Black Sea Bass with Cherry Tomatoes, Ginger, and Shiso
Sautéed black sea bass with slumped cherry tomatoes, new ginger, and shiso leaves. Served with mashed potatoes.
Recipe: Black sea bass with cherry tomato sauce
Serves 4
Ingredients for Sauce:
1 lb. cherry tomatoes (preferably mixed varieties and colors), cut in halves or quarters if large
2 tablespoons ginger root, minced. (Note: Any ginger will do, but new ginger is best. In this case you can use the skin and green shoots as well as the flesh)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Salt to taste
Fresh, small shiso leaves (also called perilla) or Thai basil leaves—a small handful
Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions:
Heat a medium-sized skillet over medium heat and add butter and olive oil. Once butter is melted, add ginger and sauté gently for a couple of minutes. Add tomatoes, sprinkle with a little salt, and turn up the heat to medium high so they begin to sizzle a bit. Cook them gently, stirring occasionally, until they “slump” and begin to lose their firmness. At this point, as they have just shed their rawness and released some liquid into the pan, they are done. They should be saucy. Taste and add more salt if needed, and some more olive oil if you like. Scatter in the shiso leaves or Thai basil just before serving.
Ingredients for fish:
4 fillets black sea bass, skin on. Other fish that work well are snapper, striped bass, or any firm, light-fleshed fish.
Salt and pepper
Neutral oil, such as grapeseed or sunflower
Instructions:
Pat both sides of fish with paper towels until very dry. With a sharp knife, score the skin side a few times, every couple inches (this keeps fillets from curling up as the skin shrinks). Sprinkle each side of fillets with salt and pepper.
Get a large skillet that will hold the fillets so they don’t touch. Heat it to hot and put in a glug of oil so it covers the bottom of the skillet generously. Oil should shimmer. When it’s good and hot, lay the fillets down flesh side down. Cooking times will vary with thickness of fish, but pay close attention. After about 3 minutes, once the “down” side begins to look opaque and is golden brown when you look underneath, carefully flip it so skin side is down. If fish is sticking to the pan, carefully work it around the edges with a flexible spatula. Drying the fish well, using plenty of oil, and a very hot skillet should all help prevent sticking.
After cooking on the other side 2-3 minutes fish should be done. It’s done when opaque all the way through and flaky (thicker fillets will take a bit more time). Serve immediately with tomatoes and their liquid spooned on top and around the fish. I like this with mashed potatoes but you could serve with rice, as well.