Grilled Mediterranean Sea Bass has some of my favorite ingredients: sea bass, garlic…lots of garlic…Kalamata olives, grape tomatoes, capers, basil and Italian parsley.
The fish lovers in our family are in love with this sea bass on the grill!! I’ve made this awesome recipe numerous times, and it always turns out great and gets rave reviews!
Dr. John Regan, Dr. David Witherspoon and Joel at the Dallas County Dental Society charity auction. Don’t you love the rubber chickens?? Joel is a complete nut…and I wonder about the other 2!! Don’t think Joel will ever grow up!
The Dallas County Dental Society had a charity fundraiser in 2013. The 3 doctors in Joel’s endodontic practice, North Texas Endodontic Associates, decided to auction off a gourmet dinner for 10 couples. As there was a bidding war between 2 groups, after the first dinner was sold, they decided to auction off a second one. (Maybe it’s just me, but would you bid on a dinner cooked by this group??) Actually, John and David are very good cooks…Joel, not so much. Well, he is good on the grill. He used to do all of the grilling in our house, that is, until he realized that Zach is better on the grill than he is! (At least…that’s his excuse!)
The first dinner was in our backyard October of 2013 for 26 people. John worked it all out. David was in charge of the appetizer table. He put together all sorts of antipasto items, some dips, nuts and crackers. He also made a few sides. I put together the Mediterranean Sea Bass and John grilled it along with his Beef Tenderloin, Pork Tenderloin, Chicken Sate and a few vegetable dishes. I made the desserts. It was a fabulous dinner! The guys, of course with the help of their “better halves”, did a terrific job!
For the Mediterranean Sea Bass, I bought 8 pounds and it was…gone!!! Even though we had sooo much other food, people came back for seconds!
This was the setup in our backyard. The bar was on the right, and the appetizer table was to the left over by the steps. The grilling went on up top.
I made some Autumn place cards out of wine corks and fall leaves.
I got the inspiration for this recipe from the Proud Italian Cook blog. You might want to check it out, as she has a lot of interesting recipes that look really yummy. This is the first one I’ve tried, but I will be giving several more a try. As I usually do, I have added my own touches to this recipe, as making a recipe personal is what I’m all about. I guess that’s why I consider cooking to be a wonderfully inspirational, creative art.
Since I’m now doing most of my cooking in our outdoor kitchen, you may as well fire-up your grill and join me in the great outdoors! Give this easy fish dish a try. While it’s grilling, the smell of the herbs and garlic will transport you straight to Italy!! Set the table on the patio, pour the wine and enjoy…that’s what we did last night.
As for the amounts of the ingredients, I bought 1-1/2 pounds of sea bass for Joel, Zach and me…and it was gone. (For someone who loves to cook, I married into the perfect family. The Small clan is so fun to cook for. They eat almost everything and they eat lots of it!!) I have made this recipe using sea bass, halibut and red snapper, all of which were great.
Abby’s friend, Amanda (who is also like my third daughter), is helping me with my blog. She was editing this recipe, and was inspired to run to the store! There was no sea bass, halibut or red snapper to be found in Wilmar, Minnesota. She had to settle for Mahi Mahi. She said it was really great! So…I guess it works with almost any type of fish. It looks like she may have added a few pats of butter to the top.
Personally, I prefer the sea bass, as it is one of my favorite fish…that is, beside fried catfish…my very favorite 🙂 I don’t have any exact measurements for the ingredients, so I photographed each step of the recipe. Hopefully, you can get an idea of how much of each ingredient to use.
For this recipe, I wrap my favorite grilling pan with heavy-duty aluminum foil, shiny side up, to keep the oil and juices from leaking out. Next, drizzle the foil with olive oil.
This is the grilling pan I used for this recipe. I use it covered with aluminum foil, and I use it without foil. I use it often. I ordered it from Williams Sonoma, along with the grill brush.
This is the grilling pan I use if I need a larger pan. I also use this one with and without foil. These 2 pans are my favorite ones to use on the grill. I also ordered this one from Williams Sonoma.
