SEA BASS, CAULIFLOWER PURÉE & SWISS CHARD

Recipe:
SEA BASS, CAULIFLOWER PURÉE & SWISS CHARD

Serves: 4
Prepare: 20 minutes
Cook: 30 minutes

Rapeseed oil, for frying
1 onion, peeled and diced
4 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
1 head of cauliflower, cut into florets,
800ml vegetable stock
1 bunch Swiss chard, leaves removed
from the thick stalks
4 sea bass fillets
Small bunch of fresh flat-leaf
parsley, finely chopped
Sea salt and freshly ground
black pepper


Pour 2 tablespoons of oil into a large frying pan over a medium heat. Add in the onion and sweat for 10 minutes until soft. Add in almost all of the garlic and cook for one minute, then add in the cauliflower, stir everything together and cook for 2 minutes.

Pour in enough vegetable stock to barely cover the cauliflower. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and
simmer until very soft. Drain off the stock through a sieve and discard. Put the cooked onion, garlic and cauliflower into a food processor. Blitz until you have a very smooth purée, adding in a drizzle of oil if needed. Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary. If you are using fresh stock, you will need to season it properly with salt. If you’re using stock cubes you may not need any added salt at all. Keep the mixture warm.

Place the chard stalks in a large pot of boiling salted water. Cook until just tender, but not limp. This
should take about 3–4 minutes, depending on the thickness of the chard – taste a small piece to
check. Remove, drain and season with a pinch of sea salt and a drizzle of oil. Boil the chard leaves
in the same way, but remove after 2 minutes, drain well and season with salt and oil. Keep warm.

Place two non-stick frying pans over a medium-high heat. Drizzle a little oil over the sea bass fillets,
just enough to coat both sides. Season with salt and pepper and when hot, place 2 fillets in each pan, skin-side down. Fry for 3 minutes without moving, then turn over and fry for a further 2 minutes. Mix the chopped parsley and remaining crushed garlic with a pinch of sea salt and enough oil to create a loose parsley oil.

Spoon some of the cauliflower purée onto a plate, place a sea bass fillet on top with the chard twisted in and around the fish. Drizzle over some parsley oil and serve.