

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  7. Thanks for the recipe!!! Next step is getting my lazy butt up to do this!! YUUUMMSS!

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  8. I vouch you make a cookbook!!!

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