Broudou bil hout (Fish soup)

[JuliaBalbilla]

Name of Recipe:  Broudou bil hout (Fish soup) (Tunisian)

Number of People: 2 as a main course or 4 as a first course

Ingredients:
25g olive oil
1 large onion, quartered
1 medium pepper, de-seeded and quartered
Garlic, to taste, peeled
Pinch saffron, pounded
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon harissa
Salt, to taste (be careful if you are making the stock with a bouillon cube)
500ml fish stock, water or court bouillon
1 preserved lemon, finely chopped
3 medium tomatoes, peeled and quartered
2 medium firm fleshed potatoes, cut into chunks
1 small bulb fennel, with leaves, chopped
650g mixed fish and seafood, skinned, boned, peeled etc and cut into small pieces, if necessary
A few sprigs parsley, finely chopped
A few sprigs coriander finely chopped

Preparation:
Add the oil to the TM and heat for 5 minutes / 100°C / Speed 1.
Add onion, garlic and pepper, and chop for 5 seconds / Speed 5.
Scrape down the sides of the TM bowl.
Add the saffron, cumin, cinnamon harissa and salt (if using) and cook for a further 5 minutes / 100°C / Speed 1.
Add the stock, preserved lemon and tomatoes and cook 10 minutes / 100°C / Speed Spoon.
Put the potatoes and fennel in the internal Steaming Basket and steam 10 minutes / Temp. Varoma / Speed 1.
Oil the Varoma Bowl and arrange the fish inside it.
Place the Varoma on the TM lid and steam 15 minutes / Temp. Varoma / Speed 1.
A minute before the end of the cooking time, add the parsley and coriander to the TM bowl.
Place the fish, potatoes and fennel in bowls and pour the sauce over them.

Photos:  See http://www.flickr.com/photos/34648965@N03/6321345309/in/photostream for a larger image.

Tips/Hints:  Serve with bread.

You can also add 2 tablespoons of capers, 2 tablespoons of caraway seeds and/or 1 teaspoon ground coriander. Use the juice of 1½ lemons instead of the preserved lemons and if you do not have any harissa, substitute it with 1 teaspoon paprika and ½ teaspoon Cayenne pepper.

Use a mixture of firm fish, eg monkfish, gurnard, bream or bass and some delicate fish, eg whiting, cod or haddock, together with small whole fish, eel chunks, squid, prawns or crabmeat.

[Bonsai]

This looks like a really tasty soup - thanks for posting 

[cookie1]

I've made a couple of fish soups over the years but can never bring myself to have them because of the smell of the fish stock. Stupid I know.

[JuliaBalbilla]

Thank you Bonsai! 

Cookie1, I am a vegetarian so don't eat fish but I cook it for my family.  I LOATHE the smell of fish, so I know what you mean.  However, I find that in the TM the smell doesn't permeate the kitchen as much as if cooked using conventional methods, and although I used a fish stock cube this time, you can always use vegetable stock. :-)

JB

[cookie1]

True JB. Will perhaps give it a try.

[Lellyj]

thanks JB, another lovely fish soup recipe for me to try!