Coastal Style Roasted Sea Bass Or Other Large Whole Fish Recipes

WHOLE ROASTED SEA BASS

Steps:

• Season the cavity and exterior of fish with salt and pepper. Cover with plastic, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Lightly brush with oil a baking dish that is just large enough to hold fish without crowding. Divide thyme, rosemary, and parsley evenly between each fish, and place inside cavity. Place 2 bay leaves in cavity of each fish, and place remaining 2 bay leaves in baking dish. Sprinkle scallions over and around fish; drizzle with olive oil.
• Transfer to oven and roast 15 minutes. Continue to roast, checking every few minutes, until the thickest part of the fish is just firm, about 5 minutes more.
• Drizzle fish with lemon juice and transfer to a cutting board; set baking dish aside. Working from the head to the tail, cut along backbone to separate the flesh from the bone. Carefully lift top fillet and transfer to a plate. Lift and discard bones. Gently lift second fillet to same plate. Repeat process with remaining fish. Drizzle with any pan juices before serving.

COASTAL-STYLE ROASTED SEA BASS OR OTHER LARGE WHOLE FISH

Steps:

• Cut 3 or 4 gashes on each side of the fish, from top to bottom. Salt the gashes and salt the fish's cavity as well. Let it sit while you prepare the other ingredients. Preheat the oven to 450°F.
• Push half of the garlic slivers into the gashes. Rub the fish with a little of the olive oil and pour the rest into the bottom of a large baking pan. Spread the lemon slices over the bottom of the pan and top it with most of the oregano. Lay the fish over all, then spread the onions and remaining garlic around the fish. Pour the wine over all and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Top with the remaining oregano.
• Cover with aluminum foil and bake, undisturbed, until the onions are nearly tender, 20 to 30 minutes. Uncover and continue to bake, shaking the pan occasionally, until the fish is cooked through, another 5 to 10 minutes (look at one of the gashes in the thickest part of the fish; the meat will appear opaque clear down to the central bone). If the pan is drying out, add a little more liquid.
• To serve, scoop the flesh from the fish with a spoon and top with some sauce.
• If the weather's good, and you have access to fennel branches, this is easier: Start by preheating a charcoal or gas grill; the fire should be quite hot and the grill rack about 4 inches from the heat source. Make a bed of fennel stalks directly on the grill bed. Sprinkle 1 1/2 to 2 pounds of sturdy fish fillets, like halibut (these may be steaks), striped bass, monkfish, or cod, with salt and cayenne. Grill right on the branches. While the fish is cooking, grind a teaspoon or more of fennel or dill seeds; juice 1 lemon and thinly slice another. When the fish is done, remove it from the grill, leaving as much of the stalks behind as possible (some of the burned fronds will adhere to the fish; this is fine). Sprinkle the fish with the fennel or dill seeds, then decorate it with the lemon slices. Drizzle with the lemon juice and a bit of olive oil and serve.

SEA BASS A LA MICHELE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Oil a baking dish.
• Microwave potatoes in a microwave dish on High until just softened, about 5 minutes.
• Whisk olive oil and sherry vinegar together in a bowl. Add smoked paprika and salt; whisk to blend. Stir in onions, red jalapeno, and cooked potatoes. Slide the fish fillets into the mixture, turning and coating them with the vinaigrette. Remove the fish from potato mixture.
• Place potatoes in prepared baking dish. Nestle fish onto potatoes. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt, a dash of paprika, and a drizzle of olive oil.
• Bake in center of preheated oven until just cooked through and fish flakes easily, about 15 minutes.

ROASTED SEA BASS WITH WARM TOMATO DRESSING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Spread two tablespoons of the oil in a shallow baking dish large enough to hold the fish.
• Pat the fish dry on paper towels. Roll it in the oil in the dish to coat it on both sides. Season the fish inside and out with salt and pepper. Tuck a few slices of the garlic and two sprigs of the thyme in the cavity of the fish. If fresh thyme is unavailable, sprinkle in one-half teaspoon of the dried thyme.
• Place the fish in the oven and roast uncovered about 25 minutes, until the flesh can be lifted from the bone with the point of a knife and has turned opaque. Transfer the fish to a serving platter.
• Heat the remaining olive oil in a small saucepan until it is quite hot. Drop in the remaining garlic and remove from the heat. Add the onion, tomatoes and remaining thyme. Stir. Season sauce with salt and pepper.
• Remove the skin from the top of the fish, lift off the top fillet and serve. Turn the fish over and remove the skin and the bottom fillet in the same manner. Spoon the warm sauce over each portion of the fish.