seafood soups
All the soups made with shellfish or fish are found in this chapter except for chowders and bisques, which you’ll find. So if it’s clam chowder you’re looking for. But here you’ll find some favorites, such as the many different Italian zuppe di pesce or the memorable Provençal soupe de poisson. Here also are amazing if less familiar soups, ranging from a Peruvian seafood soup called parihuela to Thai Hot and Sour Shrimp Soup. What’s the rarest soup here? Probably the Niger River Fish Soup of the Songhai, which I ate on the banks of the river a few miles from Timbuktu. The tribesmen, believe it or not, told me how to make it, and now I tell you.
fish tea
This spicy-hot soup from Jamaica is called fish tea, a name that reflects British influence. (Any nonalcoholic drink or broth is called tea in Jamaica.) In the south of the country turbot is used, while on the northern shores snapper or parrotfish would be used, producing a thinner broth. The soup could also have pumpkin, okra, or spinners, which are elongated dumplings, added to it. [ Makes 4 servings ]
One 11⁄2-pound whole fish (such as red snapper, sea bass, or striped bass), filleted, fillets cut into 3 pieces each, carcass saved
3 large garlic cloves, lightly crushed
21⁄2 quarts water
1 small ripe plantain, cut into 1-inch slices
1 small sweet potato, left whole
1⁄2 green bell pepper, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
2 scallions, trimmed and chopped
1 small carrot, peeled and sliced 1⁄4 inch thick
1 small chayote, peeled and diced
1 small habanero chile, finely chopped
2 sprigs fresh thyme
1⁄4 teaspoon aniseed
1 tablespoon salt
1⁄2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1. Place the carcass of the fish in a large pot with the garlic, cover with the water, and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 1 hour without stirring, replenishing the water with up to a 1⁄2 cup if needed.
2. Discard the fish carcass and add the plantain and sweet potato. Cover and cook for 30 minutes, then add the bell pepper, onion, scallions, carrot, chayote, habanero, thyme, and aniseed and cook until the sweet potato is tender, about 1 hour. Remove the sweet potato, peel, mash, and set aside.
3. Increase the heat to high and once it reaches a near boil, reduce the heat to medium and add the fish fillets. Cook, stirring often but gently, until it begins to flake, about 5 minutes. Season with the salt and pepper. Return the mashed sweet potato to the soup, cook for 3 minutes, then serve.
niger river fish soup of the songhai
The Songhai, a West African people who live mostly in Mali and Niger, are the prominent ethnicity, along with the Tuareg, around the remote legendary town of Timbuktu. About five miles to the south of Timbuktu is a ferry landing on the banks of the wide Niger River. It was here while waiting for the six-car ferry to arrive from the distant shore that some Songhai men sitting under a tent offered us a fish soup they were making for themselves over an open fire. It was very kind of them, the soup was really delicious, and I decided then to try to replicate it. I didn’t get exact translations because of language difficulties, but here goes. The fish was a small river species in the carp family, but I use trout here because it’s easy to get. The fish also contained chopped chile leaves or potato leaves, but I’ve replaced them with parsley. The Songhai flavor their dishes with baobab, chile, peanuts, dried okra, and a mixture called gebu, which is a seasoning of onion flour and ground sesame seeds. We ate the soup with Tuareg bread, something like a two-inch-thick Arabic bread. [ Makes 4 servings ]
One 1-pound trout, gutted and cleaned, head and tail removed and saved, cut into 4 pieces
1 cup chopped fresh parsley
3 tablespoons gebu spice mix (see Note)
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
5 cups water
1⁄4 cup peanut oil
1. In a bowl, toss the fish pieces, including the head and tail, with the parsley, gebu spice mix, salt, and pepper.
2. In a saucepan, bring the water and peanut oil to a vigorous boil over high heat. Add the fish mixture and cook over high heat until the fish starts to fall off the bone, about 61⁄2 minutes in all. Serve hot.
Note: To make the spice mix known as gebu, mix together 41⁄4 teaspoons dried onion powder, 41⁄2 teaspoons powdered sesame seeds, and 1⁄2 teaspoon ground coriander.
ghana fish soup
Fishermen in Ghana will make a fish soup called nsaswia right on the shore where they land their boats. It’s a simple soup of cut-up fresh whole fish such as red mullet cooked with lots of scallions and superhot African bird chiles. Usually it is eaten with kenkey or banku. Kenkey is a kind of African tamale made with fermented fine corn meal steamed in a banana leaf, while banku is closer to a polenta. This soup is a bit more complex and uses the hot sauce known as kpakpo shito in the Ga language of Ghana. If you use three different types of fish for this soup it will taste more interesting. The red palm oil is a necessary ingredient for achieving an authentic African taste. It, as well as the dried crayfish, can be ordered on the Internet at www.jbafricanmarket.com or www.asiamex.com (click on “Nigeria”). Powdered dried shrimp can also be found in supermarkets in the Latino foods aisle. You will have more hot sauce than you need for this recipe, but it can be refrigerated for two weeks and is very nice with some grilled pork chops or beef steaks. I would serve the soup with cut-up pieces of flatbread. [ Makes 4 servings ]
For the hot sauce
2 medium tomatoes, peeled and chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
14 fresh or pickled red and/or yellow chiles
1⁄2 teaspoon salt
For the soup
4 small mixed fish pieces or steaks (about 1 pound), such as sea bass, black cod, or blue mackerel
Juice from 1 lime
1 large garlic clove, very finely chopped
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1⁄2 teaspoon salt to taste
1⁄2 cup red palm oil or walnut oil mixed with 1⁄2 teaspoon paprika
4 medium onions, 2 ground in a food processor and 2 thinly sliced
4 fresh red chiles (any kind), seeded and finely chopped
1 teaspoon tomato paste
4 ripe fresh tomatoes (1 pound), peeled, seeded, and ground in a food processor or 3 cups crushed canned tomatoes
2 teaspoons powdered dried crayfish or shrimp
11⁄2 cups water
1. To make the hot sauce, place the tomatoes, onion, chiles, and salt in a blender and blend for 30 seconds. Pour the mixture into a bowl and set aside for 15 minutes before using.
2. To make the soup, rinse the fish steaks. Lay them in a ceramic or glass pan and sprinkle the lime juice over them. Sprinkle the fish with the garlic, ginger, and salt and set aside in the refrigerator until needed.
3. In a large pot, heat the red palm oil over medium-high heat, then add the ground onions, chiles, and tomato paste and cook, stirring, until softened, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes and powdered dried crayfish or shrimp, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer, stirring, until soupy, about 15 minutes.
4. Add the water, increase the heat to high, and boil for 5 minutes. Add the fish, sliced onions, and 2 tablespoons of the hot sauce and turn the fish several times to coat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer gently until the fish is cooked and beginning to flake, about 15 minutes. Serve hot.
kainuu fish soup
This freshwater fish soup called kainuulainen kalakeitto is from Kainuu, a region of central Finland bordering Russia to the east. Kainuu is filled with many lakes and is a popular destination for hikers and fishermen. Although any mixture will do, the Finnish cook would typically use freshly caught salmon, perch, pike, or whitefish. The soup is at its best when eaten with fresh rye bread. You can also use saltwater fish if you like. [ Makes 4 servings ]
1 large yellow onion, quartered
6 allspice berries
6 cups water
2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
1 pound mixed boneless freshwater fish steaks or fillets, cubed
2 teaspoons salt
1⁄4 cup chopped fresh dill
1⁄4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 medium red onion, finely chopped
1. Place the yellow onion and allspice berries in a pot and cover with the water. Bring to a boil over high heat and boil until reduced to about 4 cups, about 18 minutes. Remove and discard the onion and allspice.
