Yanni of Fisherman’s Belly says, “The bluefin are here, but so are the white sea bass. Must be time for a white sea bass recipe!” Small schools can be seen just below the water line searching for an easy meal. In our kayaks, it’s easy to tie ourselves off in the kelp and blend right in while presenting our bait. Just ask my buddy Chris Blevins. He nailed a 64.7-pound monster. That’s a lot of fish!
I had to make another white seabass dish, especially since they’re cooperating. I call this dish, White Seabass Veracruz. It’s inspired from Mexico’s eastern coastal state of Veracruz, where seafood dishes are out-of-this-world good!
I’ll start by saying that red or green moles, cilantro, and pico de gallo aren’t the only ingredients of every Mexican dish. Certainly not in Veracruz. How about—green olives, parsley and capers, paired with classic roasted tomato-lime sauce? They call it, Veracruz Salsa. That’s what you get when you mix Spanish and Aztec cuisine.
Bright loud flavors that keep you coming back for more and more.
Give this Latin dish a try, and then find yourself in the middle of Veracruz seafood heaven dining with the Aztecs and Spaniards.
White Sea Bass Veracruz
Serves 4
Ingredients
- 2-pounds white seabass one-inch fillets, cut into 4 pieces, skin on or off
- 4 Whole tomatoes
- 1 Medium onion quartered
- 3 Tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 Lime juiced
- Salt/pepper
- 10 Green olives, with or without pimentos
- 4 Tbsp. capers, one per serving
- 7 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup general all purpose flour
Directions
- Roast the tomatoes and onion either in the oven (350F, 45 minutes) or on the bbq until caramelized and soften.
- To make the Veracruz salsa, add the tomatoes, onions, parsley, 3 tablespoons of olive oil, pinch of salt and pepper and the juice of one lime in a food processor. Blend only for a few seconds so that the sauce is still chunky.
- Frying the white seabass: first, place the flour into a rectangular shallow container. Now start heating 4 tablespoons of olive oil in a frying pan. Prepare the white seabass fillets by patting them dry, and seasoning both sides with a liberal amount of salt. Dip the fillets into flour, giving them a good coating. Place the 2 fillets in the hot frying pan and cook until each side is golden brown. This should take no longer than 2-3 minutes per side.
- Just Before serving, give the green olives a coarse chop. Serve one fillet per plate, topped with the Veracruz salsa then garnished with olives and capers.
Enjoy!
Visit Fisherman’s Belly for many more delicious recipes and unique ideas for preparing your seafood and fresh catch.
