I cannot stress how much I love this dish. I first tasted it over the summer at Renata’s house. Since then, I have made it a bunch of times, from Séné to Högmarsö and changed a few details here and there. Renata is the mother of one of my best friends and to my eyes, she is a cooking goddess. So when I got permission to post this recipe, I was thrilled. Marmite dieppoise is great for making in large quantities (fact: I have never made this for less than 15 people) and your guests will be going back for seconds and thirds — I guarantee it — so think big! I made this again during the Christmas holidays in Brittany, helped by various members of my family, young and old. I hope you will enjoy this as much as we did. All credit goes to Renata, (even my grandma said it was lighter than she thought it was going to be). Thanks for spreading the deliciousness!
Ingredients: (for 4 people)
2 carrots, chopped finely
1 large celery stick, chopped finely
1 leek, chopped finely
1 large onion, chopped finely
2 tomatoes, chopped finely
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1 handful parsley, chopped
Pepper (NO salt, the fish makes this recipe very salty already)
500ml water
20cl crème fraîche (or double cream for UK people)
500g mussels, cleaned
250 g shrimps, shelled
Lots of butter
Any dry white wine
250g salmon filets
250g cod filets
250g scallops
250g sole filets (you can also add monkfish if you like, or any other fish that grabs your fancy)
Instructions:
This recipe is not difficult to make, but it needs time, so if you want this for dinner then start cooking during the afternoon.
In a large cooking pot (“marmite” in French), melt some butter and add the vegetables (carrots, celery, leek, onion and tomatoes). Make sure you have chopped them SUPER finely: you’re going to blitz them together later on.
Once nicely sautéed and golden (10-15 minutes), add a cup of wine. Then add the curry powder, crushed fennel seeds, paprika and pepper. Once the wine has evaporated, add the 500ml of water and let simmer for 15 minutes.
In another pot, melt some more butter and add the mussels and 150 ml of wine. Cook for 3 minutes (or until the mussels open). Take the mussels out and remove them from their shells. Put the mussels to one side. Save the wine you used to cook them in and add it to the vegetable pot (yum). Wait for the vegetable mixture to boil down again (about 20 minutes, turn up heat and wait a few more minutes if still too liquid).
Once you have a soup-looking concoction, turn off heat, take a hand mixer and blend all the vegetables together thoroughly: you want to end up with a smooth, velouté mixture.
Put back on heat and add the mussels and shrimps. Stir in the crème fraîche. Meanwhile, cut the fish filets into cubes, butter them lightly and put in over at 200°C for about 10 minutes. Add the scallops halfway through (they only need 3-5min).
When cooked, add the fish to the vegetable mixture, mix gently (so that the fish does not come apart) and serve with freshly chopped parley and a hint of paprika. Again, no need for salt.
Bon appétit!
Side note: the major difference between this recipe and Renata’s original one is that she sieves the vegetables once they have been mixed, keeping only the juice and throwing the fibres away. However, my own mother saw me making this and refused point blank to let me waste any vegetables. Heaven forbid! So, they stayed.
Mila's Kitchen 