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Puree for pan-fried sea bass

1K views 10 replies 8 participants last post by  norgebishop 
#1 ·
Can anyone suggest a puree that goes well with pan-fried sea bass?
 
#2 · (Edited)
Sea bass is such a nice delicate fish, I would be careful not to use any type of heavy puree that would mask or over-power the bass. Keeping it lite is the key so two that I might be inclined to try might be a ginger/lemon grass or possibly pea with a touch of cilantro and lime. I'm not certain of your level of service or menu so you might also need to determine what level of refinement you desire. Meaning you need to choose between puree or coulis. They both have their place but I tend to lean toward the Coulis because you strain things.

I really enjoy sea bass. Years ago, I remember there was a place on St. Simons Island, Georgia called Alfonso's Olde Plantation Supper Club. Chef Alfonso served it pan fried with just a little lemon and maybe some tartar sauce. His place was the only one where I would eat it pan fried, as in breaded. It was unbelievable and so simple and the tarter was very unique. If I remember correctly, you picked up some heat from fresh jalapenos.

Since then I've served sea bass a couple different ways but my favorite to date (other than Alfonso's) involves searing it with slivers of fresh garlic and ginger inserted into slits in the flesh, accompanied by wilted baby bokchoy, steamed mini shrimp dumplings and basmati or jasmine rice with a miso/black bean broth. By the way, that's fermented black beans.
 
#6 ·
Black bean puree would be a nice shock against the white hue- it's even kinda purple with enough cream. pick it up with fine brunoise seranno and hamhock maybe. with a pineapple buerre blanc or something. I really like the pea puree idea. celery root puree is always nice, and you could color it with clorophyl or togorashi.  
 
#7 · (Edited)
Pan fried? Is it your thinking to pan fry Sea Bass? Asian style pan fried Sea Bass steaks?
Hey Kuan! I did detect a note of surprise to the idea of fried so I'm guessing this was directed to the OP but.....to explain my comment......

It didn't seem right to me either but you have to remember this was 1987 in Low Country Coastal Georgia at a very southern" restaurant. At the risk of causing an uproar over the theme, all I can say is the name sums up exactly the ambiance it suggests and to a level that could be considered as paying homage to "Song of the South". Anyhow, half the menu was fried and I didn't want to throw my nose up at it. Also, Chef Alfonso brought it to the table as a presentation to us as one of his specialties. I/we were in the process of opening a new restaurant on the island and it was sort of a welcoming to us.

From the conversation that ensued, there were a couple of the things I learned; like it was local "Stripers" (Coastal striped bass), the recipe did use a typical breading of flour and buttermilk but the procedure was flour, buttermilk and finally into corn meal then into a black steel skillet with butter and lard with a rasher of cured ham fatback. There was more but we couldn't get that out of him since I'm sure he would have been telling us his secrets. Anyhow, the thought of the fish still makes my mouth water today and wish I could confirm what his actual secret(s) was/were.

Some years later, I ran into some of my old employees and we got to talking about things back then. The subject about Alfonso's came up and that it was now closed but was told he would use, of all things, good seasons Italian dressing to marinade almost all his meats and fish fillets before cooking. I never tried it wanting to keep the memory intact....plus I don't have my black steel skillet an longer. LOL
 
#8 ·
Hey Kuan! I did detect a note of surprise to the idea of fried so I'm guessing this was directed to the OP but.....to explain my comment......
Yeah I was a bit surprised but I didn't read your post. :) I would never, but that's because I'm stuck in my ways. But when I was in Illinois some of the folk who came up from the south brought the Italian dressing idea with them. It only went on the chicken though and I must say it worked quite well for a quick marinade.
 
#10 · (Edited)
Got to thinking and I need to correct a frain bart about bass species. Just on the off chance some eye's rolled, please cut me some slack gang, there's close to 35 years of stuff rattling around up there and sometimes it does get cross-wired /img/vbsmilies/smilies/biggrin.gif

The first recipe and coulis or puree ideas are for black sea bass. It didn't dawn on me until just a few minutes ago I mentioned the stripers or striped sea bass from Georgia. There are some differences, albethem subtle so the suggestions were made with that in mind. Stripers I wouldn't use anything but the lemon and tatar or on the outside chance it was blackened then it might be a nice sauce Pontchatrain. Just wanted to make the clarification too.
 
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