Bass in a Fennel Broth

Here, you cook the bass in an aromatic onion broth but serve it in a much more delicate fennel broth.

8 cups (2 quarts) vegetable broth

4 fennel bulbs, trimmed, with the small feathery fronds minced and reserved

3 cups water

1⁄4 cup dry white wine or dry vermouth

1 large onion, quartered

1 celery rib, cut into chunks

10 black peppercorns

4 parsley sprigs

Six 4- to 6-ounce skin-on black, striped, spotted, or sea bass fi llets (see Note)

1⁄2 teaspoon kosher or sea salt, or to taste

• Pour the broth into a large saucepan and set it over high heat. Thinly slice the fennel and add it to the broth once it comes to a boil. Cover tightly, reduce the heat to very low, and simmer very slowly for 1 hour. Strain over a large bowl, then pour back into the large saucepan. Set aside, covered, off the heat. Discard the sliced fennel.
• Combine the water, wine or vermouth, onion, celery, peppercorns, parsley, and salt in a medium saucepan set over high heat. Bring the mixture to a boil, cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer very slowly for 30 minutes.
• Strain the onion mixture through a fi ne-mesh sieve and into a large sauté pan or high-sided skillet; set over medium-high heat and bring to a simmer. Also place the fennel infusion in its saucepan over medium-low heat.
• Score the skin on the bass fi llets in three or four places with a sharp knife. Slip them into the strained onion broth, cover, and poach until the fi llets are opaque and can be fl aked at their thinnest part with a fork, about 5 minutes.
• Gently transfer the fi llets to four large soup bowls. Ladle the hot fennel broth over them. Sprinkle a few feathery fennel fronds over each bowl and garnish with salt.

Makes 6 servings