Fish Entertaining

Saint Peter's fish soup

Name: Fish soup recipe
Yield: 6
Ingredients: 1 small whole leather jacket or triggerfish, red mullet, red gurnard, blue spot flathead or bream, cleaned, scaled; 1 whole red spot whiting, cleaned, scaled; 120ml extra virgin olive oil; 1 small crab (blue swimmer, brown or sand are ideal); Shells and heads of 10 king prawns; 1 onion, finely sliced; 3 garlic cloves, crushed; 1 small fennel bulb, finely sliced; 2 tbs tomato paste; 2 tomatoes, roughly chopped; 1/4 bunch thyme sprigs; 5 lemon thyme sprigs (optional); 1 tsp fennel seeds, lightly toasted; 2 star anise; 4 dried ground bush tomato (substitute for a little smoked paprika, optional); Pinch saffron threads; Lemon juice, to taste; 1 red capsicum, roasted, peeled; 1 long red chilli, seeds removed; 2 potatoes, peeled, diced; 50g roasted macadamia nuts; 5 garlic cloves; 2 dried ground bush tomatoes (optional); 1/4 tsp smoked paprika; Pinch of saffron threads; 210ml extra virgin olive oil; 500g small waxy potatoes, such as Dutch cream or bintje, skin on; 5 x 120g red mullet, cleaned, scaled; 200g John Dory roe fish; 400g cuttlefish or squid tentacles, cleaned

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https://healthimprovements.info/recipes/fish-soup-recipe/onckr7g7 — Saint Peter's fish soup

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by Josh Niland

Sep 01, 2019

This fish soup is your ultimate winter companion. This is an edited extract from The Whole Fish by Josh Niland (Hardie Grant Books, $55) and is available where all good books are sold. Photographer © Rob Palmer 2019.

1 small whole leather jacket or triggerfish, red mullet, red gurnard, blue spot flathead or bream, cleaned, scaled
1 whole red spot whiting, cleaned, scaled
120ml extra virgin olive oil
1 small crab (blue swimmer, brown or sand are ideal)
Shells and heads of 10 king prawns
1 onion, finely sliced
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1 small fennel bulb, finely sliced
2 tbs tomato paste
2 tomatoes, roughly chopped
1/4 bunch thyme sprigs
5 lemon thyme sprigs (optional)
1 tsp fennel seeds, lightly toasted
2 star anise
4 dried ground bush tomato (substitute for a little smoked paprika, optional)
Pinch saffron threads
Lemon juice, to taste

Rouille

1 red capsicum, roasted, peeled
1 long red chilli, seeds removed
2 potatoes, peeled, diced
50g roasted macadamia nuts
5 garlic cloves
2 dried ground bush tomatoes (optional)
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
Pinch of saffron threads
210ml extra virgin olive oil
Lemon juice, to taste

Finishing garnishes

500g small waxy potatoes, such as Dutch cream or bintje, skin on
5 x 120g red mullet, cleaned, scaled
200g John Dory roe fish
400g cuttlefish or squid tentacles, cleaned
500g pipis or clams, de-sanded (purged)
10 king prawns, peeled, deveined
50g ghee
250g best available fish liver (e.g. John Dory, grouper or cod)

To serve

1 good-quality rye bread loaf
100g good-quality cold salted cultured butter
250g mixed herb salad leaves

Method

1.

To make the soup base, using a sharp cleaver, chop the fish into small pieces.
2.

In a large, wide, heavy-based pot, heat 100ml olive oil and fry the crab and prawn shells and heads for 10–12 minutes or until coloured. Set aside in a bowl.
3.

Return the pot to a medium heat, and using the same oil, add the chopped fish. Season with a big pinch of salt and cook for 10 minutes or until coloured all over. Set aside with the shellfish.
4.

Using a wide barbecue scraper, scrape off the caramelised fish from the base of the pan and set aside with the fish. Add the remaining 1 tbs olive oil and heat over a medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 10 minutes, then increase heat to high, add the garlic and fennel and cook for a further 5 minutes. Add tomato paste and cook for 5 minutes or until fragrant. Add all fish and shellfish, along with the remaining ingredients, except lemon juice, and cover with water. Cover with a lid and bring to the boil. As soon as it’s boiling, uncover and cook over high heat for 20 minutes.
5.

Pass the stock through a mouli or pulse in a food processor, then strain and season well with salt, lemon juice and pepper
6.

For the rouille, place all ingredients, except the olive oil and lemon juice, in a stainless-steel saucepan, pour in enough of the fish soup to cover and cook for 20-25 minutes or until the potato is very soft. Drain, reserving the liquid. Blend the potato in a food processor with 40ml of the reserved liquid to a smooth puree, then gradually whisk in the olive oil. When the sauce is thick and silky, season well with salt and a squeeze of lemon juice.
7.

Divide the rest of the soup between a large and a medium saucepan. Add the potatoes to the medium pan and cook for 15-20 minutes until tender, then set aside.
8.

Bring the soup base in the large pan to the boil. Remove from the heat and add the mullet, John Dory roe and tentacles. Cover and cook for 4-5 minutes. Set the fish aside on a plate.
9.

Return the soup base to the boil, then remove from the heat, add the pipis and prawns and cook for 3 minutes. Take the pipis out when they open. Reserve the shellfish alongside the fish on a plate.
10.

Heat the ghee in a frypan over a high heat. Sauté the fish liver until golden brown on both sides, about 1 minute. Be careful not to overcook the liver.
11.

To bring the whole dish together, build the cooked ingredients in a large bowl. Bring the soup base, that has poached all the seafood, back to a simmer and pour a generous amount over the dish. Serve with bread, butter, a green salad and the rouille.