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Asian-Style Grilled Black Bass Recipe
by John Spottiswood

Asian-Style Grilled Black Bass

This fish is simply delicious. The flesh is like butter and the flavor is from heaven. I know that sounds extreme, but it's true. I was in Costco and the fresh fish counter had whole black bass. I'd never made it before, but the woman behind the counter said it is similar to yellowtail (hamachi) which is one of my favorites, so I had to try it. I wanted to grill it, but the best recipe I could find was for an asian deep fried version from Wolfgang Puck. I adapted it for the grill, and I honestly can't imagine it could taste any better fried. This was awesome! If you try it, you will not be disappointed. (Warning: This fish is messy to serve. I recommend you serve it whole like I did and use a large spoon to let people spoon the flesh off the bones and onto their plates. The bones aren't small, so it's not dangerous. Just a little messy.) We served it with steamed jasmine rice, grilled asparagus, and kimchi.

Rating: 5/5
Avg. 5/5 5 votes
Prep time: Asian
Cook time: Servings: 6

Wine and Drink Pairings: chardonnay

Ingredients

  • 1 whole black bass, cleaned and scaled
  • Kosher Salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 16 slices fresh ginger, 1/8-inch thick
  • 1/2 cup sake
  • 1/2 cup soy sauce
  • 1/4 cup lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1/8 tsp Cornstarch
  • 2 scallions, thinly sliced
  • Chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
  • Additional scallions (optional)
  • Additional lemon juice (optional)

Directions

  1. Make four deep incisions (to the bone) into each side of the fish. Insert the pieces of ginger into the incisions and refrigerate fish until ready to cook.
  2. In a small sauce pan, combine the sake, soy sauce, lemon juice and about 1/8 tsp corn starch and bring to a boil. Then remove from heat and stir in the scallions.
  3. Preheat the grill to medium high.
  4. Generously sprinkle salt an pepper over the fish and spray (or rub) the outside with olive oil. Put the fish in a large fish basket, close tightly, and place the fish basked on the grill. Grill for 6 minutes on one side (with grill closed over basket). Then flip and grill for 6 minutes on the other side. Check for doneness. Fish should be firm but still somewhat soft.
  5. When done, remove fish from grill, place in a large bowl, and cover with the sauce from the sauce pan. Sprinkle with optional cilantro, scallions, and extra lemon juice.