Sea Bass With Lemon Potatoes Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Slice each potato three or four times. If you do this lengthwise you will end up with long, elegant pieces. Warm a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a roasting pan over medium-high heat, then put the potatoes in and let them color on both sides. They cook best if you leave them alone for several minutes in between stirring. You want them to be pale gold on both sides. Cut the lemon in half, then into thick segments. Add to the potatoes with the anchovy, and a grinding of black pepper and then pour over the stock.
• Lay the fish on top of the potatoes, brush with a little olive oil, then add the herbs and a mild seasoning of salt and black pepper. Bake in the preheated oven until the flesh will slide easily away from the bone in big juicy pieces. This will take a matter of twenty-five to thirty minutes. Serve the fish with the potatoes and spoon over the stock.

Steps:

• To make the dressing, mix the oil with the lemon zest and juice, capers, mustard, some seasoning and 1 tbsp water. Don't add the parsley yet (unless serving straight away) as the acid in the lemon will fade the colour if they are left together for too long.
• Heat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. Line a baking tray with baking parchment and put the fish, skin-side up, on top. Brush the skin with oil and sprinkle with some flaky salt. Bake for 7 mins or until the flesh flakes when tested with a knife. Arrange the fish on warm serving plates, spoon over the dressing and scatter with extra parsley leaves, if you like.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to fan 180C/conventional 200C/gas 6. Wash the sea bass inside and out, and pat dry with kitchen paper. Score across the fish and through the skin 4-5 times on each side, then lay the fish on a large piece of oiled foil, big enough to wrap it up loosely.
• Put the lemongrass, chillies, garlic and ginger into a mortar with the honey and 1 tbsp of the oil. Squeeze in the juice of one of the limes. Bash a few times with the pestle until everything's bruised - there's no need to grind it finely.
• Season the fish inside and out. Scrape out half the pounded mixture over the fish, add the last of the oil and rub everything in, making sure you push some into the cuts.
• Cut the second lime into quarters and push two pieces into the cavity along with the remainder of the pounded mixture. Fold each kaffir lime leaf in half and tear out the central vein to give you two halves. Push these into the cavity, too.
• Squeeze the juice from the last two lime quarters over the fish and pull the sides of the foil up to create a loose parcel. Crimp the edges to seal, making sure there is some space around the fish.
• Bake for 25 minutes. If you're eating the fish straight away, let it rest for about 5 minutes before opening the parcel. If you're taking it to a picnic, wrap it in another layer of foil the minute it's out of the oven.

Steps:

• Put the egg yolks in a large bowl with a pinch of salt and the lemon zest and juice. Whisk to combine, then add the garlic and whisk again. Slowly add the oil, whisking constantly, until the mixture thickens to a mayonnaise and all the oil is used. Taste and add salt, white pepper and additional lemon juice, if needed. Transfer to a small bowl, cover and chill until required.
• Put the potatoes in a medium-sized pan, cover with lightly salted water, put on the lid and bring to the boil. Remove lid and cook until tender. Drain, toss with a drizzle of oil, set aside and keep warm.
• Meanwhile, cook the asparagus in a large pan of boiling salted water for 3-5 mins until tender. Drain, then drizzle with oil and set aside to keep warm.
• For the sea bass, heat the grill, pour 2 tbsp of the oil into a frying pan set over a medium heat, add the thyme and garlic, and cook for 1-2 mins. Sprinkle a little salt and pepper into the pan, add the fish, skin-side up, cook for 2-3 mins, then remove from the heat. Drizzle with the remaining oil, then cook under the grill for about 4 mins until the skin blisters and the fish is cooked through. Keep the fish warm while you finish the veg.
• Thickly slice the potatoes and arrange a layer in the middle of each of 4 dinner plates. Scatter the asparagus over the potatoes, squeeze over some lemon juice and finish with a grind of black pepper. Top each plate with a fillet of sea bass, finishing with a dollop of mayonnaise and the snipped chives.