Ingredients:
3 pounds whole freshwater fish
6 cups Golden Vegetable Stock or Chicken Stock, or bottled clam juice
2 cups dry white wine
6 black peppercorns
3 whole cloves
1 bay leaf
pinch of dried rosemary
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter
2 onions, finely chopped
8 ounces domestic white mushrooms, stems finely chopped, caps halved and sliced
3 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon garlic oil, optional
1/3 cup brandy
finely minced fresh parsley, for garnish
1 hard cooked egg, minced, for garnish
Instructions:
Madame Prunier, the French fish authority, says, "A matelote of river fish is a charming dish."
1. Fillet and skin the fish (or have your fishmonger do it). Cut the fillets into large pieces, and refrigerate. Clean the fish heads, tails, and frames, and place them in a heavy soup pot. Add the stock, wine, peppercorns, cloves, bay leaf, and rosemary. Bring quickly to a boil, then turn down the heat to medium-low and let simmer, uncovered, 25-30 minutes, pushing down on the fish bones with a wooden spoon several times. Strain the stock and discard all the solids. Season with salt and plenty of pepper. Pour the stock into a clean soup pot and heat until hot.
2. In a medium-size skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onions and saute until beginning to soften, about 3 minutes, or until translucent. Add the mushrooms and saute another 3 minutes. Sprinkle with the flour and stir in. Gradually add 1 cup of the hot stock, stirring to smooth any lumps, then stir in 1 more cup of the stock. Cook 3 minutes, or until thickened. Transfer the thickened mixture to the remaining stock in the soup pot. Stir until blended. Bring to a boil, them immediately turn down the heat so that the liquid simmers.
3. Add the fish filets and the garlic oil to the soup. In a small saucepan, warm the brandy over medium heat. Remove the brandy from the heat and ignite it. Wait until the flames subside, 1 minute or less. Pour the brandy over the fish. Cover the pot and simmer until the fish is just done, 10 to 15 minutes. Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with the minced parsley and egg.
Variations:
Meurette: Many people think that because common carp is relatively assertive in flavor, it does even better in a meurette, the red wine version of a matelote. Simply substitute dry red wine for the white.
Matelote Normande: Substitute hard cider for the wine and Calvados for the brandy. Omit the mushrooms, and saute 1 celery rib, 1 carrot, 1 peeled and cored apple, all diced, with the onion. Matelote Normande is especially wonderful with an assortment of any of the on-the-large-side sweet pan fish: bright sunfish such as pumpkin seed, bluegill, and so on. But it's also great with common carp, since they have an affinity for the sweetness in preparation.
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Whether you’re hosting a formal get-together or need a quick brunch idea, this book will spark your imagination and your appetite.
