James Martin's Cajun sea bass with lime beurre blanc
Following on from his successful French adventure, James Martin has taken a trip Stateside to explore its foodie delights - beyond the burgers and fried chicken he’s discovered some of the best food he’s ever eaten.
James in the kitchen ahead of his new ITV series, to bring Phillip and Holly a taste of New Orleans with his Cajun sea bass with lime beurre blanc.
Serves: 4
Ingredients
4 X 125G (4 1/2OZ) sea bass fillets (scaled and pin boned)1 corn on the cob1 tablespoon olive oil
For the cajun rub
1 tblsp sea salt2 tblsp garlic salt3 tblsp onion salt4 tblsp paprika1 tblsp freshly ground black pepper2 tsp cayenne pepper1 tsp dried oregano1 tsp dried thyme
For the lime beurre blanc
250g (1 cup 2 tblsp) chilled unsalted butter, diced1 large shallot or small red onion, diced1 garlic clove, chopped4 tblsp white wine1 lime zested and juiced
Method
Mix together all the spices for the Cajun rub. Now put a few tablespoons of it into a shallow dish. Add the snapper fillets and rub the mixed spices all over the fish to coat.
Rest the corn on the cob on a board and use a sharp knife to slice the corn off the cob
Place a large non-stick frying pan over a medium heat. Add the oil and a knob of butter (use a knob from the sauce) and allow to melt. When the butter is foaming, pop the fish in, hold it down to stop it curling and add the corn to the pan, alongside the fish. Cook for 4-5 minutes, flip the fish over and take the pan off the heat.
Meanwhile, put the shallot (or red onion), garlic and wine into a medium saucepan and bring to the boil. Simmer the mixture until the liquid as reduced by half. Turn the heat down to very low and slowly whisk in the cold butter, a little at a time, whisking well between each addition to make a thick sauce. Whisk in the lime zest and juice. Take the pan off the heat and pass the sauce through a fine sieve into a bowl. Keep the bowl in a warm place (not hot) and discard what’s left in the sieve.
To serve, spoon the corn into the centre of four plates, top with the fish and spoon the sauce all around.
James’ tip: you will have lots of Cajun rub left over. This can be stored in an airtight jar in the cupboard.