I am allowing myself to be receptive to any and all stimuli that will keep me on this path of blogging inertia, which sounds like I'm about to stop, but if you happened to pass Physics 8A on the third try like I did (!) you'd know that "inertia" is the tendency of an object to remain in whatever state it is in, motion or rest, unless acted upon by a force. In the case of this Delicious blogger, unless Peyton Manning shows up on my doorstep in nothing but an NFL grilling apron, I should keep blogging.
Now, since it’s Friday, fish seems appropriate, but that’s only because the Catholic brainwashing during my childhood was partially successful. However, I can’t just say “fish” and be done with it, so I am using one of my favorite websites, dictionary.com and its Word of the Day as the meat fork that’s poking into my medium rare roasted brain and letting the bloody, fatty creative juices flow out into a thick, gravy of a blog post.
Dictionary.com's Word of the Day is “gainsay,” which is just my f**king terrible luck because there are some words that you want to incorporate into your daily life because they make you sound smart, like “redolent” but how stupid does it sound for a food blogger to use the word "gainsay” in every day food conversation?
Very. Stupid.
Oh well.
For the purpose of blogging, sea bass, blogging sea bass, and the furtherment of SAT vocabularical flash cards, let me just state for the record that my sister Jenn's recipe for Shiro Miso Marinated Seabass is the very thing that will gainsay any and all future statements that I will ever hatefully make insinuating that there is only ever "ew" in Asian Fusion.
By the way, the sea bass is quite wonderfully redolent of miso.
Chilean Sea Bass vs Pacific Sea Bass
Avoid Chilean Sea Bass (reference: Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch), which is not a true bass, but Patagonian Toothfish, a different species altogether. Certain Chilean Sea Bass are ok based on a Marine Stewardship Council certification, or their source, e.g. Prince Edward Island, but the recommendation is still to choose a better alternative.
What You Need to Make Miso Marinated Sea Bass
- Miso
- Sugar
- Sake, Japanese rice wine
- Mirin, Japanese rice wine, seasoned with salt and sometimes sugar
- Sea bass, a firm, flaky, white fish
What to Serve with Miso Marinated Sea Bass
- Steamed white or brown rice
- Charred Broccoli
- Spicy Cucumber Avocado Salad
- Soba Noodle Salad
Miso-Marinated Sea Bass Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons shiro (white) miso
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 4 tablespoons sake
- 4 tablespoons mirin
- 4 6-ounce pieces sea bass about 1½-inches thick
Instructions
Marinate Fish
- Stir miso, sugar, sake, and mirin in a bowl until combined. It should have the consistency of cake batter.
- Spread the miso mixture all over the pieces of fish, place in a plastic bag or covered container and marinate in the refrigerator anywhere from four hours to overnight.
Cook
- When ready to cook, preheat oven to 400°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil or parchment paper. This is the easiest method for cleaning after because miso will caramelize and char on the pan.
- Completely wipe the miso marinade off the fish. You may have to use a paper towel to get as much of it off as possible, but do not rinse with water. Place fish on foil-lined baking sheet, skin-side up.
- Bake until the edges and some spots on the fish are charred and the fish is opaque and flakes apart easily, about 25 minutes. The total cooking time will depend on the thickness of the pieces of fish.
- Remove cooked fish from baking sheet with a fish spatula or other very thin spatula, and turn over skin-side down onto serving platter or individual plates.
amy says
Recipe looks awesome...My mom has a salmon version....Either way sweet. You are an awesome read. : )
Sarah J. Gim says
I am betting that this miso marinade will pretty much do well on ANY fish. or chicken. Heck, throw it on a steak :)
oneshotbeyond says
Yum. those photos bring you right in for a bite! I am intrigued to the max over here!
Mélanie says
OMG. i'm salivating in front of a picture of... FISH! It looks so delicious, I might go to the japanese store in front of my office to have this for dinner!
Sarah J. Gim says
oneshotbeyond: glad you like :) yeah. my little point and shoot canon sd1000 doesn't do too badly, now does it?
melanie: you totally should have it for dinner! it's so super easy to make :D although make it tonight and let it marinate for a day!
sheri says
Hi great photos.Btw, Nobu restaurants does a similar Black Cod.Yours look just as good :)
Adelina says
LOVE LOVE LOVE your shots!!! I wish I could Eat it off from the screen!
Must say...that's a perfect looking/ tasting(!) piece of Sea Bass!
Thanks for sharing and for posting!
Haley Nguyen says
Hi - what kind cooking wine did you use?