Seared Sea Bass on Tagliatelle with a Herb Sauce

Serves 4

• 4 sea bass fillets, skin left on
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 2 tablespoon olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Oil for frying
• 450g (1lb) tagliatelle pasta

For the herb sauce:

• 5 sprigs of fresh parsley
• 2 sprigs of fresh mint
• A few fresh rocket
• leaves (optional)
• 8 anchovy fillets
• Juice of 2 lemons
• 1 garlic clove, chopped
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 120ml (4floz) extra virgin olive oil
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 heaped teaspoon mango chutney or honey

Remove any small bones with tweezers if necessary. Cut each fillet into a neat piece then place in a shallow dish together with the lemon juice and olive oil. Season well with salt and pepper and leave to marinade for 15 minutes while you make the herb sauce. Blend together all the ingredients for the sauce in a food processor. Check for seasoning and sweetness (you can always adjust this by adding more chutney or honey). Now to cook the fish: Preheat a frying pan, add a little oil and sear the sea bass fillets by placing them skin side down (you may need to do this in two batches) and cook on a high heat for two minutes until well browned. Carefully turn the pieces over and cook for a further two minutes on a lower heat or until the fish is firm to the touch. Take care not to over cook as it will depend on the size of the fillets. Cook the pasta, drain well and toss in oil. Season with salt. Arrange the pasta on four warmed individual plates and place a sea bass fillet on top skin side uppermost. Serve with the herb sauce.