Seafood Stew With Saffron And Rouille

PROVENCAL FISH SOUP WITH SAFFRON ROUILLE

Steps:

• Wash leeks .
• Cook leeks, fennel bulb, carrots, celery, and garlic in oil with herbes de Provence, bay leaves, cayenne, saffron, 1 tablespoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in an 8-quart heavy pot over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 10 minutes.
• While vegetable mixture cooks, cut fish crosswise into 2- to 3-inch lengths.
• Add tomatoes, wine, and zest to vegetable mixture and bring to a boil, then boil 30 seconds. Add fish, water, and tomato paste and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until fish completely falls apart, about 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle.
• Arrange baguette slices in 1 layer on a baking sheet and bake until golden brown and thoroughly dried, about 20 minutes.
• Force soup through food mill into a large heavy pot, discarding solids. Reheat soup over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
• Mound rouille on croutons and put 1 in bottom of each soup bowl. Pour soup around croutons.

SEAFOOD STEW WITH SAFFRON AND ROUILLE

Steps:

• Make the rouille. Preheat broiler. Cut the pepper into thick strips and place them face down on foil paper on a broiling rack. Broil until the skins are charred. Place in a closed paper bag for a few minutes, then peel off the skin.
• Put the pepper strips in the jar of a blender with bread crumbs, egg yolks and the garlic. Puree. Very gradually, little by little, add the olive oil until you have a thick, mayonaise-like sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Place in a bowl and set aside.
• Meanwhile, put the potatoes on to boil. Rinse the leeks, slice them and rinse the slices carefully to remove any traces of grit.
• Bring the wine to boil, add the saffron and set aside. Heat the butter and oil in a heavy casserole and soften the leeks with the garlic. When soft, add the tomatoes, thyme and the saffron-white wine mixture. Cover and allow to simmer gently for 10 to 15 minutes, adding a little water or wine if it gets dry.
• Meanwhile, debeard the mussels and wash them thoroughly, discarding any that are open and refuse to close when tapped, or that are broken. Place the shrimp in a small bowl of cold water and add salt.
• Rinse the shrimp. Add the mussels, shrimp and scallops to the casserole. Cook until the mussels have opened (three to four minutes). Serve the stew in soup bowls, ladling on the sauce. Serve the potatoes and the rouille separately.

SEAFOOD STEW WITH GARLIC ROUILLE CROUTONS

Steps:

• For the seafood stock: Heat the oil in a stockpot over medium heat. Add the carrots, celery, fennel, garlic, leeks and onions and saute for about 5 minutes. Add the ketchup, rosemary, thyme, and the crab and lobster shells and stir. Add the peppercorns and 16 cups (4 liters) water. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 2 hours. Strain the stock into a smaller saucepan. Simmer over medium heat until reduced by two-thirds, about 45 minutes. Stir in the butter and season with salt and pepper.
• For the roasted leeks and mushrooms: Heat the oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the leeks and saute until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook until browned, about 5 minutes more. Add the roasted peppers (along with any of their juices) and a ladle of seafood stock. Season with salt and pepper. Keep warm.
• For the rouille croutons: Soak 2 thick slices bread in the seafood stock. Squeeze out the liquid and add the bread to the food processor along with the garlic, chile and egg yolk. Buzz it up. Slowly add the olive oil while processing until a smooth paste forms. Add a little of the seafood stock if the rouille begins to split. Season with salt and pepper. Toast the remaining 4 to 6 slices bread (one for each serving) in a pan with olive oil over medium-high heat. Set aside.
• For the seafood stew: Return the seafood stock to a simmer and add the clams. Cook until they start to open, about 5 minutes. Add the mussels and cook until they open, another 2 minutes. Add the shrimp and lobster meat and simmer for 2 minutes. Before serving, add the peas to the leeks-mushroom mixture to warm them up. Spread the rouille on the toasted bread. Divide the leek-mushroom mixture among bowls, top with the crab meat, and then the seafood stew. Drizzle with olive oil. Garnish with a live scallop on the shell and sprinkle with chervil. Serve the rouille croutons on the side.

