I cooked this dish live with Asimakis Chaniotis, a michelin starred chef in London’s Pied A Terre restaurant. He, in Greece at the time prepared a freshly caught blue fin tuna ceviche.
Ingredients (serves 2)
For the sea bass
- 2 fillets of sea bass
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- A knob of butter
- A squeeze of lemon juice
For the Jersey Royals
- 3-5 potatoes, depending on size (approx. 150g)
- 1 fennel bulb & fennel fronds
- ¼ tsp fennel flowers or toasted and crushed fennel seeds
- ½ shallot, finely chopped
- 1 tsp vegetable bouillon
- A squeeze of lemon
For the Morecambe Bay Shrimps
- 150g shrimps
- ½ shallot, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp of ouzo
- A squeeze of lemon juice
- Some lemon zest
For the rock samphire
- A few sprigs of samphire
- 25ml white wine vinegar
- 50ml water
- 1 tbsp sugar
- A few crushed pink peppercorns
For the tempura
- 45g plain flour
- 100ml sparkling water
- A pinch of sugar
Vegetable oil for frying
Method
To make the pickling liquor for the rock samphire, put the water, vinegar and sugar in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Turn the heating off and leave to go cool. Add 4-5 pieces of rock samphire and a few crushed pink peppercorns and put in the fridge till required.
Scrub and wash the potatoes. Cut in chunks and cook in salted boiling water till soft but holding their shape.
Using a mandolin, slice thinly the fennel bulb and then chop finely. Reserve three of the fronds for plating and roughly chop the rest. Bring a small frying pan with the olive oil to a medium heat. Sweat the shallot and ¾ of the fennel bulb for 2-3 minutes. Sprinkle the vegetable bouillon and add 2-3 tbsp of water. Stir and cook for a further 2-3 minutes till the fennel is soft. Using a fork, crush the potatoes and add the cooked shallot and fennel. Add the chopped fronds, season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper, add a squeeze of lemon and mix well. Keep warm.
Bring a small pan with plenty of vegetable oil to 180 degrees. Whisk the flour, sparkling water and sugar to make a batter. Dip the rock samphire and immediately drop in the hot oil. Move around in the oil with a slotted spoon to cook evenly and remove after 1 minute. Drain on some kitchen paper.
Bring another small frying pan with the oil to a medium heat. Sweat the ¼ finely chopped fennel bulb and the chopped half shallot. When translucent, add the shrimp and stir a couple of times. Add the ouzo, lemon juice, zest and season with salt and pepper.
Pat dry and score the sea bass fillets. Season with salt and pepper. Bring a frying pan with the olive oil to a medium heat. Add the fillets, skin side down pressing for a few seconds to hold their shape and cook for 2-3 minutes depending on thickness. Add the knob of butter and using a spoon baste the fillets. When the skin is crispy and golden brown, flip over and cook for 30-60 seconds on that side. Drain on some kitchen paper and sprinkle with some freshly squeezed lemon juice.
To serve, place a food ring in the middle of the plate. Spoon in the potatoes. Place a sea bass fillet on top and half the tempura rock samphire on top of the fish fillet. Arrange the shrimps all around the fish and sprinkle with the reserved fronds and the pickled samphire.