Baked Sea Bass, with Bok Choy and Bean Sprout Salad

So we just got back from an idyllic holiday in Barbados, where I felt like all I ate was yummy fresh fish. It was magical. Getting home, to the freezing north of England, I am trying to keep the holiday vibe going! It’s still cold here, but at least we can eat delicious food.

This recipe looks a bit fiddly, what with all of the different sauces for each step. However, a lot of the ingredients are common to all 3 sauces so it just takes a bit of preparing and mixing. Hand on heart – sesame seed oil is one of my favourite ingredients and I’d urge you all to buy a bottle. Mirin is easily sourced from any Asian grocery store, but you could sub in a little vinegar if you don’t have it.

Serves 2

Ingredients for the veggies

• 2 bok choy, leaves trimmed, sliced lengthways into 4 pieces
• 1 carrot, peeled and diced
• 1 red chilli,  deseeded and sliced thinly
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 2 tsp vegetable oil
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• ½ thumb garlic, grated
• ¼ tsp Chinese 5 spice
• Salt and ground black pepper

Ingredients for the Fish

• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp mirin
• 1/2 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tsp cornflour
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 sea bass fillets
• 2 scallions, sliced thinly

Ingredients for the beansprout salad

• 1 pack of beansprouts
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• ¼ tsp flaked sea salt

Method

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees C.

Begin with the bok choy, carrots and chillies. Prepare as above and lay out evenly on a large lined baking tray.

Mix together the remaining ingredients and drizzle over the top, coating everything nicely so they won’t stick to the tray.

Allow to roast for 12 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the fish. Mix together the soy sauce, mirin, sesame oil, and cornflour. Add in the garlic and mix well.

At this point I throw on some rice to cook as well.

Remove the vegetable tray from the oven after the 12 minutes. 

Place the fish on top. Drizzle over the prepared sauce and scatter over the scallions. 

Place back in the oven for another 8 minutes until the fish is cooked through.

Now you can prepare the beansprouts, it’s a very fast side to prepare.

Bring to the boil some water, throw in the beansprouts and allow to boil for 2 minutes.

Mix together the sesame oil, sesame seeds, garlic, soy sauce and salt.

Drain the beansprouts and drizzle over the sauce you’ve just made.

Everything should be done at just about the same time, so you can plate up!