serves
6–8
prep
10 minutes
cook
25 minutes
difficulty
Easy
serves
6–8
people
preparation
10
minutes
cooking
25
minutes
difficulty
Easy
level
Ingredients
- 2 kg mixed fresh fish fillets and shellfish, such as red mullet, small sole, gurnard, monkfish, sea bass, cuttlefish, baby octopus, prawns, mussels, squid or scallops
- 8 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
- 1 large onion, finely sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped, plus an extra clove for rubbing
- 1 kg ripe tomatoes, skinned and chopped, or 2 x 400 g tins of chopped tomatoes
- 125 ml red wine
- a little chopped fresh chilli
- 3 tbsp finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
- ½ tsp fennel seeds
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 6–8 slices good bread, slightly stale or toasted
Instructions
If your fishmonger hasn’t already done so, clean and prepare your chosen fish and shellfish. Cut fish fillets into large chunks and seafood into manageable pieces.
Put the oil, onion and garlic into a large pan and fry briefly. Add the tomatoes, wine, chilli, parsley and fennel seeds and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 15 minutes.
Start to add large pieces of fish to the sauce first and those that will take the longest to cook, such as monkfish, then add the more tender fish such as red mullet or sole and the shellfish, ending up with the mussels if using. Cook for 5 or so minutes, or until the fish is cooked and the mussels have opened. Rub the bread with garlic, drizzle with olive oil, and put each slice in the bottom of a deep soup bowl. Pour over the soup. Buon appetito.
Cook's Notes
Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.
