An amazing seafood dish for special occasions, dinner parties, and date nights at home. Crispy, potato-crusted Sautéed Sea Bass with herb butter sauce is the fancy French preparation that will impress everyone and make you look like a Michelin chef in your own kitchen.
Are you ready to make one of my favorite fish recipes of all time? This Chilean sea bass recipe is based on a classic French preparation pioneered by culinary superhero Paul Bucose, where he used tiny potato slices to form fish "scales" on the flaky white fish fillets.
I've simplified the process but kept the magical flavors and now this amazing dish can be on the table with less than 30 minutes of active prep and cooking time.
What you'll need to make this recipe:
Before we get to the step by step directions, a few notes about the ingredients:
Fish: the recipe calls for Chilean sea bass. You can easily substitute halibut or black cod (sablefish). But I've also tested this recipe using regular Atlantic cod and European sea bass (branzino), and both turned out beautifully. They don't have the luxurious texture and richness that Chilean sea bass offers, but the light, flaky fish created a great platform for the crispy, buttery potato scales.
Potatoes: Yukon gold potatoes are ideal for this recipe. Look for a handful of potatoes that are roughly the same small size.
Herbs: the recipe calls for fresh, flat leaf parsley in the herb butter sauce. Substitute fresh chives or basil.
Full ingredient list and measurements included in the printable recipe card below.
Step by step instructions for this simple recipe:
1. Prep potatoes
To begin, prepare your potatoes. Using a mandolin, very thinly slice 2-3 small Yukon gold potatoes. (I used the thinnest setting.) Rinse in a bowl of cold water and set aside to dry.
2. Season and prep sea bass
Next, dry your sea bass fillets well with paper towels. Generously season the skin side of the fresh fish with salt and pepper. Turn over.
Brush each fillet with a half tablespoon of clarified butter. Sprinkle the buttered flesh side with sea salt only.
Lay the potato slices across the sea bass fillet shingle-style, covering the entire flesh side of the fillet. Sprinkle the top of the potato slices with additional salt. Move the potato crusted fillet to the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
3. Sauté sea bass
After 30 minutes, heat a cast iron or nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the 2 remaining tablespoons of clarified butter. Lay the fish fillets, potato side down, into the skillet. Leave undisturbed for 3-4 minutes.
Flip gently. Cook for an additional 3-4 minutes, until the fish is cooked through (internal temperature of 145℉).
4. Make butter sauce
Remove fillets from the skillet and tent with foil. Wipe out your skillet and return to the burner over medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons of butter and melt.
Add the tablespoon of fresh lemon juice and diced parsley, cooking for just a minute and swirling the pan to heat everything through. Taste and add salt, if needed.
5. Garnish and serve
Plate the sea bass skin-side down over wilted spinach. Pour butter sauce with herbs over each fillet and serve immediately.
Looking for more special occasion seafood recipes?
FAQ's and Serving Suggestions:
This Chilean sea bass recipe can be replicated using several other white fish varieties, especially halibut or black cod (sablefish). But I've also tested this recipe using regular Atlantic cod and European sea bass, and both turned out beautifully. They don't have the luxurious texture and richness that Chilean sea bass offers, but the light, flaky fish created a great platform for the crispy, buttery potato scales.
The relatively high heat we use to brown the potato scales and the skin may burn the milk solids in regular butter. Ghee is pure butter with the milk solids removed, so it has a very clean flavor and does not contain the dairy that can burn. I love the flavor of it in this dish and the worry-free nature of using it for browning both the potatoes and the fish. For the butter sauce, regular butter is ideal as the dairy adds a luscious creamy quality to the sauce.
I love to keep the fish as the star, serving it over a simple pile of seasoned, wilted spinach. But it would also be delicious with Marinated Grilled Asparagus, Duchess Potato Casserole, Roasted Green Cauliflower, Fresh Gazpacho Salad or Garlic Lemon Green Beans with Almonds.
When you overcook fish, it can become dry, tough, and lack flavor. Overcooked fish loses its natural moisture, which can result in a dry and chewy texture. Use an instant-read thermometer to track the temperature on your fish and remove from the pan at 140℉. The carry-over cooking will take you to the FDA recommended temperature.
If you're lucky enough to have leftovers, transfer fish to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. To reheat, gently cook fish over low heat in a cast iron skillet or nonstick pan until just warmed.
Potato-Crusted Sautéed Sea Bass with Herb Butter Sauce
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 2 1x
Ingredients
2 6-ounce Chilean sea bass fillets
2-3 small Yukon gold potatoes
3 tablespoons clarified butter or ghee
1 teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons flat leaf parsley, diced
Instructions
- To begin, prepare your potatoes. Using a mandolin, very thinly slice your potatoes. (I used the thinnest setting.) Rinse in a bowl of cold water and set aside to dry.
- Next, dry your sea bass fillets well with a paper towel. Generously salt the skin side with salt and pepper. Turn over. Brush each fillet with a half tablespoon of clarified butter. Sprinkle the buttered flesh side with salt. Lay the potato slices across the sea bass fillet shingle-style, covering the entire flesh side of the fillet. Sprinkle the top of the potato slices with salt. Cover gently with parchment and move the potato-crusted fillets to the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
- After 30 minutes, heat a cast iron pan or large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add the 2 remaining tablespoons of clarified butter. Lay the fish fillets, potato side down, into the skillet. Leave undisturbed for 3-4 minutes. Use a fish spatula to carefully check the browning on the potatoes. You’ll want a deep golden brown before turning. Flip gently. Cook for an additional 3-4 minutes, until the fish is cooked through (internal temperature of 145 degrees).
- Remove fillets from the skillet and tent with foil. Wipe out your skillet and return to the burner over medium heat. Add the 2 tablespoons of butter and melt fully. Add the tablespoon of fresh lemon juice and fresh parsley, cooking for just a minute to heat everything through. Taste and add salt, if needed.
- Place fish skin side down over wilted spinach and drizzle with lemon butter sauce. Serve immediately.
Notes
I'm obsessed with crispy skin on fish, so I love keeping the skin on when serving this fillet. If you prefer skinless fish, ask your fishmonger to remove the skin when you purchase the fish, or simply use your spatula to lift the cooked fish away from the skin before serving.
If you can't serve the fish immediately after plating, I recommend pouring the sauce on the bottom of the plate or serving dish and laying the fish over the sauce to preserve the crispy texture of the beautiful golden crust.
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 15
- Category: easy recipes
- Method: stovetop
- Cuisine: French, American
Sylvia Stangarone
I had the privilege of eating this dish when Christina prepared it. It was so amazing. Even though I was full I had to keep eating because it was so delicious and I didn’t want to leave anything behind. I am not a great or even a good cook but I think I can actually make this. I will surely give it a try.
Christina
Recipe shoots with friends are the very best kind of recipe shoots 😉 So glad you loved it!
Linda
Love the potato crust on the fish. What a great idea to add some crispness to the dish.
Christina
The French always know how to add flair, right? It's a delicious combination and I hope you make it and love it as much as I do!
Melissa
I'm not big on seafood but this recipe looks really good! I love your idea to use this for a date night at home. My husband would love it if I made him more seafood 🙂 I'll have to try this recipe!
Christina
Chilean sea bass is the perfect fish if you're not (yet) a seafood person. It's light and delicious without any hint of the "fishiness" that can turn people off. Hope you try it and love it!
Abby
I love Chilean sea bass and this looks like such a flavour-full recipe!
Christina
It's a good one! Hope you love it as much as I do.