2. Bring the broth back to a boil, then add the potatoes and cook at a boil until almost tender, about 10 minutes. Add the fish and cook until it flakes, about 6 minutes. Season with the salt. Add the dill and parsley, stir, then serve with melted butter and raw onions at the table.
zuppa di pesce siracusana
A zuppa di pesce should need no introduction—it’s Italian fish soup, literally. But there are hundreds of different ones, each usually associated with a particular town. Syracuse is one of the most beautiful cities in Sicily, and it is home to clear waters and delicious fish dishes, such as this soup. The gastronomy of Syracuse has been notable since ancient times. Even the Greek philosopher Plato weighed in, criticizing the city’s culinary excesses. Syracuse was also home to one of the earliest known writers on food, Archestratus, whose only surviving work is a gastronomic poem written about 348 bc called the Hedypatheia, which can be translated as “Life of luxury.” In the twelfth century, the famed Arab geographer al-Idrisi wrote about the richness of the city’s port and markets.
As with all fish stews, the more kinds of fish you use, the better. Choose what is locally obtainable and fresh if the fish I call for are not available. Some possibilities are wolffish (ocean catfish), hake or cod, grouper or red snapper, redfish (ocean perch), monkfish, dog-fish, shark, sea bass, halibut, striped bass, dolphinfish (mahimahi), pompano, bluefish, and ocean pout (ling). [ Makes 4 servings ]
2 pounds mixed fish fillets or steaks (see above), cut into large chunks
1 medium-size onion, thinly sliced
11⁄2 stalks celery, finely chopped
1 ripe tomato (about 10 ounces), peeled, seeded, and chopped
3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1 bay leaf
3 cups water
1 cup dry white wine
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
4 slices toasted or grilled Italian bread
1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
2. Place the fish, onion, celery, tomato, parsley, garlic, and bay leaf in a large, deep casserole. Add the water, wine, and olive oil, then season with salt and pepper and stir well to mix everything. Bake until the fish is about to flake when tugged with a fork, 45 minutes, and serve with some toasted or grilled bread in each serving bowl.
zuppa di pesce alla catanese
Olives, sultanas (golden raisins), and capers are an ingredient mix typical of the baroque style of cooking one finds in Catania, Sicily’s second biggest city, on the eastern side of the island in the shadow of the active volcano Mount Etna. As is true with any fish stew, the more kinds of fish you can manage to put into it, the more delicious it will be. For the “mixed fish” below, try to use at least three of the following: bluefish, mackerel, Spanish mackerel, kingfish, mahimahi, yellowtail, and shark. If not, use some other types of dark-fleshed fish. Serve with slices of Italian bread fried in olive oil. [ Makes 4 servings ]
1⁄4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 large garlic cloves, lightly crushed
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1⁄4 cup golden raisins
1⁄4 cup capers, drained and rinsed
8 imported green olives, pitted and cut in half
1⁄4 cup finely chopped fresh basil
1⁄4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
2 salted anchovy fillets, rinsed and chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
41⁄2 cups water
1 pound redfish (ocean perch), scorpion fish, sculpin, rockfish, or red snapper
1 pound mixed fish (see headnote)
1. In a large flame-proof casserole (preferably an earthenware one in which case use a heat diffuser), heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, until it begins to turn light brown, less than 1 minute. Discard the garlic and reduce the heat to medium. Add the tomato paste, stir it into the olive oil, then add the raisins, capers, olives, basil, parsley, anchovy fillets, salt, and pepper, then 1⁄2 cup water, and cook until the liquid is reduced by half or a little more, about 10 minutes.
2. Add the fish, cover with the remaining 4 cups of water, and increase the heat to high. Cover and cook until the more delicate fish begin to break up, about 12 minutes. Serve immediately.
zuppa di pesce dalle isole eolie lipari
The Aeolians are an archipelago of volcanic islands off the north coast of Sicily and a popular summer destination for Italians and other Europeans. Lipari, the largest of the islands, although still small, is the one that most people visit. I arrived in the early 1980s with my then wife and remember it well, because we had chosen to visit during the hottest summer in a hundred years. The food of the island is simple, as we can see from this fish soup, almost more a stew than a soup. The wine is the cook’s choice. I’ve heard Sicilians say never and I’ve heard others say always. So I use a little in this recipe to thin the broth. The chile was not in the original dish that I had in Lipari, but I like it in moderation. [ Makes 4 servings ]
11⁄2 pounds boneless mixed fish cubes (at least 4 kinds of fish, such as swordfish, mahimahi, yellowtail, halibut, cod, monkfish, sea bass, striped bass)
1⁄2 cup (8 tablespoons) extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup dry white wine
4 large garlic cloves
One 28-ounce can diced San Marzano plum tomatoes
1⁄2 cup water
1⁄4 teaspoon red chile flakes
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1⁄4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1. In a ceramic or glass bowl, toss the fish with 3 tablespoons of the olive oil, 1⁄4 cup of the wine, and 1 chopped garlic clove and marinate in the refrigerator for 1 to 3 hours.
2. In a pot, heat the remaining 5 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat with the garlic until sizzling. Add 1⁄2 cup of the wine and the tomatoes and cook until the wine is reduced somewhat, about 10 minutes. Add the remaining 1⁄4 cup wine, the water, chile flakes, salt, and pepper and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the marinating fish and its marinade and cook until the fish can be pulled apart with a fork, about 8 minutes. Add the parsley, stir, and serve.
dubrovnik fish soup
The proximity of the Italian peninsula and the naval dominance of the Venetian Republic during the Middle Ages resulted in a perceptible Italian culinary influence along the Dalmatian coast, where fish soups are called brodet in Serbo-Croatian, from the Italian brodetto. But this recipe came to me by way of someone calling it čorba in Serbo-Croatian, deriving not from the Italian, but from the Turkish and Arabic words for “soup.” It’s a simple fish boil called riblja čorba na Dubrovaćki naćin, a soup from Dubrovnik that will be successful if you have a good mix of fish—at least four kinds—and a whole fish from which to make the broth. A good mix would be a whole striped bass, a whole porgy (scup), and fillets from bluefish, cod, and salmon. You can ask the fishmonger to fillet the whole fish for you, keeping the heads, tails, and carcass for the broth. [ Makes 4 servings ]
31⁄2 pounds mixed fish steaks, pieces, heads, and carcasses (see headnote), including whole fish, cut-up
12 cups water
Sea salt to taste
1 cup dry white wine
1 large ripe tomato (about 1⁄2 pound), peeled, seeded, and chopped
1⁄4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
1⁄4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
10 black peppercorns
1 bay leaf
1⁄2 cup medium grain rice
1. Place the fish heads, tails, and carcasses (1 to 11⁄2 pounds altogether) in a large pot and cover with 6 cups of the water. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce the heat to medium, and simmer for 1 hour. Strain the fish broth through a cheesecloth-lined strainer and set aside. You should have about 1 quart of fish broth.
2. Pour the remaining 6 cups of water into a large pot and season with sea salt. Add the wine, tomato, parsley, oil, peppercorns, and bay leaf and bring to a rolling boil. Add the fish pieces to the boiling broth one at a time and boil furiously for 8 to 10 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, bring the reserved fish broth to a boil in a medium-size saucepan, add the rice, and cook until almost tender (times vary, so keep checking). Turn the heat off.
