This was an easy quick tasty dinner. Our fishmonger does lovely sea bass and it is one of my favourite fishes as it doesn’t have a lot of brown meat which means I can eat it all! Fennel goes so well with seafood and the leeks were lovely and sweet. The pancetta or bacon adds texture and a lovely salty burst of flavour.

Ingredients (serves 2)

• 2 sea bass fillets
• 2 leeks, cut in half lengthwise and sliced down the middle
• 1 fennel bulb, chopped
• 1 pack cubed pancetta or bacon
• Handful of tarragon, chopped
• 1 large lemon
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• seasoning

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 190˚C (fan).
2. Place the tarragon, 2 tbsp of olive oil and the juice of  a lemon into a pestle and mortar and crush until you’re left with a green marinade. Season to taste.
3. Place the leeks and fennel into a pan of boiling water for around 3 minutes before draining.
4. Add a drizzle of olive oil to a frying pan add the drained leeks, fennel and pancetta, sauté for 3 minutes to get colour.
5. Score the fish skins and place the fillets in an bowl along with the leeks, fennel and pancetta. Pour over the marinade from your pestle and mortar and mix gently until the fish and leeks are coated.
6. Place the sea bass skin side down in a large baking tray before arranging the leeks, fennel and bacon around the edges.
7. Bake for around 20 minutes until the fish is golden brown, serve with a wedge of lemon.