Fisherman’s Soup

Name: Fisherman’s Soup (Kakavia)
Cuisine: Egyptian
Ingredients: 750 g (1 lb 10 oz) grouper or any white, fleshy fish, scaled, cleaned and cut into 3 large pieces; 750 g (1 lb 10 oz) grouper or any white, fleshy fish, scaled, cleaned and cut into 3 large pieces; 750 g (1 lb 10 oz) grouper or any white, fleshy fish, scaled, cleaned and cut into 3 large pieces; 1 tsp coriander seeds; 1 tsp cumin seeds; 1 tsp fennel seeds; 2 onions, peeled; 4 garlic cloves, peeled; 1 small lemon, quartered, plus extra to serve; 2 celery stalks, very roughly chopped; A few sprigs of parsley, plus extra to garnish; A few sprigs of coriander (cilantro), plus extra to garnish; A few sprigs of coriander (cilantro), plus extra to garnish; 50 ml (1¾ fl oz/3½ tbsp) olive oil; 3 potatoes (about 350 g/12 oz), peeled and diced; 500 g (1 lb 2 oz) fresh tomatoes, roughly chopped; A pinch of cayenne pepper; Sea salt and ground black pepper; Sea salt and ground black pepper; Extra virgin olive oil, to serve

Kakavia

Preparation info

Serves
4

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

Egypt

By Suzanne Zeidy and Rawah Badrawi

Published 2026

About

Alexandria’s Hellenistic origins are captured beautifully in the fisherman’s soup known as kakavia. With roots dating back to the ancient Ionian fishermen, this soup resembles the French bouillabaisse of Marseilles.

Ingredients

750 g (1 lb 10 oz) grouper or any white, fleshy fish, scaled

Africa
Egypt
Alexandria
Fish course
Pescatarian
Low carb
High protein
Mediterranean
Soup
Gluten-free

Method

Fill a large pan with 1.5l (52fl oz/6½ cups) cold water and add the fish and spices. Quarter one of the onions and add to the pan with two whole garlic cloves, the quartered lemon, chopped celery and parsley and coriander (cilantro) sprigs. Add a pinch of salt and bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove the fish from the pot and set aside, then strain th