4. Put about 2 or 3 tablespoons of the cooked rice in each individual serving bowl using a slotted ladle. Ladle the fish with broth over the rice and serve.
fish soup from the island of simi
Theo Tsakkis and his wife Constance own the Nireas Restaurant in the walled old town of Rhodes, on the island of the same name in the Aegean Sea. They took over the restaurant from Theo’s parents some years ago, but it was when Theo’s mom was in the kitchen that I learned how to make this extraordinary fish soup called psarosoupa, which only means “fish soup.” It is sometimes called kakavia and is a dish Greeks like to call their bouillabaisse, even though it is quite different than the French fish stew. This method of making fish soup is typical of Simi, one of the Dodecanese islands north of Rhodes, very near the Turkish coast, whence the Tsakkis family migrated some years ago.
The first thing one noticed in the Nireases’ kitchen is that the fish were extremely fresh—some still moving. Three kinds of fish—red gurnard, porgy, and red mullet—were cooked in water with diced potato, chopped onions, celery, garlic, salt, and pepper. Once the fish were cooked they were removed from the broth and set aside. The broth was boiled for several minutes with some rice, then egg whites were beaten with lemon juice and stirred into the broth for a few seconds. Normally egg yolks are used, but here it was the whites, which made the whole preparation lighter.
I learned much about the cooking of the islands of Simi and Rhodes from Theo and Constance, who are food enthusiasts, preservers of culinary tradition, and owners of one of very few authentic Rhodiot restaurants in the old town (the rest serve typical Greek tourist food). [ Makes 4 servings ]
1 pound boiling potatoes (such as Yukon Gold), peeled and cut up
1 medium onion, quartered and separated
2 celery stalks, quartered
1⁄2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
6 large garlic cloves, crushed
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
3 quarts cold water
2 whole porgies (scup), sea bass, or striped bass (about 2 pounds in all), scaled, gutted, and cleaned
1⁄2 pound red snapper, red mullet, or fresh sardines (about 3 red mullet, 1 red snapper, or 4 sardines), scaled, gutted, and cleaned
3⁄4 pound haddock, halibut, sea bass, or cod fillet
1⁄2 cup long grain rice
3 large egg whites
Juice from 1 lemon
1. Put the potatoes, onion, celery, olive oil, garlic, and salt and pepper in a large pot and cover with the water. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat so the boil is gentle, and cook for 1 hour. Check the seasoning.
2. Bring the soup to a furious boil again and add the porgies. After 2 to 3 minutes, add the remaining fish and cook at a full boil, removing the fish with a spatula before they break up, 6 to 8 minutes. Reduce the heat of the soup to a gentle boil. The whole fish can be served as is, or you can fillet them by carefully pushing the meat off the bones. Set the fish aside and keep warm.
3. Boil the broth for another 2 minutes. Add the rice and cook until softened, 10 to 12 minutes. Beat the egg whites with the lemon juice. Add a little of the broth to the egg white mixture, continue beating, and then add to the broth in the pot and cook for 2 minutes, stirring once or twice.
4. Ladle the broth with some of the rice into each soup bowl, without the potatoes, celery, and onion, and serve the fish separately, or let each diner put his or her own mixture of fish into the bowl. Save the remaining broth with its vegetables and process into a purée to use as the base for a creamy soup.
arab gulf fish soup
This savory fish soup called shūrbat al-samak (fish soup) is popular along the Arabian side of the Persian Gulf (called the Arabian Gulf by Arabs). It is seasoned with a spice blend known as kabsa, which also gives its name to a famous dish of Saudi Arabia, kabsa bi’l-dajāj, a chicken, rice, and nut dish spiced with kabsa. The kabsa mix is described in the note below; you can use the excess spice to season some chicken for baking. The soup is also seasoned with the dried limes known as loomi (lūmī), popular in the cooking of Iran, Iraq, and the Persian Gulf states. They give prepared dishes a delightful tang and are available through www.daynasmarket.com. Aleppo pepper is available at www.penzeys.com and many Middle Eastern markets. The shrimp of the Gulf are famous, and before oil (the black kind) was discovered, the shrimpers and pearl divers of the Gulf drove the economies of the small, then-poor sheikdoms. [ Makes 4 servings ]
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
6 tablespoons finely chopped onions
1⁄2 teaspoon Aleppo pepper
5 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 large ripe tomato, peeled, seeded, and chopped
Pinch of saffron, crumbled
1 dried lime (loomi or lūmī) or 1 small fresh lime left in a 200ºF oven for 3 hours
1 teaspoon kabsa spice mix (see Note)
6 cups fish broth
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1⁄4 pound large shrimp, shelled
1⁄2 pound red snapper or sole fillet, cut in half
2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro (fresh coriander)
1. In a pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat, then cook the onions, stirring, until translucent, about 2 minutes.
2. Add the Aleppo pepper, garlic, tomato, saffron, loomi, and kabsa mix and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the fish broth and tomato paste and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the shrimp and fish, reduce the heat to low, and cook until the shrimp are firm and orange-red and the fish is ready to flake, about 5 minutes. Correct the seasoning and serve with a sprinkle of cilantro.
Note: To make the kabsa spice mix, blend together 11⁄2 teaspoons cayenne pepper, 3⁄4 teaspoon ground cumin, 3⁄4 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1⁄2 teaspoon ground cloves, 1⁄2 teaspoon black pepper, 1⁄2 teaspoon ground cardamom, 1⁄2 teaspoon ground nutmeg, 1⁄2 teaspoon ground coriander, and, optionally, 1⁄2 teaspoon ground dried lime (loomi) or fresh and very finely chopped lime zest.
algerian fish and barley soup
In Algeria there is a unique fish soup called shūrbat al-hūt (fish soup) made with barley that is traditionally served during the month of Ramadan after the sun has set. It is a quite popular soup. Some favorite fish of the Algerians are grouper, bream, dogfish, skate, monkfish, and sea bass. Of course, the more kinds of fish you use, the better. [ Makes 6 to 8 servings ]
1 pound ripe tomatoes, cut in half, seeds squeezed out, and grated against the largest holes of a standing grater down to the peel
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 medium boiling potato (such as Yukon Gold), peeled and diced
2 medium carrots, peeled and diced
2 small leeks, white and light green parts only, split lengthwise, washed well, and chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
5 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 bouquet garni, tied together in cheesecloth, consisting of 1 small bunch fresh parsley, 1 small bunch cilantro (fresh coriander), 1 sprig fresh thyme, and 2 bay leaves
2 quarts water
Salt to taste
2 pounds mixed fish steaks, such as red snapper, sea bass, grouper, and mackerel, cut up into 2-inch pieces
1⁄2 pound (1 cup) pearl barley
1⁄4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon tomato paste mixed with 1⁄2 cup water
1 tablespoon harīsa
1⁄4 teaspoon ground cumin seed
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1⁄2 teaspoon (2 pinches) saffron threads, crumbled
1⁄4 teaspoon dried mint
1. In a large pot, add the tomatoes, onion, potato, carrots, leeks, celery, garlic, and bouquet garni, then pour in 1 quart of the water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium and cook until the vegetables are softened, about 30 minutes. Pass the vegetables through a food mill and return them to the pot, discarding the bouquet garni, or process in a blender.
2. In another pot, bring the remaining 1 quart water, lightly salted, to a boil and add the fish. Reduce the heat to medium, cook for 4 minutes, then remove the fish with a skimmer and set aside, saving the fish broth.
