Lovage. A large unwieldy herb. Pick the stems off the leaves, tie them and hang them to dry for about 3 days. When crisp, crumble the leaves and store. Good in hotpots. Lovage seeds are used mainly in Indian cooking, and are from a plant of the caraway family. The greenish-brown seeds are a little larger than celery seeds and have a strong aroma of rather coarse thyme. Oregano can be substituted.
Rascasse. Red scorpion fish. A fish similar to a gurnard, mainly red or orange in colour, with a huge, ugly head and poisonous spiny dorsal fins. The large scaly head is inedible. However, this well-flavoured fish is most famous as an indispensable ingredient of bouillabaisse. It is found in deep waters throughout the Mediterranean and as far north as Brittany. Large fish may be baked, providing firm white flesh.
