Sea Bass, Crab Beignet and Fennel

Name: Sea Bass, Crab Beignet and Fennel
Yield: Serves 4
Ingredients: corn oil, for deep-frying plain flour, for dusting; 100 g/4 oz fish mousse; 100 g/4 oz cooked white crabmeat, pinked over; 4 flowering courgettes (zucchini); 5 tbsp aged balsamic vinegar; 100 g/4 oz extra fine green beans; 1 batch tempura batter; 50 ml/2 floz/¼ cup corn oil; 1 clove garlic, crushed; 1 tbsp fine capers; ½ tsp chopped coriander (cilantro); 100 ml/4 floz/½ cup fish or chicken stock; 50 g/2 oz/½ stick butter; 4 pieces wild sea bass fillet, about 130 g/4½ oz each, trimmed of scales and bones; 1 bulb fennel; 100 ml/4 floz/½ cup cream; 8 asparagus spears; 6 ripe plum tomatoes; 5 tbsp lemon oil; 8 medium fresh shiitake mushrooms, halved; ½ clove garlic, crushed; salt and pepper; 1 large shallot, finely chopped; 75 ml/3 floz/⅓ cup olive oil

Preparation info

Serves
4

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

Formulas for Flavour

By John Campbell

Published 2001

About

This dish is clean, fresh and exciting to eat. All the different flavours and textures — crisp skin, delicate bass and beignet of crab — work well together. Seabass and fennel are often considered a good match. Here the fennel is made into a cream so that the taste is softened and does not overwhelm any of the other ingredients.

Ingredients

Crab Beignet

100 g/4 oz fish mousse
100 g/

Fish course
Pescatarian

Method

For the Crab Beignet

Gently break off the flowers from the courgettes, ensuring they stay intact. Carefully snap out and discard the stigma from the flowers (1). Reserve the courgettes and flowers separately.

Place the fish mousse in a