Ixta Belfrage’s Brown Butter Sea Bass with Tangerine Dipping Sauce and Lots of Herbs
Cooked in a citrus butter and served with a tangerine dipping sauce, this whole baked sea bass recipe is the perfect sharing dish for summer gatherings.
From the book
MEZCLA: Recipes to Excite
From the co-author of Ottolenghi's FLAVOUR
100 vibrant and colourful dishes with inventive ingredient combinations
A blend of Italian dishes, with Mexican flavours, and Brazilian spices
Introduction
Don’t be put off by the longish ingredients list and method. Read through it once and you’ll realise this recipe is actually very straightforward and requires very little hands-on cooking. This is a great interactive sharing dish; stuff pieces of fish into the lettuce leaves (fresh corn tortillas would be great, too), top with the herbs and dipping sauce and let it trickle down your wrists as you eat with your hands. You’ll need four tangerines and two limes in total for this recipe.
Ingredients
| 1 x 800g | sea bass, at room temperature |
| 2 stalks of | fresh rosemary |
| 40g | spring onions (about 4 thin ones |
| fine salt | |
| 1 | baby gem lettuce, leaves separated |
| 5g | fresh mint leaves |
| 5g | fresh coriander leaves |
| 5g | fresh basil leaves |
| lime wedges | |
| For the citrus butter: | |
|---|---|
| 40g | unsalted butter |
| 30g | olive oil |
| 1½ tbsp | tangerine juice |
| 2 tsp | lime juice |
| 3 cloves of | garlic, skin left on and crushed with the side of a knife |
| 1 tsp | fine salt |
| About 20 twists of | freshly ground black pepper |
| For the tangerine dipping sauce: | |
| 1½ tsp | pul biber (use red bell pepper flakes if you don’t like heat) |
| 1 small clove of | garlic, finely chopped |
| ¼ tsp | finely grated fresh ginger |
| ¾ tsp | tomato purée/paste |
| ¼ tsp | fine salt |
| 1½ tbsp | mild and light olive oil |
| 40g | sweet, ripe cherry tomatoes, such as Datterini, very finely chopped |
| 4 tbsp | tangerine juice |
| 2 tsp | lime juice |
| ¼ tsp | fish sauce or light soy sauce |
Essential kit
You will need: a pestle and mortar.
Method
Preheat the oven to 190°C fan/210°C.
Pat the sea bass with kitchen towel to make sure it’s as dry as possible. Transfer it to a 33 x 26cm non-stick high-sided baking tray, arranging it diagonally, so it fits. The tray shouldn’t be much bigger than the fish, otherwise the citrus butter will burn. Use a very sharp knife to make 5 diagonal slits in the fish. Season the cavity with ¼ teaspoon of fine salt, then stuff with the rosemary and spring onions.
Put all the ingredients for the citrus butter into a small saucepan and place on a medium heat until the butter has melted. Pour over and around the fish.
Bake for 14 minutes (or longer if your fish is larger than 800g), then baste the fish well and turn the oven to the highest grill setting. Grill on the top shelf of the oven for 4–6 minutes, or until the skin begins to bubble and crisp. Keep a close eye, as some grills are much hotter than others.
While the fish is cooking, make the tangerine dipping sauce. Put the pul biber, garlic, ginger, tomato purée/paste and fine salt into a mortar and pound with a pestle to a rough paste.
Heat the oil in a small saucepan on a medium heat for 1 minute, then pour the hot oil into the mortar. Stir together, then add the chopped tomatoes, tangerine juice, lime juice and fish sauce.
Once cooked, transfer the sea bass to a large platter with the browned citrus butter. Discard the garlic skins. Serve with the lettuce and soft herbs to make parcels with, and the dipping sauce and lime wedges alongside.
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