Salt-baked sea bass with beurre blanc
Baking in a salt casing creates perfectly seasoned and tender fish that cooks evenly, retaining all its flavour and succulence.
Ingredients
For the sea bass
- 800g/1lb 12oz sea bass, gutted, fins and scales removed
- handful of fresh green herbs, such as flatleaf parsley, fennel, thyme or bay leaves
- 1 lemon slice
- 2 large free-range egg whites
- 500g/1lb 2oz salt
For the beurre blanc
- 240ml/8ΒΎfl oz white wine
- 100ml/3Β½fl oz white wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp finely chopped banana shallot
- 1 tsp white peppercorns
- 2 tbsp double cream
- 200g/7oz butter, chilled and chopped
- Β½ lemon, juice only
- few wild garlic leaves, roughly chopped
For the asparagus
- 1 bunch asparagus
- splash olive oil
- sea salt and ground white pepper
To serve
- wild garlic butter
- wild garlic flowers
- bunch watercress
Method
To make the sea bream, gut and remove the blood line of the fish. Remove the fins with scissors or a knife and, using a sharp scourer, scrub off all of the scales. Stuff the fish with the fresh herbs and lemon slice.
Cut out a fish-shaped piece of thick cardboard that is approximately 2cm/ΒΎin larger than the perimeter of the prepared fish. Wrap the cardboard with two layers of kitchen foil, place on a baking tray and lay the fish on top.
Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6.
Place the egg whites in the bowl of an electric food mixer and whisk on a high speed until medium peaks form. Alternatively, use an electric hand whisk or regular whisk. Gradually add the salt and continue to whisk until the mixture becomes stiff like meringue. Once all the salt is incorporated and the mixture is at the desired consistency, spoon the mixture over the fish and spread an even coating all over, ensuring there are no gaps. Smooth over the surface and, using the edge of a palette knife, trace the head, mouth and eye of the fish. Using the end of the palette knife, press down very lightly to form βscalesβ over the whole fish.
Carefully place the fish into the oven, ensuring you donβt jolt it as this may cause the mixture to slip. If it does, just carefully patch it up. Bake for 20 minutes, then insert a metal skewer into the thickest part of the fish for 10 seconds. The skewer should feel just hot; if it is only lukewarm, the fish needs a little longer. Cook until the fish is cooked through.
To serve, place the fish on a large board. Cut around the base of the crust and carefully lift it off β the crust should come off in one piece. Discard the crust (it is not edible). Peel off the fish skin and gently slice chunks of the fish off the bone.
Meanwhile, to make the beurre blanc, bring the wine, vinegar, shallot and peppercorns to the boil in a saucepan. Reduce until there are 2 tablespoons of liquid remaining. Strain the reduction into a clean saucepan, add the double cream and return to the heat. Add the butter one piece at a time, whisking constantly. Continue to add the butter until 1 or 2 pieces remain, then remove from the heat. Whisk in the remaining butter, season with the lemon juice and add the garlic leaves to finish. The sauce should be thick, smooth and glossy.
To make the asparagus, bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil over a high heat. Drop the asparagus into the water and cook for about 2 minutes until just tender. Remove from the water and drain on kitchen paper. Arrange on a plate or in a serving bowl. Season with the sea salt and white pepper and a splash of olive oil.
Serve the fish on a large platter, watercress on the side, with the asparagus on a separate plate topped with the garlic butter and flowers. Serve the sauce in a jug ready to pour over.