3. Add the fish broth to the vegetable broth along with the barley, olive oil, cayenne, tomato paste mixture, harīsa, cumin, black pepper, saffron, and mint. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to medium and simmer until the barley is tender, about 1 hour. Add hot water to the soup in 1⁄2-cup increments if it is becoming too thick. If the barley takes longer than an hour to cook, continue adding hot water to keep it soupy.
4. Meanwhile, remove the skin and bones from the fish, if any. Once the barley is tender, return the fish to the broth and cook until the fish begins to flake, about 5 minutes. Serve immediately.
vietnamese fish and dill soup
The Vietnamese have different classes of soups —some for breakfast, some for before a meal, some for snacks. Those soups known as canh are light and usually served as a first course. Diners spoon it out of a big bowl into smaller individual bowls and eat with rice on the side. This canh is quite fragrant, delicious, and light—perfect before something more substantial (although of course you are not required to follow it up in this way). The soup can be garnished with dill sprigs, fish sauce (nuoc mam), or a hot Vietnamese chile and garlic sauce available in a Vietnamese market, although it’s extremely easy to make your own (see box). [ Makes 4 to 6 servings ]
1 tablespoon peanut oil
1 pound catfish, red snapper, perch, or redfish fillets, cut into 11⁄2-inch squares
3 tomatoes, peeled and cut into eighths
1 medium onion, cut into eighths
2 tablespoons fish sauce (nuoc mam or Thai fish sauce)
2 quarts water
2 celery stalks, finely julienned into matchsticks
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 to 6 fresh dill sprigs
Vietnamese Hot Sauce (optional)
1. In a large pot, heat the peanut oil over medium-high heat, then add the fish and cook, stirring immediately and then constantly, until it turns white on all sides, 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, onion, and fish sauce, reduce the heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Pour in the water and bring to a near boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the onions are softened and the fish cooked, about 8 minutes.
2. Stir in the celery, dill, and black pepper. Cook for 1 minute, then ladle into one big bowl or individual bowls. Garnish each with a dill sprig and serve with fish sauce and Vietnamese Hot Sauce, if desired, on the side.
seaweed soup with egg and dried anchovies
I found this Malaysian-Chinese soup so intruiging when I stumbled across it on a blog called Little Corner of Mine by Ching, a mother of two young children living in Colorado Springs, Colorado. It’s obviously an overwhelmed-mom-friendly kind of recipe, but at the same time has very appealing tastes for adults. If you expect your children to eat this soup, do as Ching does by starting them very early. Ching says she makes it for her husband and kids because “it’s delicious and the seaweed is nutritious.” You can probably find the dried seaweed in the international aisle of your supermarket, and maybe the dried anchovies, too, but if not, you can certainly order them from either www.asianmerchant.com or www.templeofthai.com. Ching also uses Swanson’s chicken broth and makes it with meatballs instead of the dried anchovies. [ Makes 2 to 4 servings ]
4 cups water
1⁄4 cup (about 1⁄2 ounce) dried anchovies
1 teaspoon chicken bouillon granules or 1 teaspoon chicken base paste or 1 chicken bouillon cube
31⁄2 × 2 × 1⁄4-inch stack dried seaweed, separated, or 2 large dried seaweed sheets (nori)
1 large egg, beaten
1⁄2 teaspoon salt or more to taste
In a pot, bring the water to a boil over high heat, then add the anchovies and chicken bouillon granules and stir until the granules are completely dissolved. Add the seaweed and stir to break it up, cooking for 1 minute. Add the egg and stir in a figure-8 pattern until the egg is solid, like egg-drop soup, about 1 minute. Taste the soup, season with salt, and serve hot.
korean piquant fish soup
This recipe, called maeun-tang, is a hot spicy fish soup boiled with lots of koch’ujang (Korean chile paste), koch’ukaru (Korean chile powder), and various vegetables. As its main ingredient, fresh- or seawater fish is cut into several pieces and boiled, in one of its variations, with ground beef and green vegetables, such as watercress, as well as garland chrysanthemum. In other variations cooks might add onion, radish, chile, crown daisy, garlic, and sometimes pumpkin and bean curd. The soup is also seasoned with garlic and soy sauce. Although you could use chicken or fish broth as a foundation, I use water and I still get a magnificent soup. Both the Korean chile paste and the powdered chile can be ordered from www.kgrocer.com or www.ikoreaplaza.com. Popular fish for this dish include red snapper, sea bass, yellow corvina, codfish, croaker, pollack, and even freshwater fish like carp and trout. A whole fish of about 11⁄4 pounds is ideal. I’ve used blue mackerel and black cod, which made an excellent soup. In addition, shellfish such as crabs, clams, and oysters can be added to provide a bit of sweetness and a nice counterpoint to all the piquancy. Serve with steamed rice if desired. [ Makes 5 servings ]
6 cups water
6 tablespoons Korean chile paste (koch’ujang)
2 tablespoons Korean chile powder (koch’ukaru)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1⁄2 cup thinly sliced daikon (white radish)
1⁄2 yellow summer squash, thinly sliced (1 cup)
3 green finger-type chiles or green jalapeño chiles, cut on the bias and seeded
2 whole fish (about 2 pounds in all), such as red snapper, corvina, porgy, or blue mackerel, heads and tails removed and saved for making fish broth, fish scaled, gutted, and cut into 1-inch steaks
12 littleneck clams
4 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 scallions, cut on the bias
5 fresh parsley sprigs, leaves only
1 tablespoon salt
In a large pot, bring the water to a boil over high heat. Add the Korean chile paste, Korean chile powder, and soy sauce and let the water return to a boil. Add the radish, yellow squash, and half the chiles, reduce the heat to medium, and cook for 4 minutes. Add the fish, clams, and garlic and cook until the fish begins to flake and the clams open, about 8 minutes. Add the remaining chiles, the scallions, parsley, and salt and cook for another 2 minutes. Serve hot.
alexandre dumas’ shrimp and tomato soup
Alexandre Dumas the elder (1802–1870) is best known as the author of The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo, but he himself believed he would be remembered for his Grand dictionnaire de cuisine (Great Dictionary of Cuisine), an ABC of culinary matters and recipe descriptions. This recipe appealed to me because of his introduction to it. I’ll let Dumas speak for himself: “I love the sea. It is essential not only to our pleasure but to our very basic happiness. When I have not seen it for a long time I am seized with an irresistible longing, and on any convenient pretext I take the train to Trouville, Dieppe, Le Havre. This time I went to Fécamp. I had no sooner arrived than I was invited on a fishing party. I know these fishing parties. You don’t catch anything, but on the way home you buy a fish for dinner.”
This time he bought shrimp and made this potage à la tomate et aux queues de crevettes as part of a multicourse dinner he prepared, including lobster à l’amércaine. The soup is best served with a crunchy French baguette on the side. [ Makes 6 servings ]
Salt
8 cups water
2 slices lemon
2 bouquets garni, wrapped in cheesecloth, consisting of several fresh sprigs each parsley, basil, thyme, and tarragon, and 1 bay leaf
1⁄2 pound large shrimp (about 24)
1⁄4 cup (1⁄2 stick) unsalted butter
31⁄2 pounds ripe tomatoes, cut in half, seeds squeezed out, and grated against the largest holes of a standing grater down to the peel
3 medium onions, thinly sliced
1 large garlic clove, finely chopped
1 teaspoon beef glaze (beef base)
1⁄2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 cups beef broth
1. In a large pot, salt the water and bring it to a boil with the lemon and 1 bouquet garni over high heat. Add the shrimp and boil for 2 minutes, then remove the shrimp, shell them (if not shelled already) and set aside. Discard the lemon slices and bouquet garni but save the cooking water.
