Cornish bouillabaisse

Ingreadient

• 4 tbsp olive oil, plus extra to drizzle
• 2 leeks, finely sliced
• 1 fennel bulb, finely sliced and fronds reserved
• 4 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tbsp tomato purée
• Pinch saffron, steeped in a splash warm water
• Handful basil leaves, plus extra to garnish
• Finely grated zest and juice 1 orange
• 100ml pernod or noilly prat vermouth
• 500ml fish stock
• 2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
• 1kg live mussels, cleaned (discard any that are still open)
• 4 gurnard fillets, skin on, halved
• 250g shell-on prawns
• Sliced sourdough, toasted, to serve
• 3 medium free-range egg yolks
• Squeeze lemon juice
• 1 garlic clove
• 1 tsp dijon mustard
• 200ml sunflower oil
• 2 pinches saffron, steeped in 1 tbsp hot water

Instruction

1. To make the aioli, put the egg yolks in a food processor with the lemon juice, garlic, mustard and a good pinch of sea salt. Whizz until just combined then, with the motor still running, pour the oil slowly in through the funnel in a fine, slow stream until all of it is incorporated and emulsified. Gently stir the steeped saffron into the mayo until it has a burnished golden hue (or the colour ‘tarky’, as I know it). Taste for seasoning and reserve in the fridge.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large lidded saucepan over a medium heat, then add the leeks, fennel and garlic. Fry until softened, then add the tomato purée and stir gently for 2-3 minutes. Add the steeped saffron and water, basil, orange zest and juice, pernod/vermouth, fish stock and chopped tomatoes, then simmer for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Add the mussels to the sauce, cover the pan with the lid and cook for 5-6 minutes until they open. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside in a bowl.
4. Transfer the sauce to a food processor or blender and whizz until smooth, then pour the sauce back into a large clean pan and simmer uncovered for 8-10 minutes until reduced.
5. Meanwhile, remove most of the mussels from their shells, reserving a few in their shells for garnish (3 per person). Season the sauce with salt and pepper, then put the gurnard fillets, skin-side up, in the sauce along with the prawns and cook gently for 3-4 minutes until cooked through. Finally, add the cooked mussels and mussels in their shells back to the pan to warm through.
6. Divide the bouillabaisse among bowls (3 in-the-shell mussels per person) and finish off with a few extra basil leaves, the reserved fennel fronds and a drizzle of oil. Serve with toasted sourdough and the aioli.