Black Sea Bass with Fava Beans

By Executive Chef Ashfer Biju

  • Seafood Broth Recipe Preparation:
  • Place all the ingredients together in a thick bottom stockpot
  • Bring to boil, simmer for about one hour
  • Strain the broth using a cheesecloth. Total yield  should be about 800 gms
  • Reheat the stock, add red chilli flakes & tomato to the stock
  • Monte au beurre with butter till it obtains a light creamy texture and finishes with lemon juice and parsley
  • Fennel Confit Preparation:
  • Bring everything together in a deep hotel pan then cook @300 degrees until tender for 35 minutes 
  • Take the fennel out of the liquid and let it cool
  • Dice them into ½ inch
  • Tomato Compote Recipe Preparation:
  • Sweat garlic and shallots in olive oil, add tomato paste
  • Cook for about 6 minutes then add chopped tomatoes
  • Add sugar after 10 minutes then cook until almost dry
  • Finish seasoning with salt and lemon zest. Cool & keep aside 
  • Preparation:
  • Season fish fillets with salt and pepper
  • Heat a thick-bottomed sauté pan & sear the fish on the skin side first
  • Once the fish is almost cooked, flip it, finish with butter to make skin nice and crispy
  • Place about 2 oz of fish broth in the plate
  • Spoon over 2 tablespoons of fava and fennel mix in the middle of the plate.
  • Place fish on top
  • Spoon over a tablespoon of tomato compote over the fish
  • Garnish with moldon sea salt, parsley & freshly ground pepper

Ingredients:

  • Black sea bass - 160gms (5.6oz) filet with skin
  • Kosher salt - to taste
  • Peppercorns - freshly ground
  • Canola oil - for pan-frying
  • Butter - for pan-frying
  • Seafood broth - 360 gms (12 fl oz), (see recipe)
  • Tomato compote - 90 gms (6 tbsp), (see recipe)
  • Fava beans - 300 gms, blanched and peeled
  • Fennel confit - 300gms, see recipe
  • Maldon sea salt - 6 gms
  • Parsley - 1 sprig, chiffonade
  • Seafood Broth Recipe (Yield: 800 gms)
  • Ingredients to prepare fish stock
  • Fishbones - 550 gms, cleaned
  • Lobster shell - 1 ea, blanched
  • Littleneck clams - 20 ea
  • Shallots - 55 gms, sliced
  • Celery - 30 gms, sliced
  • Fennel - 60 gms, sliced
  • Leeks - 15 gms, sliced
  • Garlic - 10 gms, peeled & crushed
  • Tomato - 200 gms, quartered
  • Water - 1400 gms
  • Thyme - 1 spring
  • Black pepper - 3 gms
  • Bay leaf - 2 ea
  • Star anise - 2 ea
  • Saffron - 3 gms
  • Ingredients for finishing
  • Tomato - 150 gms, cut in brunoise
  • Red chili flakes - 5 gms
  • Lemon juice - 20 ml
  • Butter - 120 gms  
  • Salt to taste
  • Fennel Confit (yield: 100gms)
  • Fennel - 100gms, cut into ½’ lengthwise
  • Thyme - 6 sprigs
  • Star anise - 2 no
  • Garlic - 4 clove
  • Tomato Compote Recipe (Yield: 500 gms)
  • Peeled tomato - 400gms, chopped
  • Shallots - 100gms, minced
  • Garlic - 5 gms, minced
  • Olive oil - 30 gms
  • Tomato paste - 15 gms
  • Salt - 1 gm
  • Sugar - 5 gms
  • Lemon zest - 20 gms
  • Red chilli flakes - 2.5 gms