Baked sea bass with lemon & herbs (with Tarator sauce)
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Baked sea bass with lemon & herbs (with Tarator sauce)

By Ruth Watson

This delicious fish dish is the perfect alternative to a Sunday roast

  • 40-50 mins for the fish, 10-15 mins for the sauce
  • Serves 4
  • Easy

Nutrition per serving

  • kcal 371
  • fat 11g
  • saturates 2g
  • carbs 1g
  • sugars 0g
  • fibre 0g
  • protein 66g
  • salt 0.6g

Ingredients

  • 1 whole sea bass, about 1.8kg/4lb, gutted and scaled
  • 1-2 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 large lemons, thinly sliced (peel and all)
  • 3 garlic cloves, crushed flat
  • a handful of fresh soft herbs, eg parsley, fennel, dill, tarragon, basil (either one single herb or a mixture)
  • 50g blanched almonds
  • 50g pine nuts
  • 2 large, thin slices of white bread, crusts removed
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed and roughly chopped
  • juice of ½ lemon, plus a squeeze
  • 150ml extra-virgin olive oil
  • about 2 tbsp or so fish stock or cold water

Tip

Getting ahead
The fish can be prepared up to the baking stage up to 8 hours ahead. Keep it loosely wrapped in cling film in the fridge.The sauce
The sauce can be made up to 12 hours ahead. If you have to refrigerate it, bring the sauce to room temperature and whisk in more water or stock before serving as it will have thickened.

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 230C/gas 8/fan210C. Pat the fish dry with kitchen paper, inside and out. Rub the skin with oil and season with salt and pepper. Lay three-quarters of the lemon slices on a heavy baking sheet and place the fish on top (see tip). Stuff the belly with the remaining lemon, the garlic and plenty of herbs, then season.

  2. Bake the fish for 30 minutes or until the flesh is opaque at its thickest part – slide a knife into the backbone area to heck.

  3. To serve, first gently peel the skin back, then lift off a chunk of the back fillet and a chunk of the belly to make one serving: each side should yield 2 portions. Use any lemon slices that are nicely brown, rather than jet-black, as a garnish.

    FOR THE TARATOR SAUCE

  4. Put the nuts in a food processor and whizz to a fine powder.Wet the bread, then squeeze out all the moisture. Crumble it into the nuts, add the garlic and whizz to combine thoroughly.

  5. Add the lemon juice, a pinch of salt and a good grinding of pepper. Start pouring the olive oil in through the feeder tube, in a steady, fine trickle. Once the oil is incorporated, the sauce will be very smooth but rather solid, so add enough water (or stock) to let the sauce down to a thick, creamy consistency.

  6. Finally, taste the sauce, adjust the seasoning and add a little more lemon juice if necessary.

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