If you journey to the south of France, you will mostly likely travel through Marseilles.  This is the largest city in the region and features an airport as well as other transport options to get you moving around the Provence.  However, be sure not to go through Marseilles without stopping at a good restaurant and trying bouillabaisse.  This legendary French soup has its origins in Marseilles and the city is particularly famous for the preparation of bouillabaisse.

 

Bouillabaisse is truly an ancient dish as it claims its origins from the ancient Greeks who settled the area that is now Marseilles in 600 BC.  At that time it was known as kakavia and served in a more simple form than today's manifestation.  Interestingly enough, a dish similar to bouillabaisse actually makes an appearance in Roman mythology when Venus feeds it to Vulcan in order to put him to sleep so that she can sneak around with Mars.

 

Fisherman in Marseilles, who wanted a satisfying dish to eat when they returned to port after long hours fishing on the open seas, developed the modern bouillabaisse.  In order to make a good living, the fisherman did not want to eat the fish that they could sell for a premium price so they created bouillabaisse using the less desirable fish such as common rockfish and shellfish.  The original seasonings that these early fisherman added were simply garlic and fennel while they cooked the fish in boiling seawater.

 

Bouillabaisse became more popular with upper class diners in the 19^th century when Marseilles started to develop and prosper.  Bouillabaisse became much more refined as restaurants and hotels used fish stock instead of boiling water to create the soup.  They also added saffron, which is one of the defining and special flavors of the dish.  

 

Currently, if you travel to Marseilles to sample bouillabaisse you will find it flavored with garlic, orange peel, basil, bay leaf, fennel and saffron.  In traditional bouillabaisse you will find at least three types of fish including scorpionfish, sea robin and European conger.  However, you will find variations on this recipe which feature gilt-head bream, monkfish, turbot, silver hake, mullet, sea urchins, mussels, spider crab, small drabs, octopus or lobster.  Lastly, most bouillabaisse contains celery, tomatoes, potatoes, leeks, onions or other types of vegetables. 

 

Making bouillabaisse is a long and arduous process.  The soup is boiled for a long time as the fish and ingredients are added one by one in order to add layers of flavor to the dish.  For this reason, it is not usually prepared for any less than 10 people at once.  The thought is that the more people you have gathered to enjoy the food, the more types of fish you can add to it and the more flavorful the soup will be.  After all the simmering and adding of ingredients is finally over, the soup is served with a unique presentation.  The broth is spooned into individual bowls and served with small slices of bread floating on top.  The bread is usually spread with rouille, which is a mayonnaise-like spread that is made from garlic, olive oil, saffron and cayenne pepper.  The fish and vegetables are strained out of the broth and arranged attractively on a large platter so that diners can portion them out and eat them in a civilized manner with a knife and fork. 

 

Bouillabaisse is yet another French food that has gained popularity around the world and is served in many other countries with variations according to the types of fish and vegetables that are available.  For this reason, no trip to the south of France is complete without a stopover in Marseilles to try the traditional bouillabaisse that started it all.