Fish soup is a simple yet extraordinary dish that brings together Mediterranean people. Different recipes, a sea of nuances but a core concept that remains the same, from Gibraltar all the way to Rhodes: the use of ‘poor' fish, often small in size, prepared in the tastiest way possible and without complications: it all gets to boil and bubble together and hey presto.
But once upon a time, the fish used was what was unfit for sale rather than ‘poor', and instead of satisfying their taste buds, fishermen had to focus on feeding themselves (and feeding their family), supplementing the dish with crackers, hard bread or polenta. Fish soup is certainly one of the most difficult to encode dishes. Meaning it isn't even included in the Ricettario della Cucina Regionale Italiana (Italian Regional Recipe Book), the sacred text of the Accademia Italiana della Cucina (Italian Cooking Academy).
And quite right too, since it is difficult to find a common feature for even the most famous recipes, an aspect that should encourage you to embark upon a taste bud tantalising tour of the Italian peninsula, to try the best fish soups.
Liguria, the evolution of the buridda
A tasty dish made of small morsels of fish, baked with extra virgin olive oil, pine nuts, capers, mushrooms and parsley, in which to soak traditional gallette del marinaio (dry flat breads, which are also used for the local Cappon Magro). It is called the buridda, a typical Ligurian delicacy to be eaten hot or lukewarm any month of the year, not to be confused with ciuppin which is more like a fish purée.
As tradition would have it, buridda is made with different types of fish, such as conger eel, dogfish and mullet; alternatively, it is made using only one type of fish, namely dried cod. With time, the number of variants has grown and many other fish varieties have been included in this traditional dish: from red mullet to cuttlefish and octopus. Other additional ingredients include white wine, seafood, potatoes, tomatoes, artichokes and a sauté of carrots, onions, garlic and celery. Well prepared Buridde can be found at I Tre Merli in Genoa, Trattoria San Rocco in Altare and Raieu in Cavi di Lavagna.
Tuscany, the magic of cacciucco
The symbol of Livorno is cacciucco, the origins of which are covered by a variety of legends, but which probably derives from the Turkish word küçük, which means 'small in size'. It is also prepared in Viareggio, but the Tuscan people claim that in this town “the fish comes from the sea bed and not from the rocks”. However, the original recipe envisaged the use of between thirteen and sixteen different fish types.
Today fewer varieties are used but cacciucco should at least include five types of fish, the same number of the letter “c” used in the name of the dish: cut fish (without bones) such as dogfish, angler, starry smooth-hound and European conger; soup fish (therefore with its bone) such as tub gurnard, scorpion fish and stargazer; bivalve molluscs such as mussels and clams; cephalopods such as octopus, baby octopus, cuttlefish and squid; crustaceans such as squilla mantis, shrimps and prawns. In Livorno there is no doubt about trying cacciucco at Marino, Montallegro and Galileo, whereas if you are driving through Viareggio, sit back and relax at Buonumore and Da Miro.
Veneto, where polenta goes with everything
The Adriatic Sea, from its border with Slovenia to Salento, lends itself to providing the best fish soups under the name of brodetto. One of the most famous versions is from Chioggia, which is one of the richest Italian fish markets. In brodeto alla ciosota, every cook – whether at home or in a restaurant – adds their own different touch, but the basic recipe includes four must-have types, obviously in keeping with the seasonality of the sea: mixed fish (such as weever fish, mullet, scorpion-fish, John Dory, gobies and angler); molluscs (such as cuttlefish, baby squid and baby octopus); mussels and/or clams; crustaceans (slipper lobster, shrimps, prawns and tiger king prawns).
Traditional brodetto is characterised by three elements: its quick cooking, the addition of tomatoes and white wine and its compulsory pairing with polenta. There is a winning set of venues to (re)discover it: Garibaldi; El Gato; Trattoria al Capitello; Osteria Penzo.
Le Marche, paradise for brodetto enthusiasts
The typical brodetto marchigiano served throughout Le Marche is a topic which inhabitants across the region have argued about for centuries: aside from the constant customisation of the recipe, four versions can be identified, each one served in Porto Recanati, Ancona, San Benedetto del Tronto and Fano, although it remains very popular in Porto San Giorgio, Civitanova Marche and Senigallia too. Each recipe has its own peculiarity.
While tomatoes are not added to the recipe in Porto Recanati, where wild saffron from mount Conero is added instead (giving the dish a yellowish hue), in the regional capital Ancona tradition would have it that thirteen different local fish varieties must be used, exactly the same number of diners who are supposed to eat it, but as with all traditions, there are conflicting views in this regard.
On the other hand, lu vrudètte, the typical brodetto served in San Benedetto del Tronto, is basically a fish soup, without tomatoes (or with green tomatoes at most) and with the addition of peppers and vinegar, truly one of a kind. The venues we recommend you visit to try these recipes are: Raggiazzurro in Senigallia; Associazione Pescatori e Ragno in S. Benedetto del Tronto; Diavolo del Brodetto in Porto Recanati; La Moretta in Ancona: Da Enzo in Civitanova Marche; Da Loré in Porto San Giorgio.
Fano is the capital
Obviously, we can't declare where the best brodetto is served, but every year Fano hosts the fun Brodetto Fest, and the town even boasts a Fraternity that defends the original recipe of the dish. These days, brodetto is experiencing a golden moment, after risking its disappearance from restaurant tables forever. This would have been absurd, because of the historicity of the dish: fishermen used to cook it in a huge saucepan together with tomato purée, vinegar, garlic and onion.
The dish was placed in the middle of the table and eaten, without haste: it took time to remove fish bones and clear the flesh away, so to satisfy their immediate hunger pangs, fishermen used to soak dry bread or crackers in the soup. For the Fraternity, brodetto fanese served in Fano has to contain ten fish varieties: tub gurnard, angler, small-spotted catshark, weever fish, rays, stargazers, John Dory, squilla mantis, cuttlefish and scorpion-fish. The top venues to taste it are: Da Maria; Al Galeone; Trattoria la Quinta: Casa Orazi.
