We ate this fish at David’s birthday and really loved it. It is a meaty but yet delicate fish that is delicious. It is not over powering in taste (doesn’t taste like the ocean) and a small piece goes a long way. At first, I bought two ½ pound pieces for each of us for dinner. I quickly realized, as we started to eat it, that we could only eat a quarter of it, with the side dish of couscous. This is a pricey fish (I bought it at $13.99 a lb) but it’s nice to know 1 lb. can serve 8 people easily. So if you decide to do this for dinner you can easily get ½ a pound for 4 people and make 2 small sides with it. I made baked corn kernels with sun dried tomatoes (just take a can of corn, drain the water throw it in a oven safe dish with a handful of sun dried tomatoes, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper and bake it for about 20 minutes on 400 degrees). I also made Israeli couscous. Just buy any type of couscous you like. I use whole wheat couscous. You just follow the packaging instructions, its very easy. Anyhow, this is a great meal even for someone who isn’t crazy about fish. (You’d never hear David ask for fish, but he ate this meal happily!)
Chilean Sea Bass
with Almond Herb Sauce
Prep Time: 10 Minutes
Cook Time: 6 Minutes Each Round of Fish Searing
Serves: 4-8 People (4 large servings or 8 small servings, great with side dishes)
Ingredients
Fish:
1 Pound of Chilean Sea Bass
½ coup of all purpose flour
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 tablespoon of butter
Almond Herb Sauce:
1 piece of green onion, ends trimmed
¼ cup cilantro, packed
¼ cup mint, packed
¼ cup of parsley, packed
¼ cup of basil, packed
2 tablespoons of dill, packed
2 tablespoons of chopped almonds
1 small shallot
4 cloves of garlic
¼ cup of red wine vinegar
½ cup of extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
First make the sauce:
In a food processor, combine all the greens (green onion, cilantro, mint, parsley, basil, dill) and process till it is full minced. Add the shallot, garlic and almonds and process to fully incorporated. Add the red wine vinegar through the top cover, slowly-processing the whole time. Then as the machine is still working slowly add the olive oil. You can add less oil if you feel that sauce is fluid enough. Add a pinch of salt and pepper, and taste. If you want more salt and pepper feel free to add.
For the fish:
Heat the skillet on high heat for about 3-4 minutes till it’s nice and hot. Add the olive oil and butter and let it melt. As soon as the butter melts, you want to place the fish inside. You don’t want to begin burning the butter/oil.
Wash the fish well and then pat dry with a paper towel. In a plate mix flour with a little salt and pepper. Dredge the fish on both sides with the flour, making sure to also get the sides. Do not over crowd the fish in the skillet. If you need to do one piece at a time that is fine. It only takes about 5-6 minutes to cook the piece through. Place the fish in the center of the skillet. Do not fuss or flip the fish over too much as it is delicate and can break apart. Just slightly shake the pan to insure the fish doesn’t stick to the bottom. Give it about 3 minutes, peak to see that the bottom has browned well, and then flip over. Give it another 3 minutes—you should see that they side of the fish has shrunk. If you have skin on the fish sides, it’s even easier of an indicator as you will see the skin cooked and crispy.
Remove the fish onto a paper towel plate.
On a plate, put a nice amount of sauce on the center and then place the fish on top. You don’t want to soak the fish in the sauce because the fish is amazingly tasty on its own but you want to give the almond herb sauce its moment to shine as well.
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