Easy homemade traditional French fish soup "Bouillabaisse"

The fish must be cleaned of scales and guts but with the skin on. To make the fumet, use the head of the red mullet, the prawn heads and the bones and head of the hake. Put everything in a pot, add a litre and a half of water and leave to cook over low heat for 20 minutes. Then, strain and set aside.

Pour two tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil into a saucepan. Fry half an onion and half a chopped leek. Add salt and fry for 5 minutes.

Then add the chopped garlic, stir and add diced ripe tomatoes. Stir well. Cut the red mullet and half a hake loin into several pieces. Add them to the vegetables.

Season with salt and pepper. Add a sprig of fresh parsley, a bay leaf, fresh thyme, aniseed, ground fennel, dried savoury and saffron. Add the fumet until all the ingredients are covered.

Cut the butter into small cubes and spread them around the pan. Add the rest of the remaining olive oil. Let it simmer for 15 minutes. Add the peeled prawns with 4 minutes left.

Taste the stock and correct the salt if necessary. Before serving, strain it.

Put the fish tray on one side to present it at the table. Place some croutons at the bottom of the dish. Serve a few spoonfuls of soup.

To eat, serve the soup with a few fish pieces in the middle. Enjoy!