Marseille Bouillabaisse with Rockfish Broth and Potato Rouille

Method

1. Pull the gills and any blood off the fish frames and heads and rinse them in cold water; gills left in make the broth bitter and cloudy. Thinly slice the onion, fennel and leek and crush the garlic with the flat of a knife. Roughly chop the tomatoes and slice the potatoes 1 cm thick. Cut the fillets into 5 cm pieces, and scrub and debeard the mussels.

2. Heat half the olive oil in a 24 cm pot over medium-high heat. Add the fish frames, onion, fennel, leek, garlic and fennel seeds and cook for 9 min, stirring now and then, until a light brown film catches on the bottom of the pot. That browning is what gives the broth its depth; stop before anything turns black and bitter.

   Add in this stepExtra-virgin olive oil 1½ tbspWhite fish frames and heads, gills removed 500 gOnion 1Fennel bulb ½Leek (white part) ½Garlic cloves 4Fennel seeds ½ tsp

   medium-high heat

3. Stir in the tomatoes and tomato paste for a minute, then pour in the pastis and scrape up the browned bits with a wooden spoon. Add half the saffron, the orange peel, thyme, bay leaves and the cold water, bring to the boil over high heat and skim off the grey foam. Lower to medium heat, partly cover and simmer for 25 min.

   Add in this stepRipe tomatoes 2Tomato paste 1 tbspPastis or other anise spirit (optional) 1 tbspSaffron threads 1 pinchWide strips of orange peel 1Fresh thyme sprigs 2Bay leaves 1Cold water 1,300 ml

   high heat→medium heat

4. Set a sieve over a large bowl, pour in the broth and press hard on the bones and vegetables with a ladle to squeeze out every drop; this is what makes the broth thick and rich. Pour the strained broth into a clean 20 cm pot.

5. Add the potatoes, the rest of the saffron and half the salt and simmer over medium heat for 15 min, until tender. Lift out two or three potato slices for the rouille. Pour in the remaining olive oil, turn up to high heat and boil hard for 2 min; the oil emulsifies into the broth and turns it glossy and golden.

   Add in this stepWaxy potatoes 300 gSaffron threads 1 pinchExtra-virgin olive oil 1½ tbspCoarse sea salt to taste

   medium heat→high heat

6. Heat the oven to 200°C and toast the baguette slices for 6 min. For the rouille, finely chop the garlic, put it in a bowl and mash in the reserved potato with a fork, then mix in the yolk and cayenne. Whisking constantly, add the oil a few drops at a time, then in a thin stream once it thickens, until it is as firm as mayonnaise. Whisk in 1 tablespoon of hot broth for colour and flavour.

   Add in this stepEgg yolk (very fresh, ideally pasteurised) 1Garlic cloves (for the rouille) 1Cayenne pepper 1 pinchMild olive oil (for the rouille) 80 mlBaguette slices, 1 cm thick 6

   oven

7. Keep the broth at a gentle simmer over medium heat. Add the firmest fish first and the more delicate pieces a minute later, cooking for 3 min in total. Lay the prawns and mussels on top, cover and cook for 4 min more. It's done when the fish is white through and flakes, and the mussels have opened. Throw away any that stay closed and season with the rest of the salt.

   Add in this stepTwo or three kinds of white fish fillet, skin on (monkfish, gurnard, sea bream) 400 gRaw shell-on prawns 6Mussels 200 gCoarse sea salt to taste

   medium heat

8. Serve in two courses, as they do in Marseille. First, the broth alone: a rouille-spread toast in each warm bowl, with the broth ladled over. Then bring out the fish, shellfish and potatoes on a platter, scattered with parsley and moistened with a little broth.

   Add in this stepFlat-leaf parsley, chopped 1 tbsp