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Roast fillet of sea bass with braised shellfish and saffron sauce

Fillet of seabass on a bed of saffron and shellfish sauce

Roast fillet of sea bass with braised shellfish and saffron sauce

Name: Roast fillet of sea bass with braised shellfish and saffron sauce
Prep time: 1 h
Cook time: 1 h 25 min
Total time: 2 h 25 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 2 tbsp olive oil plus 1 tsp; 1kg rock fish (small gurnard or red mullet) scales, guts and heads removed, roughly chopped; 1 onion diced; 2 carrots diced; 2 celery sticks diced; 3 garlic cloves roughly chopped; 1 star anise; ¼ tsp coriander seeds; large pinch of saffron; 50g tomato purée; 200ml white wine; 500ml fish stock; 250ml passata; 3 tomatoes roughly chopped; 1 large potato cut into 1cm cubes; 1 fennel bulb trimmed and cut into 1cm cubes; ½ cucumber peeled and cut into 1cm cubes; 2 shallots finely sliced; 10g flat-leaf parsley stalks and leaves separated; 300g each of mussels, clams, cockles cleaned and debearded; 4 x 140g portions of sea bass; lemon juice to taste; herb oil to serve (optional)

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Serves 4

A little effort

Prep: 1 hr

Cook: 1 hr and 25 mins

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Looking to impress? Serve your sea bass like they do at Mayfair's Mount St restaurant – with a saffron-laced sauce, cucumber, fennel, potatoes and shellfish

Low calorie

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Make this roast fillet of sea bass, then take a look at our sea bass with fermented chilli, sea bass ceviche and more sea bass recipes.

At Mount St, this dish is served with herb oil. To make it at home, whizz 20g of dill, parsley or basil with 180ml of rapeseed oil. Simmer for a couple of minutes, then strain.

Saffron is a key ingredient in this dish. Read our guide on what is saffron and where to buy it for advice on purchasing this fragrant spice.

Ingredients

Nutrition

2 tbsp olive oil

plus 1 tsp
1kg rock fish (small gurnard or red mullet)

scales, guts and heads removed, roughly chopped
1 onion

diced
2 carrots

diced
2 celery sticks

diced
3 garlic cloves

roughly chopped
1 star anise
¼ tsp coriander seeds
large pinch of saffron
50g tomato purée
200ml white wine
500ml fish stock
250ml passata
3 tomatoes

roughly chopped
1 large potato

cut into 1cm cubes
1 fennel bulb

trimmed and cut into 1cm cubes
½ cucumber

peeled and cut into 1cm cubes
2 shallots

finely sliced
10g flat-leaf parsley

stalks and leaves separated
300g each of mussels, clams, cockles

cleaned and debearded
4 x 140g portions of sea bass
lemon juice

to taste
herb oil

to serve (optional)

Nutrition: per serving

kcal539

low
fat18.5g
saturates2.7g
carbs25.8g
sugars14.8g
fibre7.7g
protein55.4g
salt1.7g

Method

step 1

Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a wide, deep pan over a medium heat and sear the rock fish for 4-5 mins or until golden. Remove to a plate. Add the onion, carrots, celery, garlic, star anise, coriander seeds and saffron to the same pan and fry for 2 mins. Add the tomato purée and cook for 2 mins. Pour in the wine, bring to the boil, then lower the heat to a simmer and cook for 3-4 mins or until reduced by half. Return the fish to the pan along with the stock, passata and tomatoes. Simmer over a low heat for 1 hr. Remove the star anise and as many fish bones as possible, then transfer to a blender and blitz until as smooth as possible. Pass through a sieve and discard any pulp. Season to taste, then cover and set aside.
step 2

Cook the potatoes and fennel in a large pan of boiling salted water for 1½-2 mins or until just tender. Drain and tip into a bowl of iced water. Once cool, drain and put in a bowl with the cucumber.
step 3

Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a wide, lidded frying pan over a low heat and fry the shallots for 2-3 mins or until just soft. Add the parsley stalks and all the cleaned shellfish. Cover and cook for 1-2 mins, shaking the pan often until the shellfish has opened. Remove any unopened shells. Drain the shellfish, reserving the cooking liquid, and cool. Once cooled, pick the fish from the shells.
step 4

Season the seabass. Heat 1 tsp of oil in a non-stick frying pan over a medium-high heat and cook the seabass skin-side down, pressing down with a fish slice for 2-3 mins until crisp and golden. Flip and cook for 1-2 mins more until just cooked through.
step 5

Tip the sauce, potato, fennel, cucumber, shellfish and a splash of reserved shellfish stock into a pan over a low-medium heat. Cook for 3-4 mins until warmed. If the sauce seems too thick, add a splash more of the stock. Chop the parsley leaves and stir through the sauce with a squeeze of lemon juice. Ladle the sauce into shallow bowls and top with the seabass and herb oil, if using.

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