The recipe I am presenting today is one of those dishes I adore, not only because they are quite simple to prepare, but above all for the lightness they provide in terms of caloric intake and digestibility. Sea bass meat is quite lean and has an extremely delicate flavor! They are therefore perfect for those who wish to stay in shape or enjoy a meal that is not too heavy, providing the right mix of proteins, carbohydrates, and vitamins without weighing you down! Moreover, if well plated, they could become your showpiece and turn into an elegant and sophisticated main course to serve on the table. The combination with fennel then, in my opinion, is undoubtedly a great success, indeed, I believe there is a certain elective affinity between the two, as often happens with many other combinations in cooking. The sweetness of this vegetable indeed complements the delicacy of this fish, enhancing each other’s flavors.

Difficulty: Easy
Cost: Medium
Preparation time: 25 Minutes
Portions: 4
Cooking methods: Oven
Cuisine: Italian
Seasonality: Autumn, Winter and Spring

Ingredients

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2 sea bass (already filleted, boned and skinned)
3 fennel
to taste aromatic herbs (: thyme, sage, rosemary, and parsley)
5 juniper berries
to taste pink pepper
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
to taste salt

Tools

1 Knife
Baking trays
Paper towels

Preparation

Rinse the fennel, remove the stems and outer leaves, keeping the green fronds aside. Then cut them in half and slice them thinly (fig. 1).
Arrange a first layer of fennel on a large baking tray lined with parchment paper, without overlapping them too much. Drizzle with 2-3 tablespoons of oil, season with salt, and flavor with the mix of aromatic herbs (fig. 2).
Proceed to make a second layer, seasoning in the same way, and place in a preheated oven at 392°F for 15′ (fig. 3).
In the meantime, rinse the well-filleted, gutted, boned, and skinned sea bass fillets under running water and pat them dry with kitchen paper towels (fig. 4).
After the 15′ of cooking the fennel, add the sea bass fillets as well. Adjust the seasoning, flavor with the mix of herbs, adding also the juniper berries and pink pepper, then drizzle with another couple of tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil (fig. 5).
Finish with parsley leaves, the fennel fronds, and bake at 356°F for 20′ (fig. 6).
Turn off and serve immediately with another drizzle of raw oil if desired.
And there you have it… the baked sea bass fillets with fennel are ready to be enjoyed!
Bon Appetit from La cucina di FeFè!