Sea bass is without question our favorite fish. This buttery, flavorful fish is perfect for special occasions like anniversaries, birthdays, or Valentines Day.
However, it’s so fast and easy to make that it’s an elevated meal you can easily make on a weeknight.
This Chilean sea bass recipe gives you restaurant-quality food right at home.
Although sea bass is one of the more expensive fish filets you can buy, this meal will still cost you less than a night out at a fast casual restaurant, so why not indulge in this recipe?
What is Chilean Sea Bass?
A Chilean Sea Bass is actually a Patagonian Toothfish. It can be found in deep, cold waters in the southern Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans.
This species of fish is a great choice for anyone looking to avoid the “fishy” taste that you might find in another type of fish.
The flavor profile is rich and buttery and the texture of the filet is white and flaky.
How to Cook Chilean Sea Bass
This recipe will explain how to make sauteed sea bass, whether you top it with the romesco sauce or not.
We like to start by seasoning the white fish with simple salt and pepper, but you can also incorporate other flavors by using garlic powder or your favorite seasoning rub.
You could also choose to marinate this popular fish in a soy sauce blend for an asian spin on this dish.
Once you determine your seasoning, be sure to pat fish dry prior to searing it in the pan. This will help to create a crispy sear on the skin of the white sea bass.
Some variations to this recipe would be to serve the fish on its own, with an easy lemon butter sauce, or topped with fresh pesto (you can find our homemade pesto recipe in our recipe for our Peach, Tomato, and Burrata).
What to Serve with Sea Bass
Chilean Sea Bass goes great with the following sides:
- Vegetables – A fresh green veggie side dish helps to offset the rich, buttery taste of the sea bass fillets. This recipe would be great with peas, beans, or even asparagus. We also highly recommend our Air Fryer Broccolini recipe.
- Starchy Side – For a money-saving option, you can get away with serving smaller fish filets if you have a heartier, starchy side. Mashed potatoes, risotto, or a side of rice is a smart choice. You can even add flavor and flair to your rice with our Tropical Rice Recipe.
- You may also want to check out this roundup of 40+ Incredible Sides for Fried Fish, even though this recipe isn’t fried, you may find some side dish inspiration in that post.
Sauteed Sea Bass with Romesco Sauce
Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Cook Time: 10 Minutes
Serves: 4 Servings
Ingredients:
- 4 sea bass filets
- 2 Tablespoons of cooking oil
- 2 Tablespoons of unsalted butter
- One 16-ounce jar of roasted red bell pepper, drained
- ½ cup raw or roasted almonds (unsalted)
- ½ cup of canned fire roasted tomatoes, drained
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt, to taste
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 Tablespoon of lemon juice (Juice of ½ of a lemon)
- Salt and black pepper, to taste
Directions:
- Start by preparing the romesco sauce. Add the drained red bell pepper, almonds, fire roasted tomatoes, garlic, vinegar, paprika, cayenne, salt, and lemon juice to a blender or food processor.
- Pulse until smooth, then stream in the extra virgin olive oil while it is blending. Blend until the romesco reaches your desired consistency. Add additional salt and pepper, if desired.
- Next, use paper towels to pat the sea bass dry on all sides. The dryer the fresh fish, the better sear you’ll achieve. Finally, season with salt salt.
- Heat your oil in a large saute pan over medium high heat. We use a stainless steel skillet but a cast iron pan also works.
- Place the bottom of the fish, sea bass skin-side down, in the pan and sear until it reaches a golden brown color (roughly 5 minutes). Then use a spatula to carefully flip the fish.
- Sear the other side of the fish until it also turns golden brown.
- Add the butter to the pan. Once melted, use a spoon to ladle the melted butter on top of the fish. This will continue to cook the fish and will result in a buttery, seared exterior.
- Cook fish to an internal temperature of 145 degrees F or until the inside of the fish is flakey and opaque.
- Remove the sea bass from the skillet and top fish with a generous spoonful of the romesco sauce. Serve the fish with lemon slices. Feel free to top with lemon zest or microgreens for an elevated presentation.
Notes: You will likely have extra romesco sauce. Store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to five days. Serve it on top of chicken, on sandwiches, or even as a dip for pita and crudites.
Sauteed Sea Bass with Romesco Sauce
This recipe for Sauteed Sea Bass with Romesco Sauce is packed with flavor and everything is ready in only 15 minutes!
Ingredients
- 4 sea bass filets
- 2 Tablespoons of cooking oil
- 2 Tablespoons of unsalted butter
- One 16-ounce jar of roasted red bell pepper, drained
- ½ cup raw or roasted almonds (unsalted)
- ½ cup of canned fire roasted tomatoes, drained
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt, to taste
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 Tablespoon of lemon juice (Juice of ½ of a lemon)
- Salt and black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Start by preparing the romesco sauce. Add the drained red bell pepper, almonds, fire roasted tomatoes, garlic, vinegar, paprika, cayenne, salt, and lemon juice to a blender or food processor.
- Pulse until smooth, then stream in the extra virgin olive oil while it is blending. Blend until the romesco reaches your desired consistency. Add additional salt and pepper, if desired.
- Next, use paper towels to pat the sea bass dry on all sides. The dryer the fresh fish, the better sear you’ll achieve. Finally, season with salt salt.
- Heat your oil in a large saute pan over medium high heat. We use a stainless steel skillet but a cast iron pan also works.
- Place the bottom of the fish, sea bass skin-side down, in the pan and sear until it reaches a golden brown color (roughly 5 minutes). Then use a spatula to carefully flip the fish.
- Sear the other side of the fish until it also turns golden brown.
- Add the butter to the pan. Once melted, use a spoon to ladle the melted butter on top of the fish. This will continue to cook the fish and will result in a buttery, seared exterior.
- Cook fish to an internal temperature of 145 degrees F or until the inside of the fish is flakey and opaque.
- Remove the sea bass from the skillet and top fish with a generous spoonful of the romesco sauce. Serve the fish with lemon slices. Feel free to top with lemon zest or microgreens for an elevated presentation.
Notes
You will likely have extra romesco sauce. Store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to five days. Serve it on top of chicken, on sandwiches, or even as a dip for pita and crudites.
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- Sheet Pan Salmon Nicoise Salad
- Salmon Tacos Recipe
- Hot Honey and Sriracha Salmon Recipe
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