Roasted Sea Bass With Beans, Saffron, Chilli And Salmoriglio

I often pair fish with beans – the combination works for me. The deep flavour of salmoriglio is great with grilled red meat, fish, chicken or guinea fowl.

Preparation time :	20 minutes, plus overnight soaking
Cooking time :	45 minutes
Total time :	1 hour and 5 minutes, plus overnight soaking

Serves: 4

Ingredients

250g Dried cannellini beans
3 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil
2 Red onions, peeled and finely sliced
2 Garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
1 Rosemary sprig
2 Fresh bay leaves
1 Orange, pared zest
20 Saffron threads
1 Dried Kashmiri chilli
4 x 175g Sea bass fillets
2 x 400g tins Chopped plum tomatoes

Salmoriglio
2 Rosemary sprigs, chopped
1 tsp Sea salt
6 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil
½ Lemon, juice

Method

1. Soak the beans in cold water overnight. The following day, rinse them and place in a saucepan of cold water. Bring to the boil, then turn the heat down to a gentle simmer and cook for 45 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, place a medium saucepan on a low heat. Pour in 1 tbsp oil and when warm, add the onions and sweat for 5 minutes. Add the garlic, herbs, orange zest, saffron and chilli. Stir, then add the tomatoes and 200ml cold water. Cook for 30 minutes and season.
3. To make the salmoriglio, pound the rosemary and salt to a paste in a pestle and mortar. Stir in the olive oil, then add the lemon juice and mix together. Preheat the oven to 200°C/gas 6. Place an ovenproof frying pan on a medium heat and add 1 tbsp olive oil. When the pan is hot, season the fish and put it in the pan, skin-side down, to cook for 2 minutes. Without turning the fish, remove the pan from the hob and put in the oven. Leave for 3–5 minutes until cooked through.
4. When the beans are tender, drain, dress with the remaining 1 tbsp oil and divide between four bowls. Warm through the tomato broth, ladle it over the beans, lay the fish on top and spoon over the salmoriglio.