Print this pageDate Added: 24-11-2006
There are many claims to the origin of bouillabaisse the well known and oh so French fish soup. Some historians will tell you that it was brought to France by Italians or Greeks. I prefer to believe that its origin began in the Marseille, Toulon and Calanques “Calanco” areas. Formerly a daily meal for fisherman who either cooked and ate it at sea, or after a days fishing, using all the pieces they would not be able to sell. They would add an assortment of fish pieces and rock fish to a pot of boiling sea water, together with potatoes, garlic and fennel and simmer until the liquids reduced into a wonderful broth, served with local toasted bread and cheese. Little did those early fisherman think that this stable diet would one day be served in some of the best Provencal restaurants and can demand a price of 50 Euros a bowl.
I have been privileged to experience the unique taste of bouillabaisse in Provence. The first was prepared by Madame Suzanne, the mother of my oldest and dearest friend Monique. While on a visit to her parent’s home not far from Toulon, I popped my head round the kitchen door to wish Madame Suzanne “Au revoir” as I left for a morning on the nearby beach. I understood from my somewhat limited French that I should not be late for lunch. My gaze was drawn to the large kitchen table which was literally alive with an assortment of fish; shellfish, flat fish, in fact many fish I did not recognise.
The bouillabaisse we consumed later that day in a shaded part of the garden, coloured and perfumed with an assortment of Mediterranean plants and flowers, to the chirping of the crickets, and washed down with a local co-operative rosé wine, which would not have given me much change from £10 in the UK, was truly an amazing experience.
The second most memorable bouillabaisse happened not long ago, and again in the same Provencal coastal region. A surprise luncheon held to celebrate the “certain age” of my French friend. The surprise took place at a small restaurant tucked away down a small track scented with sea spray and wild herbs. “Restaurant Bernard”, is a small establishment right on the edge of the sparkling crystal clear Côte d’Azur, a tiny cove with access to a handful of houses. The restaurant is so close to the sea one imagines being adrift on a luxury yacht, soothed by the gentle lap of the waves, while the smell of great food heightens ones senses. Again the bouillabaisse was out of this world.
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