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French · Mediterranean

Bouillabaisse

Non-vegetarian

Marseille's famous saffron- and fennel-scented fish soup: a rich, orange broth served with toasted bread and garlicky rouille, followed by the fish cooked in it.

Bouillabaisse is a French soup from France, ready in about 1 hour 25 minutes and made with fennel bulb, saffron and white fish fillet. It serves 6 and is rated intermediate to cook.

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Prep
35 min
Cook
50 min
Total
1 h 25 min
Serves
6
Level
Intermediate
Calories
667

Ingredients

6 servings

For the soup

For the rouille

To serve

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Warm the olive oil (opens in a new tab) in a wide, heavy pot. Add the onion (opens in a new tab), leek (opens in a new tab), fennel (opens in a new tab) and sliced garlic (opens in a new tab) and cook gently until soft and lightly golden.

    Onions frying golden in a pan
    How it looks · Photo: Magda Ehlers on Pexels

  2. Step 2

    Stir in the tomatoes (opens in a new tab), tomato paste (opens in a new tab), orange (opens in a new tab) zest, saffron (opens in a new tab), thyme (opens in a new tab) and bay. Cook for 5 minutes, then pour in the fish stock (opens in a new tab), add the potatoes (opens in a new tab), salt and cayenne and boil briskly until the potatoes are just tender.

    • 20 min
    • medium-high heat

    A hard boil here emulsifies the oil into the broth — the 'bouillir' in the name.

  3. Step 3

    Make the rouille: mix the mayonnaise (opens in a new tab) with the crushed garlic (opens in a new tab), a pinch of the saffron (opens in a new tab) soaked in a spoonful of hot broth and a little cayenne.

    • 3 min

  4. Step 4

    Lower the heat. Add the firmest fish first, then the more delicate pieces a few minutes later and the mussels (opens in a new tab) last. Simmer gently until the fish is just opaque and the mussels have opened.

    • 10 min
    • medium-low heat

    Food safety: Discard any mussels that are open before cooking or still closed after cooking. Fish is done when it flakes and is opaque through.

  5. Step 5

    Lift the fish, mussels (opens in a new tab) and potatoes (opens in a new tab) onto a warm platter. Serve the broth first, ladled over garlic (opens in a new tab) toasts topped with rouille, then the fish, sprinkled with parsley (opens in a new tab).

    • 5 min

About this dish

Origin
Marseille, Provence, France · Well documentedMore food from France
Dish
Lunch · Dinner · Soups · Main courses
Cooking method
Sautéed, Simmered, Poached
Taste
aromatic / warmly spiced, savoury, rich, garlicky
Diet
Pescatarian · Dairy-free · No nut ingredients · High-protein
All labelsPescatarian · Non-vegetarian · Dairy-free · No nut ingredients · No added sugar · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · High-protein
Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Festive & celebration
Cook more with
Fennel bulb · Saffron · White fish fillet · Onion · Leek · Garlic
Techniques
Sautéing · Simmering · Poaching

Allergens

  • Contains: Eggsfrom mayonnaise
  • Contains: Fishfrom fish stock, white fish fillet, sea bass
  • May contain: Crustaceansfrom fish stock
  • Contains, can be adapted: Molluscsfrom mussels
  • Contains: Wheatfrom crusty bread / baguette
  • Contains: Glutenfrom crusty bread / baguette
  • May contain: Sesamefrom crusty bread / baguette
  • May contain: Mustardfrom mayonnaise
  • May contain: Celeryfrom fish stock

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

667 kcal per serving

Calculated

1 serving ≈ 705 g · recipe makes 6

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 25%
  • Carbohydrate 35%
  • Fat 40%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g*
Energy667 kcal95 kcal
Protein42.1 g6 g
Carbohydrate58.9 g8.3 g
Net carbohydrate53.2 g7.5 g
Sugars8.8 g1.2 g
Added sugars0 g0 g
Fibre5.7 g0.8 g
Fat29.5 g4.2 g
Saturated fat4.9 g0.7 g
Trans fat——
Cholesterol85 mg12 mg
Sodium1607 mg228 mg
Salt equivalent4 g0.6 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
1543 mg
Calcium
116 mg
Iron
4.7 mg
Magnesium
119 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
109 µg
Vitamin C
32 mg
Vitamin D
3.3 µg
Vitamin B12
3.7 µg
Folate (DFE)
183 µg

How these numbers were made

  • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
  • *Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
  • Optional ingredients are not included: mussels, parsley.
  • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
  • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

  • Use at least two or three kinds of fish; the variety is what gives the broth depth.
  • A splash of pastis with the tomatoes deepens the anise note of the fennel.

Common mistakes

  • Adding all the fish at once — delicate fillets fall apart before the firm ones are cooked.

Serve with

  • Serve with a chilled Provençal rosé and a green salad.

Food safety

  • Keep fish and shellfish chilled until cooking and use within a day of purchase.

Storage

  • Best eaten the day it is made. The strained broth alone keeps 2 days chilled.

Reheating

  • Reheat the broth only, then poach fresh fish in it; reheated fish turns rubbery.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

Sauces, chutneys & dips for this dish

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Built from the recipe’s own sections. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

The liquid foundation

For the soup

Used in steps 1, 2, 3, 4

Reviews & corrections

Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

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