I purchased these 2 grill pans at Williams Sonoma, and I absolutely love them. I use them for lots of different foods on the grill. I also purchased the steel cleaning brush from Williams Sonoma. It makes cleaning a breeze. It works great for getting all of the bits of food out of the little holes in the pans. These stainless steel pans are easier to clean than the steel mesh pans. I have both and I much prefer the stainless steel pans. The steel mesh pans get lots of food bits stuck at the mesh intersections. Ugh!! Very hard to get out!!
Sprinkle the area where the fish will sit with chopped garlic. Lay the fish over the garlic. If you use a fish filet that has skin on one side, place the filet in the pan skin side down. Sprinkle the fish with sea or Kosher salt and fresh ground white pepper. Then, sprinkle equal amounts of thinly sliced basil and thinly sliced Italian parsley over the fish.
Next step is to “bring on” a generous amount of pitted Kalamata olives that have been horizontally sliced in half and some small capers that have been squeezed dry of the brine. Make sure the olives are pitted!!
I use these Kalamata olives almost every day.
I’m addicted to the Krino’s pitted Kalamata olives that I purchase at Costco in a 2 pound plastic container. I throw them into salads, use them in recipes, serve them with cocktails or just eat them plain for a snack. I love, love, love them!
The next step is to sprinkle a layer of grape tomatoes that have been sliced horizontally in half and more minced garlic over the fish.
The last step is to drizzle the fish with a little more olive oil. Then, scatter thinly sliced lemons over the top and around the fish. Place the pan on a grill that has been preheated to high. Lower the heat to medium-high, close the lid, and grill until the fish is done. Check this by inserting a fork into the thickest part of the fish and twisting to see if the middle is done. (Be sure to check the fish at about 5-10 minutes to make sure it is not cooking too fast.)
This is the perfect party recipe…so easy and quick to assemble and it looks beautiful…very gourmetish!! You can put this recipe together about 1 hour ahead of grilling. This gives the fish time to come to room temperature. I have probably prepared it about 10 times, always with success and rave reviews. I think “Chief” would eat it every day.
This fish recipe is fabulous on the grill, but if you insist, it could be roasted in the oven. I would say, roast it in a 375F preheated oven about 15 minutes, or until done.
- extra virgin olive oil
- finely chopped fresh garlic
- sea bass steaks or filets (halibut or red snapper could be substituted), cut about 1 inch thick (allow ½ to ¾ pounds per person, depending on what else you are serving)
- sea or Kosher salt
- fresh ground white pepper
- coarsely chopped fresh Italian or flat leaf parsley leaves
- thinly sliced fresh basil leaves
- Kalamata olives, pitted and sliced in half lengthwise
- small capers, squeezed dry
- grape tomatoes, sliced in half lengthwise
- 1 small lemon, thinly sliced
- Wrap a grill pan or a cookie sheet with sides with heavy duty aluminum foil. Put the shiny side up.
- Drizzle olive oil over the bottom of the foil lined pan.
- Sprinkle the minced garlic over the bottom of the pan where the fish will lay.
- Place the sea bass filets or steaks over the garlic, skin side down if there is any skin on the filet.
- Sprinkle the fish with the salt and pepper.
- Sprinkle the parsley and basil over the fish.
- Then, sprinkle the olives, capers and sliced tomatoes over the parsley and basil.
- Scatter a few of the lemon slices around and over the fish.
- Drizzle olive oil over all of the ingredients.
- Allow the fish to come to room temperature.
- Preheat the grill to high heat.
- When the grill is preheated, place the pan of fish on the hot grill grates.
- Turn the grill down to medium-high and grill until the fish is done. (Stick a fork in the middle of the fish and twist. If it is no longer raw looking, it's done.)
- Do not overcook!
Not only is this a beautiful dish, but it is delicious. We used Mahi Mahi and it was well received by all our guests. Another great recipe, BS, thank you!
Just tried this recipe again with cod and it was terrific. This time, we grilled it, instead of oven baking, and the flavors really blended well.
I am glad to know this awesome fish recipe works great with a variety of fish. Thanks for commenting!