The first time I had this dish was in lovely Praiano, a gem in the necklace of stunning coastline that is the Amalfi Coast. The Amalfi Coast is one of those places where upon arrival, you pull off to the side of the road, lean over the rail and try to take in its beauty; try to breathe it in deeply; try to infuse it into your skin in case you never see it again. The small towns, cascading from mountain tippy tops to the ocean. The colorful boats bobbing on see-through blue waters. Purple bougainvilleas, giant yellow lemons, pink-washed stucco buildings. Sigh. Oh, I was supposed to be writing about fish. Sorry.....
When the waiter rolled a trolley up to our table containing a large molten lump of salt, I wasn’t sure what to think. With a heavy spoon, he thumped the top, and the whole thing cracked open. Buried inside was a beautifully cooked sea bass. He quickly brushed away the coarse grains of salt, and with quick, deft hands, skinned and de-boned the fish onto our plates lickety-split. Then he grabbed a nearby bowl, gave the contents a swirl, and drizzled a wonderfully seasoned olive oil over our pieces of fish.
When the waiter rolled a trolley up to our table containing a large molten lump of salt, I wasn’t sure what to think. With a heavy spoon, he thumped the top, and the whole thing cracked open. Buried inside was a beautifully cooked sea bass. He quickly brushed away the coarse grains of salt, and with quick, deft hands, skinned and de-boned the fish onto our plates lickety-split. Then he grabbed a nearby bowl, gave the contents a swirl, and drizzled a wonderfully seasoned olive oil over our pieces of fish.
Upon taking a bite, I couldn’t help but close my eyes and groan. The fish was soooo tender and moist. Considering it had been covered in salt, it was not salty. It was in fact perfectly seasoned. The olive oil topping was a mixture of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, fresh mint and a pinch of red pepper flakes. This golden dressing made our fish glisten, and only added another note of flavor to what was already a heavenly dish.
Here’s your list of ingredients: (for two people)
Sea bass, whole (cleaned by your fishmonger, but head, tail, and skin definitely left on)
Lots of coarse salt
Olive oil, about ¼ c.
Balsamic vinegar, about ½ T.
Fresh mint, chopped, to taste
Red pepper flakes, to taste
Let’s get started:
Preheat the oven to 350.
In order to not waste, or have to use too much coarse salt, it’s best to use a pan that fits your fish as perfectly as possible. Since I rarely have the exact size pan I need, I just improvise as you see in the pictures. I have baked as many as three fish at one time in a 13 x 9 pan. But in this particular instance, I was only baking one fish, and didn’t have a smaller pan to fit. So you will see that I’m simply “building” my own pan with tin foil. So simple.
Once you have your pan “built”, pour a layer of course salt to cover the bottom of your pan; a bed, for your fish to lay on. Rinse the fish, pat it dry with paper towels, and lay it down on the bed of salt.
Here’s your list of ingredients: (for two people)
Sea bass, whole (cleaned by your fishmonger, but head, tail, and skin definitely left on)
Lots of coarse salt
Olive oil, about ¼ c.
Balsamic vinegar, about ½ T.
Fresh mint, chopped, to taste
Red pepper flakes, to taste
Let’s get started:
Preheat the oven to 350.
In order to not waste, or have to use too much coarse salt, it’s best to use a pan that fits your fish as perfectly as possible. Since I rarely have the exact size pan I need, I just improvise as you see in the pictures. I have baked as many as three fish at one time in a 13 x 9 pan. But in this particular instance, I was only baking one fish, and didn’t have a smaller pan to fit. So you will see that I’m simply “building” my own pan with tin foil. So simple.
Once you have your pan “built”, pour a layer of course salt to cover the bottom of your pan; a bed, for your fish to lay on. Rinse the fish, pat it dry with paper towels, and lay it down on the bed of salt.
Now, you just cover, and I do mean cover, the fish with more salt. Really. Until you can’t see the fish any more. Really. I mean it. Wet your hand under the faucet, and flick drops of water over the mound of salt covering the fish. Pop it in the preheated oven, set the timer for 30 minutes. Now you have the time to mix together the remaining ingredients in a small bowl.
After 30 minutes, take it out of the oven. If you poke the salt mound with your finger, you will find that it’s hardened into a crust. This dish is very forgiving. If the rest of your dinner isn’t done, the fish won’t mind sitting there for another 10 or 15 minutes. It won’t overcook, and it will stay nice and hot. When you’re ready, we’ll start with the unveiling and serving.
Okay, here comes the fun part! The skin of the fish has kept the meat of the fish from absorbing too much salt, so it’s important that you keep the salt away from the meat of the fish as you are deboning. Crack the crust, and brush as much salt away from the surface of the fish as you can.
With a fork or knife tip, break the skin of the fish. It will peel right off, and you will instantly see how moist the fish is inside.
Peel off the top layer of skin, and remove the top half of the fish meat to a plate. Now that you’ve exposed all the bones, you can remove them in pretty much one piece. Gently peel all the bone structure away. What you’re left with is the bottom half of the fish meat and the bottom half of the skin. With your fork, remove this second half of the meat from the remaining skin, to the second dinner plate.
Now, all that’s left to do is to give your “dressing” in the bowl a swirl with a spoon before drizzling it over the fish chunks. I think you’ll find the fish to be moist, flaky, perfectly seasoned, and oh, so delicious. This is one of those dishes that appears elegant and difficult, but in reality is so simple and truly delicious. Buon Appetito!
And every time I make it, I think of Praiano. Golden sunsets, warm waters, glistening suntanned skin, rocky shores, cactus, watermelon granita, buffalo milk mozzarella, Ferdinando’s Beach, striped lounge chairs, men in Speedos (which in Italy, is usually a good thing).
And every time I make it, I think of Praiano. Golden sunsets, warm waters, glistening suntanned skin, rocky shores, cactus, watermelon granita, buffalo milk mozzarella, Ferdinando’s Beach, striped lounge chairs, men in Speedos (which in Italy, is usually a good thing).
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