Review of Good Eats: Waiter There’s A Fish In My Soup

This was the 5th straight Monday featuring a brand new episode of Good Eats. And out of all the shows, this one was the least appealing to me. The idea of a fish based soup, just doesn’t sound like Good Eats to me. But as a loyal Good Eats fan, I had to watch the episode anyway. The fish soup Alton makes is called Bouillabaisse. It is a French soup, that probably didn’t really originate in France. It involves several different types of seafood, served in fish stock. Typically a piece of baguette with a Rouille spread on it served along the soup.

Positively, Absolutely, Not Real Bouillabaisse | Click here for the recipe
To begin the soup, Alton starts with a fish stock, made from fish heads, tails, and bones. The stock doesn’t take that long to make, only about 25 minutes. Then the stew is made up of Cobia, Black Cod, lobster tail, and blue mussels along with some fennel, white wine, onion, parsley, tomatoes, orange peel, saffron, garlic, and cayenne pepper.

Sustainable Seafood
Alton says when it comes to choosing seafood, he goes for sustainable types. He gives a website to learn more about sustainable fish: http://www.seafoodwatch.org
This website is hosted by the Monterey Bay Aquarium. They recommend what seafood you should buy and what you should avoid. Fish that is to be avoided is usually done so either because it’s been over-fished or the methods used to fish for it are not good for the environment.

Rouille
As I mentioned in the beginning Alton makes a spread called a Rouille that goes onto of a slice of baguette. It contains a roasted red bell pepper, garlic, red chile, lemon juice, sea salt, and olive oil. This is probably the only thing I will make myself from this episode, as my wife wants to give it a try on some bread.

While far from being my favorite episode, it still was informative, with the information about sustainable seafood and the recipe to make the Rouille. That is the great thing about this cooking show. Because it’s a teaching show, even when the recipes don’t appeal to me, I can still become a better and more informed cook.

saffron