Preparing Salad Nicoise is one of those labors of love. It takes a while to compile all the ingredients but it’s not difficult and the flavors are sublime. Tuna is often used as a center piece – usually it’s made from the best canned tuna fish you can find; or, if you wish to go “up scale” you may prefer fresh sushi quality tuna.
Today’s recipe uses Striped Bass because it’s one of my favorites and because the fish is becoming more plentiful this time of year, especially during the late Spring season as the species begins to return to the streams and rivers of its spawning grounds. These fish are returning to earlier days of abundance since the stock was declared restored in 1995. In 2013 “east coast anglers caught over 10 million stripers… while maintaining an adult female biomass of more than 120 million pounds.” (Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, 2013; www.asmfc.org)
The popularity of the Striped and Black Bass are particularly noteworthy among the Chinese and Asian communities on the East Coast who serve black bass as a centerpiece to their restaurant seafood menus. And the availability of the fish in numerous Asian markets in Washington DC, Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York and Boston make these fish even more accessible while less costly to the public.
Some of my most memorable fishing experiences have involved Striped Bass— sometimes catching them on headboats several miles offshore, in creeks and streams in the Hamptons and Cape Cod, and in back water tributaries of Rhode Island, Connecticut and Massachusetts. Early sunday mornings come to mind when dreams of monster stripers in excess of 28 inches draw a smile upon me. And every fishing trip triggers culinary memories of extraordinary meals we look forward to eating again and again. Meals like the following come to mind:
1) Nicoise Salad with Roasted Striped Bass, Tuna or Cod, French in origin
2) Steamed Black Bass with Oyster Sauce or Black Bean sauce & chimichurri.
3) Roasted Striped Bass with fennel julienne.
4) Baked or steamed Striper or Black Bass with mayonaise, chopped tomatoes, medium chopped shallots or red onions, diced garlic smoked and smoked paprika
These preparations only touch on the multitude of ways to prepare this delicacy. Enjoy today’s specialty of the house!
Striped Bass Salad
Chilled Nicoise Salad With Roasted Striped Bass
4-6 servings
Ingredients
For the Dressing / Vinaigrette:
2 garlic cloves,minced
1 large shallot, minced
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 1/2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 1/2 tablespoons sherry wine vinegar
1/2 lemon, juiced
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons minced fresh tarragon
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
For the Salad:
4 small baby beets, roasted and quartered
1 pound small new red potatoes, scrubbed and halved
4 large eggs, halved
1/2 pound haricots verts or French green beans, stems removed
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cup black nicoise olives
8 salt packed, anchovy fillets rinsed and drained
1/2 cup large caper berries with stems, halved
1 European cucumber, thinly sliced into rounds
6 large radishes, ends trimmed and sliced into thin rounds
1/2 bunch fresh chives, chopped
julienne 6 large basil leaves
Chop and combine 1/2 head each of romaine, Boston lettuce and radicchio
1/2 Fennel bulb, cut into strips, top to bottom
2 pounds striped bass, seasoned with salt and pepper and strips of fennel inside the cavity. Remove the fish head(s) and skin the fish on both sides. Garnish with fennel fronds.
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Directions for Vinaigrette and Salad:
1. Combine all your dressing ingredients in a bowl and whisk until you reach an emulsion— where vinegars are suspended in fat like olive oil. Takes about 2-3 minutes. Leave out at room temperature covered and set aside.
2. Season the Bass inside and out with juice of 1/2 lemon, salt, pepper and ground fennel. Place on a sheet tray, covered with parchment paper and roast at 425 F for 15-20 minutes until opaque. Remove from oven and set aside until it can be handled easily.
3. Fillet each side of the fish. Remove the skin and all bones including the center bone and the smaller pin bones on the sides of the fish. Place both fillets on a cutting board and cut each fillet into quarters and place on a plate in the refrigerator.
4. Wash the new red potatoes and add to a medium size saucepan. Add water and a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil over medium heat for 12 minutes. Then add the eggs to the simmering water.
5. Continue simmering the water while placing a steamer over the saucepan. Put the green beans in the steamer and cover with a lid. Steam the beans for 5 minutes.
6. Continue cooking the potatoes until tender but firm. Drain the hot water, remove the potatoes, green beans and eggs and rinse each item separately in the colander under cold water. Drain and chill in separate bowls in refrigerator. Finally chill the remaining vegetables —capers, olives, radishes and anchovies— on small plates or bowls.
7. Peel the shells off the eggs and cut them in half, lengthwise and return to fridge to continue chilling.
8. Wash and roast the whole beets— 40 – 45 minutes covered with aluminum foil or place in an oven friendly ceramic bowl until a knife can easily be inserted.
9. Cut beets into quarters with a drizzle of the vinaigrette. Set aside and chill.
10. Using a large serving platter place chopped lettuce in the middle of the serving platter. Using a long spatula, carefully layer each of the Striped Bass quarters on top of the lettuce.
11. Arrange each ingredient in separate rows on the platter. Drizzle dressing over all ingredients including the Striped Bass quarters. Season with salt and pepper, tossing basil and scallions over the entire salad. Cut the lemon into quarters and distribute around the fish. Complete your design by placing the egg halves next to the lemons. Drizzle any remaining vinaigrette over the platter, including the fish and serve.
There are several steps here but it’s worth the time and attention it takes. It looks great and it tastes even better. A cup of warm potato —leek soup is a nice starter. Chill the soup if it’s very warm outside. This changes the name of the soup to become vichyssoise. Lemon squares and espresso are complementary sweets for dessert. Enjoy.