SAFFRON-AND-ORANGE-SCENTED SEAFOOD STEW

Steps:

• In a saucepan, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high. When it shimmers, add tomato paste and shrimp shells. Cook, stirring, until shells turn pink and opaque, about 2 minutes. Add 2 cups water and gently boil 5 minutes. Strain shrimp broth into a heatproof bowl; discard solids. Stir saffron into broth.
• Heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a braiser pan or wide, shallow pot over medium. Add celery, shallots, and garlic; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and thyme. Cover and cook until tomatoes collapse and release their juices, 6 to 8 minutes. Add wine and boil until mostly evaporated.
• Add clams to pan, increase heat to medium-high, and cook, covered, just until they begin to open, 6 to 8 minutes (discard any that don't open). Transfer clams to a large heatproof bowl and cover with a plate to keep warm. Add mussels to pan and cook, covered, just until they begin to open, about 5 minutes (discard any that don't open). Transfer mussels to bowl with clams.
• Add seafood stock, shrimp broth, and orange zest and juice to pan. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat; simmer 5 minutes. Meanwhile, remove about half of clams and two-thirds of mussels from their shells, reserving meat and juices and discarding empty shells.
• Stir shrimp and fish into pan, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook, covered, just until shrimp and fish are firm and cooked through, 3 to 5 minutes. Return shelled and in-shell clams and mussels and any accumulated juices to pan, stirring to combine. Remove from heat, sprinkle with celery leaves and parsley, drizzle with more oil, and serve with bread, if desired.

SUMMER FISH STEW WITH ROUILLE

Steps:

• Twist the heads from the prawns, then peel away the legs and shells, but leave the tails intact. Devein each prawn. Fry the shells in 1 tbsp oil for 5 mins, until dark pink and golden in patches. Add the wine, boil down by two thirds, then pour in the stock. Strain into a jug, discarding the shells.
• Heat the rest of the oil in a deep frying pan or casserole. Add the fennel, onion and garlic, season, then cover and gently cook for 10 mins until softened. Meanwhile, peel the potato and cut into 2cm-ish chunks. Put into a pan of cold water, bring to the boil and cook for 5 mins until almost tender. Drain in a colander.
• Peel a strip of zest from the orange. Put the zest, star anise, bay and ½ tsp harissa into the pan. Fry gently, uncovered, for 5-10 mins, until the vegetables are soft, sweet and golden.
• Stir in the tomato purée, cook for 2 mins, then add the tomatoes and stock. Simmer for 10 mins until the sauce thickens slightly. Season to taste. The sauce can be made ahead, then reheated later in the day. Meantime, scrub the mussels or clams and pull away any stringy beards. Any that are open should be tapped sharply on the worktop - if they don't close after a few seconds, discard them.
• Reheat the sauce if necessary, then stir the potato, chunks of fish and prawns very gently into the stew. Bring back to the boil, then cover and gently simmer for 3 mins. Scatter the mussels or clams over the stew, then cover and cook for 2 mins more or until the shells have opened wide. Discard any that remain closed. The chunks of fish should flake easily and the prawns should be pink through. Scatter with the thyme leaves.
• To make the quick rouille, stir the rest of the harissa through the mayonnaise. Serve the stew in bowls, topped with spoonfuls of rouille, which will melt into the sauce and enrich it. Have some good bread ready, as you'll definitely want to mop up the juices.

PROVENCAL FISH STEW WITH ROUILLE

Steps:

• Mix mayonnaise, garlic, and cayenne in small bowl. Cover and chill rouille. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead.)
• Place fennel fronds, thyme sprigs, and orange peel on large square of 2 layers of moistened cheesecloth. Gather cheesecloth and tie securely. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add fennel bulb and leek and sauté until soft, about 8 minutes. Add wine and saffron; bring to boil. Add broth and bouquet garni; return to boil. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer 45 minutes. Add fish and simmer until opaque in center, about 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, preheat oven to 375°F. Brush baguette slices with remaining 1 tablespoon oil. Arrange on baking sheet. Bake until golden brown, about 8 minutes. Spread rouille on toasts. Ladle stew into wide soup bowls, top with toasts, and serve.