Look, I get it. “Bouillabaisse” sounds like the kind of word you only say if you’re wearing a tuxedo or sitting on a yacht in the South of France. I remember seeing it on a menu once at a fancy bistro and the price tag was basically my entire weekly grocery budget. I thought, “There’s no way some fish soup is worth forty bucks.”

But here’s the thing: at its heart, Bouillabaisse is just a fisherman’s stew. And historically, fishermen are the original budget cooks. They used the stuff they couldn’t sell—the scraps, the odd bits, the small fry. Somewhere along the line, it got “fancified.” If you are looking for cheap French recipes that don’t skimp on flavor, this budget bouillabaisse is the answer. It’s one of those $20 meal ideas that feels like a hundred bucks.

The Frozen-to-Fantastic Method for Seafood Medley Recipes

The biggest hurdle for budget seafood is texture. We’ve all had that frozen shrimp that tastes like a wet pencil eraser. The “Frozen-to-Fantastic” secret for this frozen seafood stew recipe is all in the prep.

First, thaw your seafood medley in a bowl of cold water (never the microwave, please). Second—and this is the part people skip—pat it bone-dry. If it’s wet when it hits the pan, it’s going to steam and get rubbery. When following seafood medley recipes, we want a quick, high-heat sear to lock in flavor before it ever touches the broth.

The “Fake-it-Till-You-Make-It” Pantry Hacks

While an Authentic Marseille Bouillabaisse uses saffron, which is literally the most expensive spice on the planet, we’re doing things differently.

• The Saffron Swap: A pinch of turmeric gives us that iconic golden glow for pennies.
• The Floral Note: Saffron has a weirdly specific floral smell. To mimic that, we use a strip of orange zest. Trust me, it sounds fancy, but it makes the whole kitchen smell like a five-star restaurant.
• The Instant Stock: Instead of boiling fish bones for four hours, we’re using canned clam juice. It’s the ultimate “chef in a bottle” hack for that briny, oceanic depth.

One-Pot Seafood Dinner Magic

When I was in college, I had a kitchen the size of a closet and exactly one burner that worked. This one pot seafood dinner is built for that life. Everything happens in one pot, so you’re not stuck doing dishes for an hour after you eat.

Pro tip: If you want to bulk this up even further, toss in a diced potato when you add the tomatoes. It’ll soak up all that seafood broth and make the meal last even longer.

The Budget Rouille

In France, they serve this with a “rouille,” which is basically a spicy, garlicky saffron mayo. Our version? Use the store-brand mayo in your fridge, stir in some garlic and a tiny bit of turmeric, and boom—you’re basically a Michelin-star chef.

Slather that on some clearance-rack baguette that you’ve rubbed with a raw garlic clove. It’s crunchy, garlicky, and when it soaks up that broth… man, it’s a game-changer.

If I can make this in a tiny apartment with a $5 bag of frozen shrimp, you can definitely pull this off. Broke doesn’t mean boring, and tonight, we’re eating like royalty. For more inspiration, check out our roundup of the best bouillabaisse variations.