Chilean Sea Bass Recipe

This Chilean sea bass recipe is succulent and flavorful! The buttery white fish is pan seared and paired with garlic, lemon, and herbs.

Chilean sea bass is one of the most expensive fish dishes on a restaurant menu, and one bite tells you why! The tender fillet has a succulent, buttery texture that tastes positively glamorous. If you’re lucky enough to score yourself a fillet or two, here’s the recipe for them. Lightly season and pan fry the fillets until the exterior is golden and crisp, then season with garlic, butter, lemon, and herbs. This simple treatment lets the rich texture of this luxurious fish shine through! Pair it with a few sides and it’s a restaurant-quality dinner recipe with little effort.

What is Chilean sea bass?

Chilean sea bass is a large fish that’s native to cold waters of the Pacific and Antarctic. Despite its name, it is not primarily from Chile nor is it a bass. Originally called the Patagonian toothfish, it’s a type of cod. It got its new name from a clever marketing ploy in the 1970’s to try to start selling more of the fish (read more about it here). By the 1990’s, it was served at the Four Seasons hotel as high-end entrée.

Chilean sea bass has a buttery mouthfeel and a clean, sweet finish. The high fat content makes it taste almost like a cross between a white fish and a scallop. It’s a good reason the secrets of this under-the-radar fish got discovered: this is a true flavor treat!

Ingredients in this Chilean sea bass recipe

There are lots of ways to cook Chilean sea bass, but the most popular is seared. Pan searing makes a nice brown crust on the exterior of the fish, leaving the inside smooth and buttery like a seared scallop. You don’t need much in the way of ingredients to really make the flavors sing here! You can get a little fancier by adding a sauce, which adds a punch to this Chilean sea bass recipe. The ingredients you’ll need are:

• Chilean sea bass
• Garlic powder
• Paprika
• Salt and pepper
• Olive oil
• Butter
• Garlic
• Fresh thyme or parsley
• Lemon juice

Tips for cooking Chilean sea bass

This fish is quick and easy to cook: there are just a few things to note about cooking time and temperature! Here are a few tips for cooking Chilean sea bass:

1. Allow the sea bass to stand at room temperature while preparing the recipe. This allows it to cook as evenly as possible.
2. Pan sear for 2 to 4 minutes per side. Use a large skillet and medium high heat.
3. Cook until the internal temperature reaches 140°F to 145°F. The exterior should become crisp with a golden brown color.
4. If desired, make the pan sauce. Remove the fish. Add butter, minced garlic and finely chopped herbs and heat for 30 seconds. Then add the fish back and spoon over the juices.

Variation: grill it!

Chilean sea bass also works grilled! You can use the same basic principles as pan searing the fish. Preheat a grill to medium-high heat (375 to 450°F). Grill the fillets skin side up over indirect heat for 3 to 4 minutes, until it releases from the grates. Flip and cook another 3 to 4 minutes, until the fish is tender and just cooked through and the internal temperature is 130 to 140°F.

Sauces for serving

This Chilean sea bass recipe is bursting with flavor as is! But if you’d like, you can also serve with a sauce to really enhance the flavors. Here are a few of our favorite sauce ideas for fish:

• Try Garlic Butter Sauce or Lemon Butter Sauce
• Go herby with green Chimichurri Sauce
• Mix up Lemon Caper Sauce or Lemon Herb Sauce
• Add creamy Garlic Aioli

Tips for buying this fish

Chilean sea bass can be found at grocery stores at the fish counter. It is sometimes available frozen, but it’s worth seeking out this fish. There are a few things to note about the sustainability around Chilean sea bass (per this source):

• The lines used to catch Chilean sea bass were infamous for drowning seabirds, but the industry has made strides in reducing bycatch.
• Best options for Chilean sea bass are options from Heard and McDonald, the Falklands or Macquarie as Eco-Best. Chilean seabass from the Ross Sea, South Georgia or Kerguelen qualify as an Eco-OK.
• Avoid Chilean seabass from Chile, which has management and bycatch problems.
• Where possible, look for the blue eco-label of the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) for certified sustainable Chilean seabass products.

Ways to serve it

Want to make a stunning meal out of Chilean sea bass? Here are a few stunning sides we’d pair with it for a show-stopping, restaurant style meal:

• Add Simple Roasted Broccolini or Sauteed Broccolini
• Serve over Garlic Mashed Potatoes or on a bed of Parmesan Risotto
• Pair it with an Endive Salad with Parmesan & Orange or Fennel Salad

01

Simple Roasted Broccolini

02

Garlic Mashed Potatoes

03

Classic Risotto

04

Endive Salad with Parmesan & Orange

This Chilean sea bass recipe is…

Gluten-free and pescatarian.

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