Mediterranean Striped Bass Recipes

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400 degrees. Spread olive oil in a baking dish just large enough to hold the fish in a single layer. Season the flesh side of the fish with salt and pepper, and set aside on a plate or cutting board.
• In a heavy saucepan, heat the guanciale on medium low, stirring occasionally, until the fat is rendered and the cracklings are golden. Add the onion and cook until onion is soft and barely colored. Stir in garlic and continue cooking until it softens. Add tomatoes and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer gently about 15 minutes, until tomatoes have come together and reduced a bit. Stir in chile flakes and remove from heat.
• Heat baking dish in the oven and when the oil is hot, remove it from the oven. Place fish, skin side down, in the dish. Spread the tomato mixture on the fish. Return dish to oven and bake 15 to 20 minutes, until the fish just turns opaque and is cooked through. Serve at once or set aside at room temperature to serve in 30 minutes or so. Scatter basil on top just before serving.

Steps:

• Lay the fish fillets in a baking dish or on a sheet pan and season with salt and pepper. Squeeze the lemon juice over the fish and refrigerate while you make the sauce.
• In a large lidded sauté pan that will accommodate all of the fish in one layer (see note below), heat the olive oil over medium heat and add the leeks. Cook, stirring, until they begin to soften, about 3 minutes, and add the garlic and a large pinch of salt. Cook, stirring, until the garlic is fragrant, about 30 seconds to a minute, and add the fennel. Turn down the heat to medium-low, cover the pan and cook, stirring often, until the fennel is tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Uncover the pan, add the tomatoes, salt to taste, and the pepper and cook uncovered, stirring often, for 10 to 15 minutes, until the tomatoes have cooked down and the mixture is thick and fragrant. Stir in the dill and 1 tablespoon of the parsley.
• Lay the fish over the fennel mixture. (Note: If the pan isn't big enough, divide the mixture between two pans.) Cover and place over medium heat. Simmer 10 minutes, or until the fish is opaque and pulls apart easily with a fork. Sprinkle on the remaining parsley and serve the sauce and fish together, with rice or potatoes.

Steps:

• Combine oil, lemon juice, thyme or oregano, garlic, and pepper in a large shallow bowl. Add fish to marinade, and turn to coat; cover with plastic wrap, and place in the refrigerator 30 minutes.
• Heat a grill or grill pan over medium-high heat. Remove fish from marinade, letting excess drip off. Place on grill, skin side down, and season with salt. Grill until skin is lightly browned and starting to crisp. Carefully turn fillets, and cook until well browned and cooked through (center will be opaque), 5 to 6 minutes. Garnish with chives and lemon wedges, if desired. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Steps:

• For the sauce, whisk together: 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, 1/4 teaspoon lemon zest, 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, Salt, Fresh-ground black pepper.
• Taste for salt and lemon juice and adjust as desired. The sauce will separate as it sits; this is not a problem.
• Season: 4 pieces striped bass, skin on (4 to 6 ounces each) with: Salt, Fresh-ground black pepper.
• Choose a heavy-bottomed pan for frying the fish. Take another, slightly smaller pan that will fit into the pan for the fish, and wrap its bottom with foil. This pan will be used as a weight to hold the fish flat against the frying pan to ensure that all of the skin will cook and crisp. (You will see the fish contract when it goes into the hot pan, as the skin shrinks on contact with the heat.) Warm the larger pan over medium-high heat. When hot, pour in: Olive oil, enough to generously coat the bottom.
• Add the pieces of bass, skin side down, and place the foil-wrapped pan on top of the fish. Cook until the skin is brown and crispy, about 7 minutes. Check now and then to see that the fish is indeed browning, but not overbrowning. Adjust the heat up or down to speed up or slow down the cooking as needed. When the skin is browned, remove the top pan and turn the fish. Cook for another minute or so, until the fish is just cooked through, but is still moist and tender inside. Meanwhile whisk the lemon sauce together again and pour it onto a warm plate. Serve the fish skin side up, on top of the sauce.
• Garnish the fish with a couple spoonfuls of chopped tender herbs such as parsley, chives, chervil, cilantro, or basil.
• Soak, rinse, and squeeze dry a tablespoon or so of capers. When the fish is cooked add the capers to the hot pan and sauté for a minute or two. Remove with a slotted spoon and scatter over the fish.
• Make a Beurre Blanc (Warm Butter Sauce; page 228) instead of the olive oil sauce.