At The Chefs Counter: Grilled Wild Sea Bass
This is a delicious way to cook any type of fish, but especially seabass as the skin becomes an umami bomb from hitting the high heat from the fire. The sauce can be used for lots of different grilled or steamed fish and especially with grilled scallops. For the charcoal sauce you must only use good quality sustainable charcoal that has not been treated with any chemicals or burning agent.
Serves 4Difficulty: DifficultPrep time: 2 hoursTime: 10 mins
Seabass
- 180 -200g fillet per person
- 1 jar trout roe
- half a bunch of chives
- 50g sea aster
- 50g sea beet
- 50g samphire
- Cold pressed rape seed oil
- Maldon salt
- Season the bass with Maldon sea salt and a drizzle of Rape Seed oil (make sure you have an even layer of oil on the skin side.
- Cook the bass over the hot coals skin side down until nice and charred, turn and cook on flesh side for a minute or 2.
- Place on a tray and dress with the lemon vinaigrette.
- Warm the sauce and add the seashore vegetables, chives and trout roe.
- Serve immediately with the warm bass.
Charcoal Sauce
- 600g double cream
- 1 burning charcoal briquette or 2 large pieces charcoal
- 500g fish stock
- 200g vermouth (Noilly Prat)
- 200g white wine
- 1 large banana shallot- sliced
- 1 clove of garlic – sliced
- 2 sprigs of thyme
- 10g butter
- 1 pinch sea salt
- The Charcoal sauce can be made up to 2 days before
- Light the coals, and once they are embers add to the cream. Leave to infuse for 1 hour.
- Cook the shallots and garlic with the thyme and pinch of salt in the butter.
- Once the shallots are translucent add the wine and vermouth, reduce until only 50ml remains.
- Meanwhile warm the fish stock.
- Add the fish stock to wine reduction, bring to a simmer and reduce by half
- Add the charcoal cream and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 10-15 minutes on low heat.
- pass the sauce through a fine mesh sieve. Check seasoning and add a little bit of lemon juice.
- Keep warm. or chill and refrigerate for later use
- While the sauce is cooking; prep and wash the seashore vegetables and chop the chives.
Lemon Vinagrette
- Juice from 1 lemon
- 100ml Evoo or Cold Pressed Rape Seed Oil
- Pinch of Maldon salt
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