Sea bass with Crayfish

Sea bass and sea bream are my absolute favourite fish.  When I first started working, nearly every Saturday I would go to the fishmonger in my local market and buy a sea bass or sea bream.  It was a wonderfully indulgent treat on my meagre salary at the time.  I would bake it and have it simply with vegetables, sometimes some salsa verde or a butter sauce but ultimately just enjoy the fish.

Nowadays, sadly I don't live near a good fishmonger and sometimes sea bass and sea bream can be hard to find in good condition but today, some lovely looking sea bass fillets caught my eye.  A pack of prepared crayfish also went into my basket and an idea was born.

I have been fantastically lucky with the green beans in my garden this year.  Despite an inauspicious start, the beautiful autumn sunshine we have been enjoying has lead to a bumper crop and the flavour has been amazing.  I had never noticed the slight hint of bitterness in a green bean until seconds of my beautifully sweet beans, devoid of bitterness were being fought over last weekend by me and my 5 year old son.  That is a good sign.  Anyway, green beans are a fantastic foil for fish fillet but you could always make it even more substantial with some slices of cooked waxy potatoes.


Sea Bass with Crayfish - Serves 1 generously

Ingredients

1-2 Sea Bass fillets, depending on size (and hunger)
Oil or spray oil
50g, 1.5oz Cooked, peeled crayfish (crawfish, yabbies)
3 tbsp White wine
1 clove Garlic, peeled
1 tbsp Chopped fresh parsley
15g, 1/2oz butter
A pinch of coarse sea salt
A handful of green beans

Method

Heat a non stick frying pan with oil or spray oil and add in the garlic clove, whole.

Put in the fillets of fish skin side down.  In the meantime, boil the green beans in water, this may take 3-5 minutes depending on freshness.

After a minute or so, add the white wine to the frying pan and reduce the heat to medium.  Simmer for a minute then carefully flip over the fillets.  Continue to cook until the fillets are nearly cooked through (this won't take long).  Add the crayfish and butter to the pan and shake slightly to warm the crayfish through and melt the butter.  If there aren't enough juices, add a little more wine or some water.

When the sea bass is cooked and the crayfish are warmed through, mix in the chopped parsley.  Serve the drained beans and fish with the delicious sauce topped with a pinch of coarse sea salt.  Enjoy your beautiful Sea Bass.