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Greek-Style Sea Bass is subtly seasoned and pan-fried sea bass, topped with a warm chopped preserved lemon, olive, peppers and eggplant salsa. So easy to make, but perfect for a special dinner. Serve with new potatoes, rice, or even just some steamed broccoli. 

Summertime and the cooking is easy. Um, okay it’s nearly autumn and right now in Edinburgh it’s pouring outside. But cooking should still be easy. And deliciously vibrant. After all we still have loads of fabulous, colourful vegetables to choose from – or pick, if we are lucky. Although I love things like butternut squash, it’s the end of summer vegetables that inspire me most.

Sea bass – a surprising source of Omega 3

And I was inspired by not only summer veg for this recipe, but also Omega 3-packed sea bass. Yes, you read right: sea bass. We think of salmon, fresh tuna, herring, mackerel and sardines as being loaded with this potent essential fatty acid. These are categorised as “oily fish”. But sea bass – a mild, “sweet” fish often more acceptable to young palates and fussy adults – is also a fairly good source of it. A 100-gram fillet will have about 600mg of EPA and DHA, the most absorbable form of Omega 3 fatty acids. Perhaps compared to salmon’s 2300mg per 100g-fillet it doesn’t seem high, but it is still a sure bet. It is also a good source for magnesium, potassium and selenium. I use British-caught sea bass, which for now is reasonably sustainable. The sustainability situation will vary from country to country.

Other excellent sources of EPA and DHA Omega 3 fatty acids are pilchards, anchovies, whitebait and crab. The likes of flaxseed, hemp seeds, and pumpkin seeds are full of a lesser form of omega 3 fatty acids, ALA. Read up about the ins and outs of Omega 3 sources, benefits and considerations here.

What is in this Greek-Style Sea Bass?

This is perhaps more of a pan-Mediterranean dish, but the seasoning mix is definitely inspired by herbs used in everyday traditional Greek cooking.

Sea bass fillets – or something of similar texture

Aubergine/eggplant

Red (bell) pepper

Shallots or mild onion

Kalamata olives

Oil-preserved lemons (or salt-preserved and using less)

Fresh lemon

Dried herbs: Greek or regular oregano (get Greek if you can), basil, parsley, dill, onion, garlic

Olive oil

Salt and pepper

How to make this dish

It is pretty simple. Mix up the seasoning in a bowl and set aside. Then heat some olive oil in a skillet and sauté the chopped vegetables – but steam or microwave the eggplant for a softer result! – until very soft. Stir in half of the seasoning and all of the preserved lemon and lemon juice. Then you just season up the fish, fry it and serve with the warm, lemony vegetables spooned over top. That’s it! I like to make extra of the vegetables and use it in other dishes, such as a dinner omelette. This would also make a great topping for pasta.

Change up your Greek-Style Sea Bass

Other great add-ins or swaps are chopped marinated artichoke hearts, oil-cured or rehydrated dried tomatoes, courgettes/zucchini, summer squash, or shreds of fennel. You could also chop up an orange and stir it through the cooked salsa. I’ve not tried this, but I imagine it would be pretty good.

So, do you think you might make my Greek-Style Sea Bass for dinner? If you do, let me know in the comments. And consider giving it a rating so that it shows up for more people in Google searches (rate this dish under the thumbnail photo in the recipe card, below). If you are on Instagram or Facebook, post your dinner photo and tag me so I can see it. I love, love, love it when I see my recipes made by you! xx

Select Omega 3 fish recipes on Food To Glow

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