Salt Baked Sea Bass

Salt baked sea bass is a great dish to serve at a dinner party. You can prepare the salt crust and fish in advance, baking it in the oven while you are having your starters. The egg whites make the salt go hard, creating an oven shell that keeps the fish beautifully moist. You can serve the baked sea bass at the table, breaking the salt crust in front of your guests for a bit of theatre to your meal. Salt baked fish works well with some boiled new potatoes, a green salad and either a mustard and honey vinaigrette or a delicious hollandaise sauce.

Preparation time

10 mins

Cooking time

35 mins

Serves

4 people

Ingredients

2 whole sea bass, clean and gutted, weighing 500-750g each
½ lemon, cut into thin slices
4 fresh bay leaves
8 sprigs fresh flat-leaf parsley
8 sprigs of thyme
For the salt crust:
8 egg whites
1.5Kg table salt
10 sprigs of thyme, leaves picked

Method

Pre-heat your wood-fired oven to 200°C/400°F
To make the salt crust, thoroughly mix the salt, egg whites and thyme leaves in a bowl until they form a dry paste.
Stuff the lemon slices, thyme, bay leaves and parsley into the cavity of the sea bass.
Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper and spread one-third of the egg white mixture over the tray. Lay the sea bass on top and spoon over the remaining egg white mixture, ensuring the fish is completely covered.
Bake the sea bass in the oven for 30-35 minutes, or until crisp. Carefully crack the salt crust, remove it from the fish and discard. Peel the skin from the fish and place it onto a serving plate.

Salt Baked Sea Bass

Perfectionists in the Art of Wood-Fired Cooking.