From start to finish, this recipe is authentic. It is a labor of love, starting with charming a fishmonger into giving/selling you fish frames and heads, to seeking the best fish and shellfish you can find and, if you can find it, foraged wild fennel. It isn’t difficult, but each step is important. To keep the pace easy, I make the fumet a day or two in advance. Sometimes I make the soupe de poisson, the base of the bouillabaisse, the day before the grand finale, as well as the rouille, leaving only the marinating and final cooking of the fish and shellfish, potatoes and toasts for the day of serving.

Yield: Serves 8

INGREDIENTS

For the fish stock (fumet):

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 large yellow onion, quartered through the stem end

3 cloves garlic, crushed or sliced

2 carrots, peeled, and each cut into 3 or 4 pieces

1 leek, separated into white and green parts, and each part cut into 2 or 3 pieces

3 pounds fish heads and frames from non-oily fish such as sea bass, halibut, snapper, cod, ling cod or sole (no gills)

6 fresh flat-leaf parsley sprigs

4 fresh thyme sprigs

8 black peppercorns

3 cups dry white wine

8 cups water

For the rouille:

2 dried cayenne or other hot chiles, seeded

6 to 8 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

Large pinch of coarse sea salt

2 large pinches of fresh breadcrumbs

1/2 teaspoon saffron threads soaked in 1 tablespoon boiling water

2 egg yolks, at room temperature

1/2 to 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 baguette, cut on the diagonal into pieces about ¼-inch thick

For the soupe de poisson:

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil

11/2 pounds mixed whole small rockfish, cleaned, but heads and tail intact, gills removed (non-oily varieties)

3 cloves garlic

2 onions, quartered

6 medium russet potatoes, sliced ½-inch thick

2 bay leaves

8 sprigs fresh thyme

8 large, very ripe tomatoes, chopped

8 cups fish stock

2 cups water

6 8-inch pieces of wild fennel stalk or substitute cultivated

1 teaspoon sea salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 cup grated Gruyere cheese (for serving)

For the fish and its marinade:

4-6 wild fennel stalks with fronds or use stalks and fronds from 2 bulbs of fennel

1 pound halibut fillets or monkfish, about ¾ inch thick, cut into 1-inch chunks

½ pound each of 4 different fish fillets such as sole, sea bass, red snapper, true cod, black cod or rockfish (non-oily)

Pinch of saffron

2 tablespoons pastis or Pernod (optional)

1 teaspoon fennel seeds

½ teaspoon sea salt

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

For the potatoes:

3 pounds medium boiling potatoes such as red or white rose, peeled

2 teaspoons sea salt

The grande finale:

10-12 cups soupe de poisson

Boiling water (or fish stock)

11/2 pounds prawns, heads and tails intact

2 pounds mussels

2 pounds clams, pre-soaked for 2 hours in cold water and drained

DIRECTIONS

To make the fish stock:

In a Dutch oven or large stockpot over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil. When it is hot, add the onion, garlic, carrots and the white part of the leek and sauté, stirring, until softened, 2 to 3 minutes.

Add the fish heads and frames and cook, stirring, until they begin to turn opaque, about 3 minutes.

Add the leek greens, parsley, thyme, peppercorns, wine and water and bring to a boil, skimming off any foam that rises to the surface with a slotted spoon. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for about 30 minutes.

Remove from the heat. Using a slotted spoon or wire skimmer, remove and discard the large solids, then strain the stock through a chinoise or a colander lined with cheesecloth.

The fumet can be used immediately, or let it cool, cover and refrigerate for up to 1 day or freeze for up to 3 months.

To make the rouille:

In a mortar with a pestle, grind the chiles to a powder. Add the garlic and salt and crush and pound until a paste forms. The sharp edges of the coarse sea salt will act like little knives.

Add the breadcrumbs, the saffron and its soaking water and incorporate into the paste. Scrape the paste into a bowl. Add the egg yolks and whisk until the mixture has thickened.

Whisking constantly, slowly add the olive oil, a drop at a time, whisking until the mixture emulsifies and forms a mayonnaise-like consistency. Add only as much of the oil as needed to achieve a good consistency.

Cover and refrigerate the rouille until serving, up to two days in advance. The toasts (see below) can be made the day of serving.

To make the soupe de poisson:

In a large soup pot over medium heat, warm 4 tablespoons of the olive oil. Add the fish, garlic and the onions. Cook, stirring, until the fish begin to change color and fall apart, about 5 minutes.

Add the potatoes, bay leaves and thyme and continue cooking, stirring to prevent burning, about 5 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes.

Add 4 cups of the fish stock and scrape up any bits on the bottom of the pan. Add 4 more cups of the fish stock (reserve the remainder), the water, fennel, salt and pepper. Cover and cook over low heat until the potatoes are tender, about 30 minutes.

Position a food mill over a bowl. Pour the contents of the soup pot into the mill and puree. Discard the debris in the mill. Rinse the mill thoroughly and purée the soup a second time.

Transfer to a saucepan and taste, adjusting seasoning with more salt or pepper if needed. The consistency should be like that of a good tomato soup, not too thick, not too thin. If it is too thin, heat over medium high to reduce to the desired thickness. If too thick, add a little more fish stock. Set aside. You should have 10 to 12 cups.

For the fish and its marinade:

Lay the fennel fronds and the fennel slices on a platter. Place the fish on them in a single layer. Sprinkle them with the saffron, pastis or Pernod if using, fennel seeds and salt, and then drizzle over the olive oil. Turn several times to coat.

Let stand at room temperature, lightly covered for 2 hours and up to 3 hours.

For the toasts:

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees.

Place the baguette slices on a baking sheet and brush them with olive oil. Bake until dry, but not browned, turning once, 15 to 20 minutes. Set aside.

For the potatoes:

Place the potatoes in a large stock pot and cover with cold water.

Over medium high heat, bring to a boil. Add the salt, reduce the heat to medium, cover and cook until the potatoes are easily pierced with a fork, about 30 minutes.

Drain, return to the pot and cover to keep warm.

For the grande finale:

In a large, wide pot, bring the soupe de poisson to just below a boil.

Lay in the halibut and any other thick pieces of fish. Add boiling water to cover if needed. Cook 6 minutes. Add the thinner fish fillets, pushing them gently into the soup, adding a little more water or stock if needed, and cook just until opaque, about 4 minutes.

Remove the cooked fish gently to a platter and cover to keep warm. Add the clams, prawns and mussels. Cook the prawns only until opaque, about 2 minutes.

Remove the prawns and add them to the platter of fish. Continue cooking the clams and mussels just until they open, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove to the platter with the fish.

Bathe the platter of seafood with a ladle of soup. Cover lightly with aluminum foil to keep warm.

To serve:

Ladle about ½ cup of the soup broth into each of 8 warmed soup bowls.

Add to each a piece of toast topped with a dollop of the rouille and a handful of the grated Gruyere.

Serve immediately with the remaining toasts and rouille.

When the first course has been finished, arrange the fish and shellfish on a serving platter and bring to the table, serving some of each kind to each person.

Ladle more soup into each bowl and pass the rouille and toasts and the bowl of boiled potatoes.