Sea bass with olives, tomatoes, and fennel
- 2 whole, small sea bass, about 1 pound each, scaled and gutted
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra to rub over the fish
- 1 large or 2 medium fennel bulbs, thinly sliced
- splash of dry white wine
- 10 plum or Roma tomatoes, peeled and roughly chopped
- ½ cup sliced black olives
- handful of fresh basil or dillweed, roughly chopped
Instructions:
This is a delicious and healthy way of cooking whole sea bass.
- Clean the fish and pat dry with paper towels. Score the fish several times on each side, then rub all over with olive oil. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper and set aside.
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Heat the oil in a stovetop-tooven casserole that is wide enough to hold the fish side by side. Add the fennel and a little seasoning. Sauté the fennel until it begins to soften, about 5 minutes. Pour in a generous splash of wine, then stir in the tomatoes and olives. Scatter half of the basil over the sauce, then rest the sea bass on top.
- Transfer the casserole to the oven and bake until the fish is just cooked through, 15–20 minutes: It should be opaque at the thickest part of the flesh. Serve the fish and sauce straight from the casserole.