Serves: 2 - Time:
I think stone bass might be one of my favourite fish. If you can’t get it you could use sea bass fillets or bream but do try and search out a good fishmonger who may offer you a wider choice. Stone bass is a very chunky fish so if your substituted fillets are thinner you’ll need to adjust the cooking time –two to three minutes less. I buy my fermented black beans at www.souchef.co.uk in big tubs but they keep for ages in the fridge and once you’ve made your own black bean sauce you’ll find yourself never without a tub. Furikake is a Japanese seasoning with sesame seeds and seaweed which is available online or in good health food stores.
Ingredients
- For the ginger mayonnaise
- 150ml mayonnaise, preferably homemade
- 45g piece root ginger
- For the fish and vegetables
- 2 heaped tablespoons fermented black beans
- 2 tablespoons Shaoxing wine (rice wine) -or use dry sherry
- 250g asparagus, trimmed
- 2 x 180g stone bass fillets
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 large garlic clove, peeled and crushed
- 125g trimmed (destalked) shitake mushrooms
- 2 tablespoons furikake seasoning (see intro)
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
Method
- Put the mayonnaise in a bowl. Grate the ginger, skin and all, and put in a piece of muslin. Bring up the sides and squeeze the ginger to extract the juice. You should have about a tablespoon. Stir the ginger juice into the mayonnaise and chill until ready to use.
- Put the black beans in a small bowl and pour over the Shaoxing wine. Leave for 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile bring a saucepan of water to the boil and blanch the asparagus for 2 minutes. Drain and refresh immediately under cold water. Drain and pat dry.
- Heat the oven to 200˚c, fan oven 180˚c, mark 6. Place the stone bass fillets on a baking tray lined with non-stick parchment. Drizzle over 2 tablespoons of the soy sauce and season with ground black pepper. Roast in the oven for 12-15 minutes until the fish is opaque and cooked through.
- Five minutes before the fish is ready, heat the oil in a wok and add the garlic, asparagus and shitake mushrooms. Stir-fry for 2-3 minutes until the mushrooms are soft. Add the black beans and rice wine and stir-fry for a further 1-2 minutes. Tip into a serving dish. Place the fish fillets on top and sprinkle with the furikake seasoning and sesame oil. Serve immediately