2. In another pot, melt the butter over medium heat, then add the tomatoes, onions, garlic, and remaining bouquet garni and cook, stirring, until the liquid has evaporated a bit and the onions are softened, about 15 minutes. Pass this mixture through a food mill or purée in a blender, then return to a clean pot.
3. Add the beef base (glaze) and pepper and return to medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until it is thick and dense, about 12 minutes. Add the beef broth and 1⁄2 cup of the reserved shrimp cooking water. Bring to a boil over high heat, add the shrimp, immediately turn the heat off, let sit 1 minute, and serve.
soupe de poisson
This is the famous fish soup of Provence, and the original behind bouillabaisse. Soup fish, that is, those that disappear into a broth and are not actually eaten in any identifiable form, were used exclusively for the fish soups that are today found all along the small ports of Languedoc and Provence. This recipe is typical of Marseilles. In restaurants, soupe de poisson is ubiquitous, and some restaurant chefs use a chinoise, a small green orange preserved in brandy, to flavor the broth.
As with all fish soups and stews, a proper soupe de poisson requires a good mix of fish, such as a 11⁄2-pound striped bass, a 11⁄2-pound redfish, a small mackerel, and a few pieces of eel without the skin. In any case, there should be a minimum of four fish, preferably with heads (they provide so much flavor), and at least one of the fish should be an oily variety such as eel, bluefish, striped bass, kingfish, yellowtail, Spanish mackerel, blue mackerel, or mackerel. Ideally, since the fish are used for flavoring the broth and not eaten individually, you can get fish carcasses and heads from your fishmonger. [ Makes 4 to 6 servings ]
1⁄4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 leeks, white part only, split lengthwise, washed well, and finely chopped
1 small fennel bulb and stalks, finely chopped
21⁄2 quarts cold water
3 to 4 pounds whole fish (choose 4 from those mentioned above), cleaned and each cut into 3 pieces
1 pound ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and finely chopped
1 tablespoon tomato paste
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
Bouquet garni, tied in cheesecloth, consisting of 12 sprigs each fresh parsley and thyme and 1 bay leaf
1⁄2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Pinch of saffron threads, crumbled
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 teaspoon freshly grated orange zest or one 10-inch-long strip orange zest
1 teaspoon brandy or cognac
3 ounces vermicelli, broken in 3 pieces
1⁄4 recipe Sauce Rouille et Croûtes
1⁄4 pound Gruyère cheese, freshly grated
1. In a large, deep, flame-proof casserole or earthenware soup pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat, then add the onion, leeks, and fennel and cook, stirring occasionally, until wilted, about 6 minutes. Add the water, fish, tomatoes, tomato paste, garlic, bouquet garni, cayenne, and saffron, season with salt and black pepper, and stir again. Bring to a boil and let boil for 45 minutes. Add the orange zest and brandy and boil for another 8 minutes; the fish will have disintegrated at this point.
2. Remove from the heat and pass the broth through a food mill, discarding all the vegetables and fish that do not pass through on the first several turns of the food mill, or process in a blender.
3. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil, salt abundantly, and add the vermicelli. Cook until very al dente and drain.
4. Return the fish soup to the casserole, bring to a gentle boil, add the vermicelli, and cook for 5 minutes. Ladle into individual serving bowls with a heaping tablespoon of sauce rouille and 1 or 2 croûtes, if desired. Serve with the grated cheese. Refrigerate any leftover sauce rouille.
Note: Normally the cook chooses either the vermicelli or the bread as the garnish, but I like them both.
parihuela
It’s a mystery why this soup is not better known. It is, very simply, one of the world’s great seafood soups. I would not call it a chowder or a gumbo; it’s a soup. And although there might a temptation to call it a Peruvian bouillabaisse, that would be accurate only insofar as this and the French dish are both magnificent; their ingredients are entirely different. The South American chiles called for here have a floral bouquet, even in their dried state, that lends a unique flavor to the soup, which you might not be able to create with the typical Mexican-type chiles found in our supermarkets. Here are Internet sources for them: try www.penderys.com and www.worldspice.com. This recipe is derived from the parihuela served by Isabel Quispe Aquino, who has a stall called Cevichería Restaurante Isabel in the market at Chorrillos, a seaside district of Lima. Her parihuela is often called the best there is. [ Makes 6 servings ]
3 pounds fish head and carcass (preferably) or 3⁄4 pound chowder fish scraps
10 cups water
4 teaspoons salt and more as needed
16 mussels
8 littleneck clams, washed well
1⁄2 cup vegetable oil
2 medium onions, chopped
4 large garlic cloves, crushed
3 tomatoes (about 1 pound), peeled, seeded, and chopped
2 tablespoons hot paprika
1 tablespoon ají panca en pasta (sun-dried red chile paste)
3 dried ají mirasol (sun-dried yellow chiles) or whole dried red chiles (see headnote)
1 teaspoon fresh oregano or 1⁄2 teaspoon dried
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 bay leaf
3⁄4 cup dry white wine
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro (fresh coriander)
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
6 small fish fillets (about 11⁄2 pounds), such as red snapper, flounder, fluke, or sole
10 ounces medium shrimp, shelled
10 ounces squid, cleaned, skin removed, and cut in rings, with tentacles
8 sea scallops
10 ounces shelled and cooked lobster meat, crayfish meat, or crab meat
Juice from 1⁄2 Key lime or 1⁄4 regular lime
2 scallions, chopped for garnish
1. In a large pot, cover the fish head and carcass with the water and 3 teaspoons of the salt, bring to a boil over high heat, then boil furiously for 20 minutes. Add the mussels and clams and boil until they open, 5 to 10 minutes. Remove the mussels and clams and set aside. Turn the heat off, strain the broth through a strainer, and reserve the broth.
2. In another pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat, then add the onions and garlic and cook, stirring, until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes, paprika, ají panca, whole dried chiles, oregano, pepper, and bay leaf and cook, stirring, for 4 minutes. Reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Add the reserved fish broth, the wine, soy sauce, cilantro, and parsley and stir. Check the seasoning and add 1 teaspoon salt unless already salty enough. Add the fish fillets, shrimp, squid, scallops, and cooked mussels and clams, bring to a boil over high heat, then boil until the fish is about to fall apart, about 5 minutes; 1 minute before the fish look like they’re going to fall apart, add the lobster meat. Serve immediately with a few drops of Key lime juice and the scallions.
sweet pepper and fish soup from almería
One travel writer described the city of Almería in Andalusia, where this fish soup called caldo con pimientos de Almería originated, as the “most African of Spanish towns.” He referred, of course, to North Africa and its Muslim sensibilities, which we see reflected today especially in Almería’s architecture. This fish soup has at its base salsa de patatas, potato sauce. Mero (grouper) is very popular along the coast, as popular as mutton is in the hills. A local proverb goes, “among the meats, mutton, among the fish, grouper.” If grouper is unavailable, you can use halibut, sea bass, or red snapper in this stew. Traditionally, the fish would be served separately from the broth as a second course. [ Makes 4 servings ]
2 large red bell peppers
5 cups cold water
1 tablespoon salt
1 boiling potato (about 1⁄2 pound), peeled and cubed
1⁄2 pound grouper, halibut, sea bass, red snapper, or redfish (ocean perch) fillets or steaks without bones
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
2 large garlic cloves
2 teaspoons hot paprika
Pinch of saffron threads, crumbled
1 medium tomato, peeled, seeded, and chopped
1 cup beef broth or water
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1. Preheat the oven to 425ºF.
