Pan-Grilled Black Bass with Flavored Butters
Anytime you grill or pan-fry fish, it's essential to thoroughly dry it before adding your fat. You can find flavored butters near the butter section. One brand I like is Land O'Lakes. I like to keep 2-3 flavors on hand to top vegetables, fish, steak, bread, etc. Or - you can make your own Maitre d'hotel butter.
Yield: Servings: 4Prep Time:
Cook Time:
Total Time:
Ingredients:
| 1 pound | broccolini or broccoli rabe, trimmed |
| kosher salt | |
| 2 tablespoons | unsalted butter |
| 1 teaspoon | finely grated lemon zest |
| 1/2 teaspoon | crushed red pepper flakes |
| freshly ground black pepper | |
| 4 ounces | 6- black bass or trout fillets or skinless cod or haddock fillets |
| 1 cup | all-purpose flour |
| kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper | |
| 6 tablespoons | unsalted butter, room temperature, divided |
| mâitre d'hôtel butter |
Directions:
Cook broccolini in a pot of boiling salted water just until tender, about 3 minutes. Drain and transfer to a bowl of ice water; let cool. Drain and pat dry with paper towels.
Heat butter in a medium skillet over medium until foaming. Add broccolini, lemon zest, and red pepper flakes; season with salt and pepper. Cook, tossing, just until broccolini is warmed through and coated in butter.
Heat a grill pan over medium-high until hot but not smoking. Pat black bass fillets dry; this will help keep the fish from sticking to the pan while cooking. Place flour on a plate and season generously with salt and pepper (you are not seasoning the fish itself). Working one at a time, dredge fillets in flour, shaking off excess. Spread butter over flesh side of fillets as if buttering a slice of bread.
Add fillets, flesh side down, to pan; they should sizzle upon contact. Cook just until grill marks appear and butter is browned, about 1 minute. Turn and cook, pressing gently so entire skin side is in contact with the pan’s ridges, until skin is browned and crisp and fillets are cooked through, about 4 minutes longer.
Serve black bass fillets with broccolini and flavored butters, which will soften on contact with the warm fish.
Source: bonappetit.com
