Sea Bass with Butter Bean Mash & Gremolata

Ingredients

• 2 sea bass fillets, skin scored
• 2 x 400g tins butter beans, drained and rinsed
• 3 garlic cloves, 2 minced, 1 finely grated
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced
• 15g flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 100 ml chicken or vegetable stock
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• salt and black pepper
• Crusty ciabatta, to serve
• Dressed rocket salad with shaved parmesan, to serve

Method

1. Make the gremolata: mix the lemon zest, finely grated garlic and chopped parsley together in a small bowl. Season with a pinch of salt and stir through the extra virgin olive oil. Set aside to let the flavours mingle.
2. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Gently fry the minced garlic for about 1 minute, until fragrant but not coloured. Add the butter beans and stock and warm through for 3–4 minutes, until the beans are soft and the liquid has loosened.
3. Roughly mash about half the beans with a fork — you want a creamy base with whole beans running through it for texture. Season well with salt and black pepper and squeeze in half the lemon juice. Keep warm over a low heat.
4. Pat the sea bass fillets very dry with kitchen paper — this is what gets you crisp skin. Season generously on both sides.
5. Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a non-stick frying pan over high heat until it shimmers and is just starting to smoke. Lay the fillets in skin-side down and press gently with a spatula for the first 30 seconds to stop them curling. Cook undisturbed for 3–4 minutes, until the skin is deep golden and crisp.
6. Flip the fillets and cook for 1 minute on the flesh side, until just cooked through and opaque.
7. Spoon the warm butter bean mash onto two plates. Sit the sea bass on top, skin-side up. Scatter generously with gremolata and squeeze over the remaining lemon juice.