2. Place the bell peppers in a baking pan or tray and roast until the skins blister black on all sides, about 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and once they are cool enough to handle, remove the skins, stems, and seeds. Slice or chop and set aside.
3. Put the water in a pot with the salt and bring to a boil. Add the potato and boil for 12 minutes. Remove the potato with a slotted spoon and set aside. Add the fish and boil for 2 minutes. Remove the fish with a slotted spoon and set aside. Save the fish-potato broth.
4. In a mortar, pound the cumin seeds with the garlic, paprika, and saffron into a paste. Add the tomato and a few cubes of reserved potato and transfer to a food processor or blender (or continue pounding with a pestle) and process until smooth; while the processor or blender is running or you are pounding, add the beef broth or water. The sauce should be homogenous. Whisk in the olive oil in a slow stream, as if you were making mayonnaise.
5. Return the remaining potato cubes to the reserved fish-potato broth and bring to a boil. Add the red bell peppers and cook for 10 minutes over medium-high heat. Strain this broth through a fine-mesh strainer and pass the vegetables through a food mill back into the broth. Add the reserved fish and the contents of the food processor to the broth and heat gently. Serve hot.
algerian fish soup
This soup, called shūrba bahrīya, is best made with strong fish, the kind you might use if you were making Soupe de Poisson, this being the Algerian version. When one sees this kind of velouté in Algerian dishes, you can bet it is a French influence. A typical fish for such a soup would be dogfish, a small shark sometimes available in fish stores on the East Coast of the United States. Its Algerian Arabic name is similar—kalb al-bahr, or seadog—but, curiously, this shark bears no resemblance to a dog at all. The best fish to use for this soup would be three of the following: dogfish, sardine, Spanish mackerel, blue mackerel, mackerel, mahimahi, yellowtail, grouper, mako shark, swordfish, and, in a pinch, salmon.
The cubeb pepper (Piper cubeba L.) called for in the ingredient list is a pungent and bitter spice made from the dried berries of a tropical vine. In the Middle Ages, cubeb pepper from southern West Africa was traded to Europe as an ersatz black pepper when the real thing was scarce. If you are interested in trying this spice, a small quantity can be ordered from www.adrianascaravan.com. Using a food mill, as called for here, is much easier than pushing the fish through a strainer, so consider a purchase if you don’t already have one. [ Makes 4 servings ]
1 pound fish steaks (3 kinds, see headnote)
4 ripe tomatoes (about 2 pounds), peeled and cut in half
1 medium onion, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
Bouquet garni, tied with kitchen twine, consisting of 10 sprigs cilantro and 10 sprigs fresh parsley
2 teaspoons salt and more to taste
4 cups water
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper and more to taste
1⁄4 teaspoon cubeb pepper (optional)
3 ounces vermicelli, broken into 1-inch lengths (yielding 1 cup broken)
1. In a large pot, add the fish, tomatoes, onion, celery, bouquet garni, and 2 teaspoons salt. Cover with the water. Bring to a boil over high heat and boil, stirring occasionally, until the fish flakes, 8 to 10 minutes. Pour the contents of the pot into a colander or strainer set over another pot or deep bowl. Remove and discard the bouquet garni and any fish bones.
2. Pass the fish and the contents of the pot through a food mill twice and discard any solid matter that does not pass through, or process in a blender. Return the fish purée to a clean pot. Add the olive oil, tomato paste, black pepper, and cubeb pepper, if using, and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and boil until tender, 8 to 9 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, if necessary, and serve hot.
sopa leão velloso
There are bars in Rio de Janeiro that specialize in this rich and spicy seafood soup typically made with whole grouper and shellfish. One normally makes the broth with the head of the grouper, but as whole grouper are so hard to find outside of Florida I’ve adapted this recipe so that you can make the soup without the whole fish. The taste will still be true to the original. This recipe is adapted from Margarette de Andrade’s Brazilian Cookery: Traditional and Modern. Skip Step 1 if you’re not using a whole fish. [ Makes 4 servings ]
One 2-pound whole fish or 1 pound grouper or cod fillet
10 cups water or fish or crab broth
1 tablespoon salt or more to taste
Bouquet garni, wrapped in cheesecloth, consisting of 1 celery stalk with leaves, 3 fresh parsley sprigs, 4 cloves, and 10 black peppercorns
1⁄2 pound medium shrimp, with their shells
12 littleneck clams, washed well
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 plum tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped
3 scallions, trimmed and chopped
1⁄2 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
2 large garlic cloves, crushed
2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro (fresh coriander) leaves
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1⁄2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1⁄2 pound cooked crab meat, picked over
1⁄2 pound cooked lobster meat, cut up into small pieces
1⁄2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1. Complete this step if using a whole fish. Gut, scale, and clean the fish. Remove the head and slice the fish into 1-inch-thick steaks. Set the fish steaks aside in the refrigerator until needed. Place the fish head in a large pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat, add the salt and bouquet garni, reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 11⁄2 hours. Strain the broth, discarding the fish head and bouquet garni. Return the broth to the cleaned pot.
2. Start with this step if using prepared fish broth. Place the bouquet garni in the fish broth (not necessary if you’ve completed Step 1). Bring the broth to boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes. Bring the broth back to a near boil over high heat, then add the shrimp, in their shells, and cook until orange-red, about 2 minutes. Remove the shrimp with a skimmer, remove the shells, devein if necessary, and set the shrimp aside in the refrigerator. Discard the shells. Keep the broth at a gentle boil.
3. Add the clams to the fish broth and cook, covered, until they open, 5 to 8 minutes. Remove from the broth and when they are cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the shells and reserve with the shrimp in the refrigerator. Discard any clams that remain firmly closed. Strain the broth through a cheesecloth-lined strainer to remove any particles or sand, then return to a clean pot.
4. In a nonstick skillet, heat 3 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium-high heat, then add the tomatoes, scallions, parsley, garlic, cilantro, coriander, and cayenne and cook, stirring frequently, until the vegetables have softened a bit, about 4 minutes. Transfer the vegetables to the seafood broth.
5. In the same nonstick skillet, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil over high heat, then cook the fish steaks until light golden on both sides, turning only once, 4 to 5 minutes. Pull the meat off the bones with a fork and discard the skin and bones. Break the fish into smaller pieces and add to the broth. Add the reserved shrimp and clams and the crab and lobster to the broth. Season with the black pepper, correct the salt, if necessary, and cook over medium heat until all the seafood is heated through, about 5 minutes. Serve hot.
razor clam soup
I can guarantee you that you will not find a recipe for razor clam soup anywhere else. Razor clams are rare, although they do occasionally appear in fish stores on both the East and West Coasts. When they do, buy them. Buy tons of them, because they are a rare treat and make for some very fine eating. There are several species of razor clam, so called because they look identical to a barber’s straight razor. In Italian the razor clam is known as cape longhe or cannolicchi, and this recipe from Venice is called cape longhe a la capuzzina. The razor clam most likely to be sold in this country is the Atlantic version, distinguished by its scientific name Enis directus. There is a species from the West Coast, called the jackknife clam (Tagelus californianus), but it is not commercially viable. All you need to know is that they’re called razor clams and should be soaked in cold water to cover with a little baking soda before using, just as you would with any clam. Some restaurants leave the clams in their shells, but for less messy eating, remove them. [ Makes 6 servings ]
3 pounds razor clams
3⁄4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1⁄4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
3 large garlic cloves, very finely chopped
6 slices Italian bread, fried in olive oil until golden
1. Wash and rinse the clams well or soak them in cold salted water.
2. In a large flame-proof casserole or stockpot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat, then add the parsley and garlic and cook, stirring, until sizzling. Add the drained clams and cook, covered, until the shells open and the meat becomes firm, about 8 minutes. Remove the clams from their shells and arrange in a soup tureen or individual soup bowls. Pour the juice from the casserole over the clams and serve with the fried bread.
