The Asturian coastal stretch near La Pasera presents us with stunning limestone cliffs we regularly enjoy walking. At times we see local fishermen perched on precarious rocks while they cast their fishing rods into the seas. Apparently the fishing is always better when the seas are very rough. Fishing is a hobby I seldom practised in my younger years but Ian used to go regularly with his Dad who was a keen fisherman.
Living such a short distance from the coast, we often see neighbours walking past our front garden carrying their rods on the way to the cliffs. This was the case with one of our near neighbours who likes to go fishing during the weekends or holidays spent in a cottage a few yards up the lane.
You cannot imagine our delight when the other morning our neighbour called over the wall and offered us a beautiful large sea bass he just caught a few hours earlier as a way of saying thanks for me wishing him a good catch as he walked past on his way fishing. A totally unexpected gesture of gratitude. The fish weighed 1 kg and had already been cleaned and de-scaled.
Ian is vegetarian so wouldn't eat it. I cooked the sea bass for my dinner that same day to ensure it was as fresh as possible and baked it in the oven over a bed of new potatoes, kohlrabi, fennel and onion with a good drizzle of olive oil, black pepper and a generous serving of white wine. After covering it with tin foil it was cooked it in a hot oven for 30 minutes, until the potatoes were soft. A nice Ribera del Duero, white wine was the perfect accompaniment for this delicious sea bass. I have never tasted sea bass this good before, it is all in the freshness of the fish; just a few hours between it being caught locally and being served at the dinner table. Buen provecho as we say here in Spain or enjoy your meal as you would say back in the UK.
Living such a short distance from the coast, we often see neighbours walking past our front garden carrying their rods on the way to the cliffs. This was the case with one of our near neighbours who likes to go fishing during the weekends or holidays spent in a cottage a few yards up the lane.
You cannot imagine our delight when the other morning our neighbour called over the wall and offered us a beautiful large sea bass he just caught a few hours earlier as a way of saying thanks for me wishing him a good catch as he walked past on his way fishing. A totally unexpected gesture of gratitude. The fish weighed 1 kg and had already been cleaned and de-scaled.
Ian is vegetarian so wouldn't eat it. I cooked the sea bass for my dinner that same day to ensure it was as fresh as possible and baked it in the oven over a bed of new potatoes, kohlrabi, fennel and onion with a good drizzle of olive oil, black pepper and a generous serving of white wine. After covering it with tin foil it was cooked it in a hot oven for 30 minutes, until the potatoes were soft. A nice Ribera del Duero, white wine was the perfect accompaniment for this delicious sea bass. I have never tasted sea bass this good before, it is all in the freshness of the fish; just a few hours between it being caught locally and being served at the dinner table. Buen provecho as we say here in Spain or enjoy your meal as you would say back in the UK.
Yum! I´m always tempted to try fish on the grill, but it´s so expensive and I´m afraid of overcooking it.
ReplyDeleteIt's expensive here as well unless you have kind neighbours...
Deleteohhh that looks wonderful! be sure to wish good catching next time too!
ReplyDeleteEach and every time from now on ;-)
Delete