Bourride
The Provençal cousin of bouillabaisse, differing in two ways. First, it uses white fish only, no shellfish and no saffron, so the soup stays pale. Second, and crucially, it is thickened with aioli stirred in off the heat — the garlic mayonnaise acts as a liaison exactly as egg yolks do in crème anglaise. And as there: one boil and the sauce splits.
Your own work in that: 10 min.
- Aioli 20 min
- Broth 35 min
- Fish 12 min
- Liaison 10 min
Step by step
0 / 8 donePound the aioli in a mortar
Crush the garlic with the salt to a smooth paste, add the yolks and add the oil drop by drop, working constantly, until you have a very thick mayonnaise. Go genuinely slowly for the first two minutes — that is when the emulsion breaks most easily. Finish with the lemon juice. The aioli is made with raw yolks and the portion served on the toasts is never heated — for children, pregnant women and older people use pasteurised eggs.
Ingredients: 6 cloves garlic · 3 pcs egg yolks · 250 ml olive oil · ½ pcs lemon · 1 tsp salt
Thick enough for the pestle to stand — only that will thicken the soup.Fillet the fish, keep the bones
If you have whole fish, take off the fillets and skin them. Cut them into large 5 cm pieces and refrigerate. Keep the bones, head and fins — the broth comes from them, and without them the soup tastes of water and wine.
Ingredients: 2000 g cod or other firm white fish · 2 pcs leeks · 1 pcs fennel · 1 pcs onion · 1 pcs orange · 4 pcs thyme · 2 pcs bay leaves · 250 ml white wine · 1200 ml water · 2 tsp salt
Simmer the broth with bones and orange peel
Bring the bones, leek, fennel, onion, orange peel, thyme, bay, wine and water to the boil (about 5 minutes), skim, and simmer gently for 30 minutes, uncovered. The orange peel is the Provençal signature — it gives the broth a bitter citrus depth. Meanwhile boil the potatoes in salted water until tender (about 20 minutes).
Ingredients: 2000 g cod or other firm white fish · 2 pcs leeks · 1 pcs fennel · 1 pcs onion · 1 pcs orange · 4 pcs thyme · 2 pcs bay leaves · 250 ml white wine · 1200 ml water · 2 tsp salt
Orange peel and fennel — the Provençal signature.Strain and reduce the broth
Strain through a fine sieve, pressing the vegetables, and reduce to about 900 ml. Do not simmer the bones beyond half an hour — after that they give bitterness rather than flavour.
Ingredients: 2000 g cod or other firm white fish · 2 pcs leeks · 1 pcs fennel · 1 pcs onion · 1 pcs orange · 4 pcs thyme · 2 pcs bay leaves · 250 ml white wine · 1200 ml water · 2 tsp salt
Poach the fish in barely trembling broth
Add the fish pieces to the broth and cook 8 minutes with the surface barely moving. Lift the fish out with a slotted spoon and keep it warm, covered. A boil would shred the fillets.
Ingredients: 2000 g cod or other firm white fish · 2 pcs leeks · 1 pcs fennel · 1 pcs onion · 1 pcs orange · 4 pcs thyme · 2 pcs bay leaves · 250 ml white wine · 1200 ml water · 2 tsp salt
Temper the aioli with hot broth
Set aside three spoonfuls of aioli for serving, put the rest in a bowl and add the hot broth a ladle at a time, whisking. Gradual tempering is obligatory — aioli poured straight into the pot would scramble instantly.
Ingredients: 6 cloves garlic · 3 pcs egg yolks · 250 ml olive oil · ½ pcs lemon · 1 tsp salt
A ladle at a time, whisking throughout.Warm the sauce below boiling
Return the thickened broth to the pot and warm over the lowest heat, stirring, until it thickens and coats a spoon. Do not boil — the sauce grains and cannot be brought back.
Ingredients: 6 cloves garlic · 3 pcs egg yolks · 250 ml olive oil · ½ pcs lemon · 1 tsp salt
Assemble and serve with toasts
Arrange the potatoes and fish in bowls, pour over the sauce and scatter with parsley. Serve with toasts spread with the reserved aioli — dipped into the soup, in the Provençal way, rather than eaten separately.
Ingredients: 600 g potatoes · 12 pcs baguette · 3 tbsp parsley
Before you start
When the aioli breaks
Wash the bowl, add a fresh yolk and drip the broken mixture into it as you would oil. The emulsion rebuilds on the new yolk. The same rescue works for any mayonnaise.
Which fish
In the south of France monkfish is the usual choice, with sea bass or hake as alternatives. Away from the Mediterranean, cod, halibut or pike-perch are best. One condition: the fish must be white and firm — oily fish like salmon overwhelms the delicate sauce.
Eat it straight away
A yolk-thickened sauce will not survive reheating — it splits at the first attempt. The broth can be made a day ahead and the aioli in the morning, but combining and serving always happen at the same moment.