oyster soup
Plump fat oysters stewed in a tomato broth seasoned with basil or parsley, anchovies, and chile make this Italian minestra di ostriche a real treat for the oyster lover. The pasta used is a tiny seashell shape called conchigliette piccole no. 46 (or De Cecco brand no. 53). If it’s not available from your Italian market it can be ordered it from the Barilla, Delverde or De Cecco companies, three huge Italian pasta-making firms whose products are in every supermarket in Italy and the United States. In its place you may use any tiny tubular pasta suitable for soups. [ Makes 4 servings ]
1⁄4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
6 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil or parsley leaves
2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
41⁄2 cups crushed tomatoes or tomato purée
1 pound shucked oysters with their juice (about 14 to 18 oysters)
4 salted anchovy fillets, rinsed and chopped
1⁄2 teaspoon red chile flakes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
6 ounces (about 1 cup) conchigliette piccole no. 46 (Delverde) or no. 53 (De Cecco)
1. In a pot, heat the olive oil with the basil and garlic over medium heat, stirring, then turn the heat off once everything has been sizzling for about 2 minutes.
2. Add the tomatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, until much of their liquid has evaporated, about 15 minutes. Add the oysters, anchovies, and chile flakes and season with salt and black pepper. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook until the oysters have shrunk a little and their edges are curling up, 8 to 10 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of abundantly salted water to a boil and add the pasta when the water is rolling. Drain when al dente and stir into the oysters. Salt if necessary and serve.
mussel and fish soup from lecce
The beautiful baroque city of Lecce in the province of Apulia sits in the middle of the heel of the Italian boot, also known as the Salento Peninsula, surrounded on three sides by the sea, which is just a few kilometers away. Market fish, although limited in variety, are extremely fresh, and that means Salentine fish cookery is quite enticing. In Lecce, a popular lunch dish is a simple soup of mussels and fish known as a brodetto, which means “broth.” [ Makes 6 servings ]
1⁄2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 fish heads or 1 pound fish pieces for soup or 1 fish carcass
2 onions, chopped
4 large garlic cloves, sliced
3 cups dry white wine
4 pounds mussels, debearded and washed well
1 pound red snapper or perch fillet, cut into 1⁄2-inch pieces
1 pound tomatoes, cut into 1⁄2-inch pieces
Salt (optional)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
6 slices toasted Italian bread
1. In a large pot or casserole, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat, then add the fish heads or soup fish pieces or fish carcass, the onions, and garlic and cook, stirring and crushing the fish, until a crust has formed on the bottom of the pot, about 10 minutes. Pour in the white wine to deglaze the pot, scraping the bottom. Continue to boil for about 10 minutes.
2. Strain the broth through a fine mesh strainer and return it to the pot after wiping it clean with a paper towel. Bring to a boil and add the mussels, cover, and cook until the mussels just start to open, about 3 minutes. Add the fish and boil, covered, for 2 minutes, then add the tomatoes, cover, and cook for 2 minutes more. Taste the broth and salt if necessary. Finally, add the mint and basil, cook 1 minute, and serve in a bowl over toasted bread.
zuppa di aragosta trapanese
This is a soup whose description I had for years but for which I could not find a recipe anywhere. Finally, I cobbled together some more descriptions, reinterpreted my insufficient notes, and wrote this recipe so that it yields exactly what I once ate in western Sicily—a magnificent soup of lobster from the port of Trapani on the island’s west coast. For a really rich flavor you will want to have already prepared lobster broth, but you can start with water, too. [ Makes 8 servings ]
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
16 slices French baguette
5 large garlic cloves, finely chopped, reserving 1 clove for rubbing on the bread
1 small onion, finely chopped
1⁄2 bunch fresh parsley, leaves only, chopped
2 pounds tomatoes, canned or fresh, peeled and chopped
2 teaspoons salt or more to taste
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper or more to taste
One 23⁄4-pound live lobster (or two 11⁄2-pound live lobsters)
6 cups lobster broth (Step 2) or water
1⁄4 teaspoon saffron, crumbled slightly
1. In a large skillet, heat 1⁄2 cup of the olive oil over medium heat, then cook the bread slices until golden on both sides, about 1 minute. Remove and set aside. Once they are cool, rub both sides of each bread slice with a cut garlic clove. (When you’re done rubbing the bread, finish chopping the clove and set it aside with the others.)
2. In a large flame-proof casserole, heat the remaining 1⁄2 cup olive oil over medium-high heat, then add the garlic, onion, and parsley and cook, stirring frequently, until softened and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes, salt, and pepper and stir to mix well. Reduce the heat to low and cook until it forms a denser sauce, about 15 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, cut up the live lobster. (If you are squeamish about that, then steam the lobster for about 8 minutes first in a few inches of water in a large pot, then continue.) Remove the claws and arms and crack them so much of the meat is exposed. Separate the tail from the body and split it down the middle with a chef’s knife. Split the body in half and crack and separate. Place the lobster body, legs, and any tomalley and coral into a large metal bowl and crush them a bit with a mallet (do this gently by pressing rather than hammering so you don’t make a huge mess with splattering lobster parts). Place in the casserole with the tomato sauce and cook for 1 hour over low heat. Set the claws, arms, and tail aside in the refrigerator until needed.
4. Drain the contents of the casserole through a colander or strainer and return the liquid to a large pot. Turn the heat to medium and, as the soup begins to bubble slightly, add the reserved lobster claws, arms, and tail and cook until the lobster meat can be extracted easily, about 20 minutes. Remove all the lobster from the soup and set aside until cool enough to handle. Remove all the meat from the shells with a lobster pick and return the meat to the soup with the lobster broth and saffron. Cook over medium heat until the broth is flavorful, adjusting the seasoning if necessary, about 10 minutes. Serve in individual bowls with the fried bread.
hot and sour shrimp soup
This simple, light soup from the central and southern regions of Thailand, where freshly caught shrimp are plentiful, is called tom yam gung (also transliterated in several other ways). It is a name some version of which you are likely to have seen on a Thai restaurant menu, and it literally means “boil mix shrimp.” You’ll be thrilled to discover how easy it is to capture its very fresh taste from four main flavors—hot, sour, sweet, and salty. But there are several things you’ll need to do for your soup to be memorable. First, use fresh shrimp with their heads, if at all available, and cook them as briefly as possible (if using defrosted shrimp the same rule applies). Second, use fresh ingredients if possible. And third, don’t let the lime juice boil.
