Bouillabaisse recipe

To make the fish soup, heat the olive oil in a large pot and sauté the onion, leek, fennel, garlic, fish bones and saffron powder.

Deglaze with the white wine.

Add the tomatoes, water and saffron threads.

Bring to the boil and simmer for 45 minutes.

Push through a chinois and reduce to approximately 20 litres.

Season with salt and pepper.

To make the aioli, bleed the saffron threads in a little hot water (2 soup spoons).

Place the eggs, mustard, garlic and cayenne pepper into a food processor.

Blend and gradually add the oil, until very thick; then add the saffron water.

Rock fish is the best for bouillabaisse like garnet or red mullet, but any fish with a firm white flesh is suitable (avoid strong flavour fish like mackerels or sardines).

Once you have poached the fillets of fish, add black mussels (no green lip mussels), prawns and scallops. We also add large scampi on our bouillabaisse.

Serve with the aioli, some sliced croutons from a baguette, and extra rouille which is the soup (rouille means rust in English, hence the colour of the soup).

Bon appétit!

* If fennel is not in season substitute either aniseed or star anise.