Riblja Čorba (Serbian Danube River Fish Soup with Paprika)

Scale and clean the fish, scraping away the dark membrane inside the belly cavity. Cut the bodies into 3 cm thick slices and refrigerate them. Set the heads, tails, and large bones aside in a separate pot. Be sure to remove the gills, which make the soup bitter.

Put the heads, tails, and bones in 2 liters of water with half the onion and bring to a boil. Skim off the foam, then simmer over low heat. Gelatin from the bones will give the soup its body. Strain the stock and discard the solids.

Return the strained stock to the pot and remove it from the heat. Dissolve the sweet and hot paprika in a ladleful of stock, then stir it into the pot. Do not add the paprika directly to boiling liquid; it will clump and leave red patches on the surface. Return the pot to the stove.

Slice the remaining onion into wedges, cut the bell pepper into rings, and dice the tomato. Add them to the pot and cook over low heat until the onion has softened completely and the bell pepper is tender. Add the dried hot peppers now, tasting as you go to adjust the heat.

Lower the heat and slide the fish slices into the soup one at a time, without overlapping them. Do not use a spoon; hold the pot by both handles and swirl it in a circular motion to distribute the fish. Remove from the heat when the flesh flakes away from the bones.

Add the salt at the end; adding it earlier can firm up the fish and make it harder to separate from the bones. Cover and let rest for 5 minutes. Ladle into deep bowls, placing one fish slice in each. Serve with fresh bread.