This soup can be made with ingredients other than shrimp, such as chicken, fish, or mushrooms. Some cooks use a combination of fresh and dried chiles, usually a good amount of prik kee nu (literally, mouse-dropping chiles, and also known as scuds or bird’s-eye chiles) and fresh chiles such as prik kee fa, literally, “sky pointing chile,” sold in American supermarkets as “Thai chiles.” Thai fish sauce can be found in the international aisle of supermarkets. The more exotic ingredients listed below can be replaced with the substitutes I suggest, or you can order them on the internet at www.adrianascaravan.com and www.friedas.com. [ Makes 4 servings ]
1 pound fresh jumbo shrimp with their heads, heads and shells removed and reserved, or 1⁄2 pound (about 10) headless defrosted jumbo shrimp, shells removed and reserved
4 cups lightly salted water
25 dried bird’s-eye chiles or 3 dried finger-type red chiles
2 tablespoons Thai fish sauce
2 lemongrass stalks, tough outer portion removed, finely chopped or thinly sliced
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh ginger or galangal
3 kaffir lime or lemon leaves, thinly sliced, or 1 teaspoon freshly grated lime zest
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
4 tablespoons coarsely chopped cilantro (fresh coriander) leaves
10 fresh or canned straw mushrooms
1. Rinse the heads and/or shells of the shrimp. Place the heads and/or shells in a medium-size saucepan and pour the water over them. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes. If using fresh shrimp heads, small rivulets of orange-colored oil from the tomalley will rise to the surface—this is where so much flavor resides. Strain the broth through a strainer, pressing out liquid from the heads and/or shells with the back of a wooden spoon. Return the broth to a clean pot. Slightly bruise the bird’s-eye chiles in a mortar with a pestle. (This is not necessary if using dried finger-type chiles.)
2. Bring the shrimp broth to a boil over high heat and season with 1 tablespoon of the fish sauce. Add the bird’s-eye chiles, lemongrass, ginger, and lime leaves to the broth. Stir, cook for 1 minute, add the shrimp, and cook over medium-high heat for 2 minutes more. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until they turn pink-orange and are firm, another 2 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, in a soup tureen, stir together the remaining 1 tablespoon fish sauce, the lime juice, and cilantro. Pour the soup into the tureen and stir. Add the straw mushrooms and let sit for 2 minutes. Serve hot.
indonesian yellow squash and shrimp soup
Recipes For This Indonesian Dish, called sayur labu kuning, do not always call for tiny dried shrimp to be crushed into the soup. If you decide to use them, you can find them in the international aisle of most supermarkets, or they and the shrimp paste can be ordered from www.adrianascaravan.com. I’ve adapted this recipe from one by Kokkie Blanda, an Indonesian cook, and have replaced the dried shrimp with tiny fresh shrimp. Use any Vietnamese or Thai fish sauce; it is available in the same supermarket aisle as the dried shrimp. See the difference between coconut milk and coconut cream. [ Makes 4 servings ]
For the spice paste
6 small shallots, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped lemongrass
4 fresh red finger-type chiles
1 teaspoon palm sugar (preferably) or granulated sugar
1⁄2 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
1⁄2 teaspoon shrimp paste
For the soup
1 teaspoon fresh lime juice
1 pound yellow summer squash, cut into 3⁄4-inch cubes
4 cups coconut milk
1 cup water
1⁄4 pound very small shrimp (120 count to a pound) or 2 ounces dried shrimp (about 11⁄2 cups), both washed and ground coarsely in afood processor
1 cup coconut cream
1 tablespoon Thai or Vietnamese fish sauce
Salt to taste, if necessary
3⁄4 cup small fresh basil leaves
1. To make the spice paste: in a mortar or food processor, mash or process the shallots, lemongrass, chiles, sugar, white pepper, and shrimp paste together until mushy or a paste is formed.
2. To make the soup: in a bowl, sprinkle the lime juice over the squash and leave for 10 minutes.
3. In a pot, bring the coconut milk and water to a boil over high heat, then stir in the shrimp and the spice paste. Add the marinating squash to the pot and cook until the squash is half cooked, about 3 minutes. Pour in the coconut cream and stir a few times, then add the fish sauce and salt if needed, cover, and turn the heat off. Let rest for 30 minutes. Just before serving, add the basil, then serve hot.
scallop and ginger soup
This Chinese soup is perfect as a light start to dinner. It’s very simple to make, and the sea scallops used are shaved into thin slices that make for a delightful sensation when they slip down your throat. [ Makes 6 servings ]
4 cups water
1 ounce fresh ginger, peeled and finely julienned, peel reserved
11⁄2 teaspoons soy sauce
2 scallions, trimmed and finely sliced on the diagonal
21⁄2 cups fish broth
1⁄2 teaspoon cornstarch
1⁄2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Salt and freshly ground white pepper
12 sea scallops, cut in 1⁄8-inch-thick disks
1. In a pot, bring the water and julienned ginger to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium, add the soy sauce and scallions to the pot, and let the broth begin to bubble gently on the edges.
2. In another pot, add the fish broth and ginger peels and bring to a boil over high heat. Remove from the heat and let steep for 15 minutes. Remove the peels with a skimmer.
3. In a small bowl, mix the cornstarch with 1 tablespoon of water and the lemon juice and stir into the fish broth. Pour the fish broth into the ginger broth and season with salt and pepper. Over low heat, add the scallops and poach for 8 minutes; the surface of the broth should be completely still and not bubbling or shimmering. Serve hot.
korean clam soup
This simple soup is called jo gae gook in Korean. Its preparation involves almost nothing, yet it is beautiful to look at, and its tastes are hot and straightforward. This is a recipe I would recommend to someone who has never made Korean food, not only for its ease but also because it tastes very Korean and will be as good as anything you could order in a restaurant. The red chile powder can be found in Korean markets or ordered from www.kgrocer.com or www.ikoreaplaza.com. [ Makes 2 to 4 servings ]
1 quart water
10 small littleneck or Manila clams, cleaned
3 ounces firm tofu, diced
1 scallion, white and green parts, cut on the bias in 1⁄4-inch slices
2 teaspoons salt
11⁄2 teaspoons ground Korean chile powder or 1 teaspoon ground red chile
1 fresh red jalapeño chile, chopped
Pour the water into a pot with the clams. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium, and just after the clams open up, take them out with a slotted spoon. Add the tofu, scallion, salt, and ground chile powder and cook for another minute. Put the clams back in the pot and heat for 1 minute. Serve, garnished with the fresh chopped chile.
crab and miso soup
This is a very satisfying soup, and I imagine it would be perfect on a cold day in the late fall. I use the more familiar Japanese word miso here for the fermented soybean paste, but in Korean the preparation is called toenjang, and this soup is toenjang jiege keh. One can find the soybean paste in Korean markets, but the Japanese miso may be more handy. In any case it’s available, as is Korean chile, through Internet sources such as www.orientalpantry.com. This recipe comes from Kwangju, where cooks like salty and spicy-hot food. To prepare the crab, clip off the big claws, wash the body, turn it over so the bottom is facing up, and pull out the gills and inner viscera and discard (follow the instructions). Wash the crab again and crack the claws. The soup is served with the crabmeat in its shell. Serve in individual bowls with rice on the side if desired. [ Makes 4 servings ]
2 cups water
2 tablespoons miso (fermented soybean paste; toenjang in Korean)
1⁄2 pound firm tofu, cut into 1⁄2-inch cubes
2 live blue crabs or 1 Dungeness crab (about 13⁄4 pounds), prepared for cooking as described in headnote
1 small zucchini, peeled and cut into 1⁄8-inch-thick slices
1 small onion, thinly sliced
2 large garlic cloves, crushed
1 tablespoon Korean chile powder or 2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
One 1⁄8-inch slice fresh ginger
2 teaspoons salt
1 fresh red jalapeño chile, sliced
1. Put the water and miso in a pot over low heat. Cover and simmer until blended, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the tofu and cook for 5 more minutes.
2. Add the crabs, zucchini, onion, garlic, chile powder, ginger, and salt and bring to a boil over high heat. Turn with a spoon several times to blend the ingredients, being careful not to break the tofu. Cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer until the crabs are cooked through and the vegetables are softened, 25 to 30 minutes. Garnish with the fresh red chile and serve hot.