Sea Bass Fillets Fried in Lemon Butter and Garlic
Sea bass is a good source of omega 3 fatty acids, vitamin B6 and selenium. So even with a lot of butter, I like to think this is a fairly healthy dinner. In any case sea bass is one of my favourite fish and I love it simply fried in butter, lemon and garlic. I also love it grilled with a gluten-free crust.
The fish cooks in minutes so it’s best to get your sides prepared and/or cooked first. Pan-fried potatoes make a great side for this. I tend to cook the baby potatoes first in the microwave, slice them and then quickly crisp them before before frying the fish.
You can brown the butter for this dish, meaning heat the butter until it has browned a little. This gives the butter a slightly nutty taste which is very nice. It’s important not to let the butter burn though. If you are worried about burning the butter, heat the butter in a little extra virgin olive oil. I like to do this anyway as I like to add more unsaturated fats where I can.
Ingredients
- 2 sea bass fillets, boned & de-scaled
- 20g salted butter
- 1 lemon, halved, pips removed
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled & sliced
- ½ tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- parsley, optional
- salt & black pepper
Instructions
- To avoid burning the butter you can first heat a little olive oil in a smooth bottomed frying pan. When the oil is heated it will move around the pan more easily when you tilt it around. Now add in half the butter. Once it has melted, place the fillets in the pan skin-side down. Spoon some of the melted butter over the fish. Let them cook for 3 minutes. You should begin to see the flesh on the top side of the fish turning white and opaque. Squeeze half a lemon over the fish. Add the rest of the butter to the pan and scatter in the sliced garlic. Let cook for a further 3 - 4 minutes, spooning over the melted butter, lemon and garlic slices every so often. You can turn the fillets over for a minute if you want to brown up the top-side, but it’s not necessary. Remove from the heat. Cut the remaining half lemon into slices or wedges and serve with the cooked fish.
