Striped Bass With Heirloom Tomato Scampi Recipe Epicuriouscom

Steps:

• To cook the bass:
• Preheat the oven to 350°F.
• In a large ovenproof nonstick skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Season the fish liberally with salt and pepper and sprinkle with the lemon zest and juice. Once the oil begins to shimmer, place the fillets skin-side-down in the pan and let them cook, without moving them, until the skin is crisp and golden brown, 45 seconds to 1 minute. Give a light push to loosen the skin from the pan. Add the thyme sprigs to the pan. Transfer the pan to the oven and bake until the fish flakes easily with a fork, 6 to 8 minutes. Remove fish from the oven and transfer to paper towels.
• To make the scampi:
• In a large skillet, heat the garlic oil over medium-high heat. Add the garlic, shallots, and fennel seeds and cook, stirring frequently, until the shallots are translucent, about 2 minutes. Add the celery and capers and cook until the celery has softened, about 2 minutes. Add the wine to the pan and cook until it is reduced by half, about 1 minute. Add the vinegar, lemon zest and juice, tomatoes, and basil and cook for 1 to 2 minutes to incorporate the flavors and heat the tomatoes through.
• Serve the bass fillets topped with the tomato scampi.

Steps:

• 1. Cut tomatoes into different shapes (thin wedges, halves, dice); place in a bowl. Combine with the onion, half of the parsley, corn, basil, lemon zest, juice, pepper, and 4 tablespoons oil. Set side.
• 2. Rub butter on the skin side of the fish; season both sides with salt and pepper. Heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Cook fish, skin-side down, until golden brown, about 6 minutes. Turn carefully; cook 3 to 4 minutes more.
• 3. Spoon tomato mixture onto 4 plates; top with a fillet. Drizzle with lemon juice; garnish with remaining parsley and serve.

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.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400°F. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a medium skillet over medium heat until hot but not smoking. Add the garlic; cook, stirring, until just golden, about 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes; cook until the skins begin to split, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the olives, capers, and oregano; cook 30 seconds more. Season with salt and pepper.
• Coat both sides of the fish with the remaining 2 tablespoons oil; season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a medium roasting pan, skinned side down. Spoon the tomato mixture over the fish. Cook until opaque, 10 to 15 minutes. Serve topped with sauce from the pan.