Roast Sea Bass With Herbs And Onion Confit Recipes

ROAST SEA BASS WITH HERBS AND ONION CONFIT

Steps:

• In a covered pan, cook the onions in 2 tablespoons oil over a very low heat, for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they are very soft and lightly colored. Stir in the saffron and honey, and season with salt and pepper. Cook, uncovered, for another 10 minutes, or until most of the liquid has evaporated, then spread over the bottom of an overproof dish.
• Slash the fish in a few places across the thickest part to ensure that it cooks evenly. Rub the fish with salt and the remaining olive oil, then stuff with a mixture of the parsley, coriander, garlic, lemon juice, and a little salt and pepper.
• Place the stuffed fish on the bed of onions and roast in an oven preheated to 375°F for about 25 minutes, or until the flesh flakes away from the bone when you cut into the thickest part with the point of a knife. Serve with the lemon quarters.

SEARED FILLET OF SEABASS WITH TOMATO AND ONION CONFIT AND SHERRY VINEGAR NAGE INFUSED WITH TARRAGON

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Slice the onions and cut the cherry tomatoes in half. Mix together in a bowl, then add 1/2 cup sherry vinegar and leave to marinate for 30 minutes.
• Place the shallots into a small saucepan and add the remaining 1/2 cup sherry vinegar. Pick off the tarragon leaves, set aside, and add the stalks to the pan. Bring the vinegar mixture to a boil and allow to reduce by 2/3. Remove pan from heat and start to whisk in the diced butter. Keep the pan warm but do not allow it to get hot as this will cause the butter to separate and will split the sauce. When all the butter has been whisked in, pass the sauce through a sieve into a clean pan and keep warm.
• Remove the onion and cherry tomatoes from the marinade and place in a saucepan. Sweat the mixture over the medium heat until the tomatoes start to break down. Add approximately 1/2 of the remaining marinade and cook slowly over moderate heat for 30 minutes.
• While the tomatoes and onions are cooking, take the sea bass fillets and the scallops and season them with salt and pepper. Sear the sea bass fillets in a very hot non-stick frying pan, skin-side down first. When golden brown, remove from the frying pan, place onto a baking tray and cook in the oven for 3 to 4 minutes. Do exactly the same with the scallops.
• Blanch the baby asparagus and chives separately, in boiling, salted water. Remove from the water and tie the asparagus into bundles of 10 using a blanched chive.
• To assemble, put 1 piece of sea bass on each plate and top with the confit of tomatoes. Place the second piece of sea bass on top and lean the asparagus bundle against the sea bass. Take the tarragon leaves that were set aside and roughly chop them. Add the tarragon to the warm sauce and spoon sauce around plate. Add a scallop to the side of each plate and serve.

SEA BASS WITH TOMATOES AND ONIONS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Brush 2 tablespoons oil over both sides of bread slices. Place on baking sheet; bake until lightly toasted, about 12 minutes. Set aside.
• Increase oven temperature to 500°F. Heat 5 tablespoons oil in large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions, 1/4 cup parsley, anchovies, garlic and red pepper. Sauté until onions begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and wine. Sprinkle fish with salt and pepper. Place fish in same skillet. Spoon vegetables atop fish. Bring to simmer. Cover; bake until fish is opaque in center, about 12 minutes. Transfer fish to plates.
• Stir remaining cup parsley into sauce. Boil sauce until reduced slightly, about 2 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Spoon sauce over fish. Serve with croutons.

COASTAL-STYLE ROASTED SEA BASS OR OTHER LARGE WHOLE FISH

Steps:

• Cut 3 or 4 gashes on each side of the fish, from top to bottom. Salt the gashes and salt the fish's cavity as well. Let it sit while you prepare the other ingredients. Preheat the oven to 450°F.
• Push half of the garlic slivers into the gashes. Rub the fish with a little of the olive oil and pour the rest into the bottom of a large baking pan. Spread the lemon slices over the bottom of the pan and top it with most of the oregano. Lay the fish over all, then spread the onions and remaining garlic around the fish. Pour the wine over all and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Top with the remaining oregano.
• Cover with aluminum foil and bake, undisturbed, until the onions are nearly tender, 20 to 30 minutes. Uncover and continue to bake, shaking the pan occasionally, until the fish is cooked through, another 5 to 10 minutes (look at one of the gashes in the thickest part of the fish; the meat will appear opaque clear down to the central bone). If the pan is drying out, add a little more liquid.
• To serve, scoop the flesh from the fish with a spoon and top with some sauce.
• If the weather's good, and you have access to fennel branches, this is easier: Start by preheating a charcoal or gas grill; the fire should be quite hot and the grill rack about 4 inches from the heat source. Make a bed of fennel stalks directly on the grill bed. Sprinkle 1 1/2 to 2 pounds of sturdy fish fillets, like halibut (these may be steaks), striped bass, monkfish, or cod, with salt and cayenne. Grill right on the branches. While the fish is cooking, grind a teaspoon or more of fennel or dill seeds; juice 1 lemon and thinly slice another. When the fish is done, remove it from the grill, leaving as much of the stalks behind as possible (some of the burned fronds will adhere to the fish; this is fine). Sprinkle the fish with the fennel or dill seeds, then decorate it with the lemon slices. Drizzle with the lemon juice and a bit of olive oil and serve.

ROASTED CHILEAN SEA BASS WITH CHIVE OIL

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the chives in a food processor. Turn on the processor and add the olive oil through the feed tube in a thin steady stream. Season with salt and pepper. Stop to taste, then adjust, adding more oil, chives, salt or pepper as desired. Strain through a fine sieve into a bowl and reserve.
• Place the sea bass in a sauté pan or roasting pan just large enough to fit the fillets. Sprinkle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place in the oven and roast until the fish is just barely cooked in the center. It will continue to cook once it is removed from the oven. (It should take about 9 minutes per inch of thickness.)
• Transfer the sea bass to serving plates and sprinkle with the chive oil.

WHOLE ROASTED SEA BASS

Steps:

• Season the cavity and exterior of fish with salt and pepper. Cover with plastic, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Lightly brush with oil a baking dish that is just large enough to hold fish without crowding. Divide thyme, rosemary, and parsley evenly between each fish, and place inside cavity. Place 2 bay leaves in cavity of each fish, and place remaining 2 bay leaves in baking dish. Sprinkle scallions over and around fish; drizzle with olive oil.
• Transfer to oven and roast 15 minutes. Continue to roast, checking every few minutes, until the thickest part of the fish is just firm, about 5 minutes more.
• Drizzle fish with lemon juice and transfer to a cutting board; set baking dish aside. Working from the head to the tail, cut along backbone to separate the flesh from the bone. Carefully lift top fillet and transfer to a plate. Lift and discard bones. Gently lift second fillet to same plate. Repeat process with remaining fish. Drizzle with any pan juices before serving.