Blackened Sea Bass with Scotch Bonnet Sauce

Ingredients

• 1 clove, minced
• corn tortillas
• 30 g black garlic
• 1 scotch bonnet chilli, seeds removed
• 1 scotch bonnet chilli, deseeded and finely diced
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tbsp pul biber (or 1-2 tablespoons regular chilli flakes)
• 5 g spring onion, finely chopped
• 2 spring onions, sliced at an angle
• sea salt
• 1 tsp sea salt, plus extra for seasoning
• 12 tsp soft light brown sugar
• 60 ml olive oil
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• lime, zested and juiced
• 2 tbsp lime juice
• 10 g coriander, chopped
• 4 small sea bass (250-300g each)s, cleaned and dried
• 2 tsp ground coriander
• 10 g mint, chopped
• Buttered new potatoes, to serve
• Dressed green salad, to serve

Method

1. Tip the black garlic, scotch bonnet, lime zest and juice, cumin, ground coriander, brown sugar, pul biber, sea salt and olive oil into a food processor and blend to a smooth, glossy paste. The cumin and coriander will bloom in the hot oil on the grill later, but blitzing them through the marinade now wakes them up and stops them tasting dusty on the finished fish.
2. Spoon half the marinade into a small bowl and set aside for serving — this is your finishing sauce, so don't let it touch the raw fish. Season the sea bass generously inside and out with salt, then rub the remaining marinade all over, working it into the cavities and under the skin where you can. Leave to marinate for at least an hour, or overnight in the fridge for deeper flavour. The lime juice in the marinade is doing the acid work — that's why there's no finishing squeeze on the fish itself.
3. For the dipping sauce, combine the diced scotch bonnet, minced garlic, finely chopped spring onion and lime juice in a small bowl with a pinch of flaked sea salt. Stir and set aside for at least 10 minutes to mingle — the raw garlic mellows in the lime juice and stops biting.
4. For the herb salad, toss the chopped coriander, mint and angled spring onions together in a bowl with a small pinch of salt. Don't dress it yet; the salt alone is enough to keep the leaves lively without wilting them.
5. Heat a barbecue to medium — you want a steady heat, not a fierce one, or the sugar in the marinade scorches before the flesh cooks through. Pat the marinated sea bass dry on the surface (water means steam, and steam means no char), then brush both sides with vegetable oil.
6. Lay the fish onto the grill bars and leave them alone. Cook for 6-7 minutes per side, only turning when the skin lifts cleanly off the bars — if it sticks, it's not ready. The fish is done when the skin is charred and crisp and the flesh at the thickest point is opaque and flakes easily off the backbone. Taste the herb salad and the dipping sauce now and adjust the salt — at the plate, not at the table.
7. Lift the fish off with a metal spatula, working slowly so the skin stays intact, and loosely tent with foil while you warm the tortillas. Set a large cast-iron pan on the barbecue over high heat and toast the tortillas in batches — don't crowd the pan or they steam instead of blistering. About a minute each side, until warmed through with a few dark spots.
8. Plate the whole sea bass on a wide platter, scatter the coriander and mint salad alongside, stack the warm tortillas, and serve with the dipping sauce and the reserved marinade for spooning over. Lime wedges on the side for anyone who wants an extra squeeze of lime at the table.