- 3 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large fennel bulb, finely chopped
- 1 small leek, white and pale green part only, thinly sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 4 ripe tomatoes, skinned, seeded, and chopped
- ¼ tsp saffron threads, soaked in 1 tbsp hot water
- 7 cups fish stock or bottled clam juice
- 3 tbsp brandy
- Grated zest of ½ orange
- 1 bay leaf
- ¼ cup dry white wine
- 2 lb (900g) mussels, scrubbed and debearded if necessary
- 1 lb (500g firm white fish fillets,cut into bite-sized pieces
- 12 large shrimp, peeled and deveined
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
- Parsley, chopped, to garnish
- Heat the butter with 1 tbsp of the oil in a large saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the fennel, leek, and garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes, or until the fennel is tender and pale gold.
- Stir in the tomatoes and soaked saffron and cook for 3 minutes. Stir in the stock, brandy, orange zest, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil and skim the surface. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 30 minutes.
- In a separate large saucepan, heat the remaining 1 tbsp oil with the wine over high heat until the wine boils. Add the mussels and cover. Cook for about 3 minutes, or until all the mussels have opened. Transfer the mussels to a bowl and strain the cooking liquid into the soup.
- Add the fish and shrimp to the soup. Simmer gently for about 5 minutes, until they are just opaque. Season with salt and pepper. Ladle into deep soup bowls and add equal amounts of the mussels to each.
- Sprinkle with chopped parsley, and serve hot.