The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-06-29
THE REAL BOUILLABAIssE.
George Augustus Sala Saws 1t Is a Mes
Not Fit to Be Eaten.

George Augustus Sa1a Saws 1t Is a Mess
Not Fit to Be Eaten.
Some twenty years ago [ crossed from
Oran in Algeria to Carthagena in Spain. 1t
was cattle steamer, and the only passen-
gers were the owner of the cattle and my
SELF He was big, purly, rough-looking
but good -natured Marseillais, who Dragged
necessarily about his oxen and his heifers,
and, am afraid, romanced little. He had
been, he said, the "conducteur' of dill
gence who had made his way. At all events,
he was capital cook, and gave us every
day fresh sample of the Provencal kitchen.
I can see him now clopping up the mate
rails for bouillabaisse. One of the ship s
boys brought him large earthen pot.
and into this he threw onions, garlic, oil
and-tell it not in Gath-sliced potatoes.
Then he added indiscriminately quantity
of fish, with salt, pepper and mustard.
"Now." said he, when he mad finished,
"take this to the galley and tell the cook
to put it on feu d'enfer." There was no
glass of water per head there; no slices of
ham, no Madeira. 1t was the real old saw
age bouillabaisse, such as pirates and
smugglers might prepare on rock and eat
with horn spoons. And, again, observe the
curious affinity that exists between the
bouillabaisse of the Mediterranean and the
clam chowder of New England. Into the
American fish stew are introduced slices of
salt pork and crackers" or biscuits; but
the principle of the two messes is the same
writes George Augustus Sala in the Lon
don Telegraph.
And | have not the slightest doubt that
the chowder of New England was origin
ally pirates dish, which may have been
devoured with great gusto by Captain Kyd
and his rascally companions. 1t was at
Marseilles last Christmastide that l re-
solved to make clean breast of it, and to
liberate my soul in the matter of bouilla-
baisse. The matter came about in this
wise: l was on my way to Nice and Rome,
very i'll, and for four days / was showed
up in Marseilles. The railway SER
vice was stopped the cabs, omnibuses
and tramcars had ceased to ply, and the
street pavements were so uniformly COW
cred with the verglas, or frozen rain, that
you began to contemplate the expediency
of crawling up and down the Cannebiere
on all fours.
At the expiration of the four days it
thawed; / was remote, unfriended, melan-
choly and slow, and thought it m light be
distraction to take carriage to the re-
serve and philosophize a little on bouiIla-
baisse. Not single soul was to be seen at
the big restaurant, but waiter informed
me that several ladies and gentlemen had
breakfasted there that morning and that
four cabinets particulars had been engaged
for the day after tomorrow. He also was
a Marseillais and was possibly drawing the
long bow. At all events, had the princi-
pal saloon to myself and the waiter was
good enough to light fire, which, after
half an hour, warmed, should say, about
a twentieth part of the room.
Bouillabaisse, of course. | had mo appe-
tite and toyed with the dish. but there
was some very good chablis and the cheese
was excellent. The waiter was a very in
telligent fellow and told me a great deal
about Provencal cookery. There was all
loli which is kind of paste or pomatum
made of pounded garlic, oil, butter and
crumb of Dread. This horrible compost is
eaten as condiment with any kind of dish
you choose to name. Then there is bourride,
which is fish soup thickened with yelks
with onions, garlic, oil, white pepper, lau-
rel leaves and sage. 1t was brandade, by
the way, that, under the first empire, laid
the foundations of the fortune of the Trois
Freres Provenceaux. The three brothers.
who were all good cooks, brought with
them to Paris their recipe for brandade
and other Procencal dishes; but 1 do not
think that bouillabaisse was patronized by
Talleyrand, or Campaceres, or Fouohe,
the great arbiters of eating in the days OF
the First Napoleon. sat long in the big
saloon of the Reserve, wrapped in an
astrachan pelisse, modify smoking and
medltating on bouillabaise. I am con-
WINGED that it is an imposture | am
sure that any intelligent medical man