Roasted Black Sea Bass
I spent the last two weeks in Croatia, where there was no shortage of amazing seafood and fresh veggies from the garden of the villa where we stayed. Food was simple, but super healthy and absolutely delicious.
The Mediterranean diet is one of the healthiest in the world and it’s no wonder. It’s tough to go wrong with pure olive oil, grilled seafood, and fresh veggies.
Having come home, I wanted to bring some of those flavors with me, so that I could relive—at least in flavor—some of the memories I brought with me from that gorgeous country on the Adriatic.
Whole fish was on just about every menu, so the first thing I did when I got home was drive myself over to Whole Foods and pick up some whole black sea bass.
For some reason, Americans are afraid of whole fish. Don’t be! De-boning a cooked fish is a breeze when you know how (CLICK HERE for a quick tutorial).
Whole fish tends to be juicier and more flavorful, not to mention the WOW factor when you serve it up. And if you end up with a bone or two in your mouth, it’s not the end of the world (unless you’re on a first date), so dive right in! Roasted (or grilled) whole fish truly is one of the best things you’ll ever taste.
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RECIPE
Roasted Black sea bass
Serves 3-4 (See visual recipe below)
Ingredients
2 1-1/2 pound whole Black Sea Bass fish, scaled, gutted, and brushed with olive oil
1 large red onion, thinly sliced
1/2 bunch organic cilantro or Italian flat leaf parsley, half of it in whole leaves separated from the stem and the other half minced
4 cloves of garlic, minced (6-7 if you’re a garlic lover)
1-2 scallions, cut in 2” pieces
1 pack of organic cherry tomatoes
1-2 packages of organic yellow creamer potatoes (or 6-7 medium Yukon Gold potatoes), boiled with the skin on. (potatoes are optional depending on your diet regimen, but they taste great with this dish. You can substitute with a veggie side or cauliflower rice).
1-2 lemons
Olive oil to drizzle (this is my favorite olive oil for drizzling on salads, and pretty much over everything since I got back from Sardinia)
Coarse Pink Himalayan Salt (or Kosher Sea Salt) to taste
Fresh Ground Pepper to taste
Organic garlic granules to taste
Directions
Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees.
Grease a large stainless steel roasting pan with olive oil and cover the bottom with sliced red onions. Drizzle more olive oil over the top of the onions.
In a bowl, toss the whole cherry tomatoes in olive oil and salt and arrange around the pan.
Set your timer for 15 minutes and place the pan with the onions and tomatoes in the oven.
Pat the fish dry (including the cavity) with paper towels and then brush the cavity with olive oil. Stuff it with parsley, scallions, and lemon slices, and then generously brush the outside with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper, and garlic granules.
After 15 minutes are up, take the pan with the onions and tomatoes out of the oven and place the fish on top.
Sprinkle parsley over everything and add a few more slices of lemon on top of the fish.
Place the pan back in the oven and bake for about 25-30 minutes.
While the fish is roasting, prepare the potatoes. Clean them with a veggie brush and boil with skins on. Be careful not to overcook the potatoes because they will fall apart. If they're different sizes, you may have to remove the smaller ones before the larger ones, as they will cook more quickly. Test them with a fork to check their progress.
Once the timer has chimed after 25-30 minutes and your fish are almost done, turn your oven to broil and reset the timer to 3-5 minutes.
Remove when the fish looks lightly browned and and de-bone it on a large wooden cutting board. Don’t know how? CLICK HERE for a quick tutorial.
Serve with potatoes if desired. Drizzle more olive oil over everything on the plate and sprinkle with minced garlic and parsley, and garnish with lemon quarters.
ENJOY!
visual RECIPE
1. Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees and prep your garnish—slice tomatoes, and mince the garlic and parsley. CLICK HERE to buy a set of handy glass nesting bowls on Amazon.
2. Grease a large stainless steel roasting pan with olive oil and cover the bottom with sliced red onions. Pour more olive oil over the top of the onions.
3. Place the whole fish on top of the onion slices and generously brush Its top, bottom, and inside cavity with olive oil.
4. Sprinkle both sides of the fish with salt and pepper.
5. Stuff the cavity with the scallion, coarsely chopped parsley, sliced garlic, and a few slices of lemon.
6. In a bowl, toss the whole cherry tomatoes in olive oil and salt. Scatter them around the pan. CLICK HERE to buy a set of Stainless Steel mixing bowls on Amazon.
7. Sprinkle parsley over everything and add a few more slices of lemon on top of the fish.
8. Place the fish in the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes (depending on the size of the fish).
9. Boil the potatoes with skins on. Be careful not to overcook them. If they're different sizes, you may have to remove the smaller ones before the larger ones, as they will cook more quickly. Test them with a fork to check their progress.
10. Once your timer has chimed after 25-30 minutes, turn your oven to broil and leave the fish in for another 5-7 minutes, until the top has browned a bit.
11. Remove the fish from the oven and debone it on a large wooden cutting board.
Serve with potatoes, sliced tomatoes and sprinkle with minced garlic and parsley, and some lemon slices.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Victoria Gregory is an Integrative Nutritionist and founder of NEWTRITION NEWYOU. Her focus—whether with private clients, readers of her blog, or her followers on social media— is whole body wellness, incorporating whole-food nutrition, supplementation, exercise, toxin-free living, and mindset coaching. Victoria’s personal mission is to help make the world a healthier place, one person at a time, and she has helped thousands of people find joy and self-love through better eating habits and mindfulness. Learn more about Victoria.
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