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Languedoc-Roussillon
In Sète, as soon as the fish auction has delivered the day's cuttlefish, a pot begins to simmer: tomato sauce with white wine bound with aïoli, the great stew of the Sète fishermen.
Traditional dish from Languedoc-Roussillon.
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In Sète, where fresh catches supply local restaurateurs and fishmongers at the Halles daily, rouille de seiche is a widespread recipe — a typical dish of the fishing port of Sète. The cuttlefish that goes into it first passes through the Sète fish auction, a trade-only market, before reaching the town's fishmongers and the stalls of the Halles; there, it is most often sold as is, unprepared — distinguishing it from cuttlefish that is overly white and immaculate, the sign of a defrosted product from Asia.
The recipe starts with a simple step: the cuttlefish, cut into bite-sized pieces — or left whole if small supions —, is sautéed to release its liquid, before being browned in oil with onion and garlic. Next comes the tomato base: tomato purée, deglazing with white wine, then a long simmer in water until the cuttlefish is tender.
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The version followed by the Office de Tourisme de Sète & Archipel de Thau is that of Jean Brunelin, chef and food photographer, and founder of the Facebook group « Défendons la cuisine Sétoise et Méditerranéenne ». He learnt it from his grandmother Élise, who would slip a five- to six-centimetre piece of orange peel into the pot for the duration of the cooking: its flavour carries through into the finished sauce, and this is what distinguishes, he says, a family rouille from an ordinary one.
One step, however, is unforgiving: the final binding with aïoli. Whisked separately — garlic, egg yolk, a steady drizzle of olive oil — the aïoli must be added to the sauce away from direct heat, otherwise it 'brousses', like milk turning sour. Rouille de seiche belongs to the same family as macaronade and moules farcies, those great stews prepared in Sète for a whole table of diners. The name 'rouille' is sometimes deceptive: along the coast, it designates several different dishes — rouille graulenne from Le Grau-du-Roi, for example, is prepared with octopus, without wine or tomatoes, and therefore has nothing in common with the Sète recipe.
Appearance
Thick tomato sauce coating pieces of cuttlefish; glossy, uniform surface, the sign of being bound with aïoli.
Aroma
Simmered tomato, garlic, white wine, subtle citrus note in versions made with orange peel.
Taste
A simple, convivial and hearty dish that does not lack character: the tomato sauce is lifted by a good aïoli and, depending on the version, a touch of chilli.
Texture
Melt-in-the-mouth cuttlefish after simmering; smooth, well-bound sauce, never split.
some presentations of rouille de seiche feature saffron, accompanied by white wine, tomatoes, pine nuts and garlic.
the most documented recipe in Sète dispenses with these: it relies on a piece of orange peel and a pinch of spigol for colour, without saffron or pine nuts.
whilst cooking, make an aïoli separately with crushed garlic, egg yolks and olive oil added in a thin stream.
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Rouille de seiche is traditionally served with potatoes — which can be cooked directly in the sauce towards the end of the simmering time —, or with rice or tagliatelle. A simple, convivial and hearty dish, it is also sold ready-made at the caterers of the Halles, for tables that do not have the time to simmer it. It pairs with a picpoul de Pinet, a crisp, dry white produced right next to the Étang de Thau, whose lively acidity holds its own against both the tomato and the garlic.
No official quality sign (PDO (AOP), PGI (IGP), Label Rouge) protects rouille de seiche sétoise. It is a fishermen's recipe, handed down from cook to cook and from family to family — unlike macaronade sétoise, championed by local gastronomic brotherhoods, no collective body lays claim to this one.
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