17-05-2025
THE CANNY COOK: One-tin sea bass with fennel, lentils and lemon
Last month the Marine Conservation Society (MCS) downgraded its sustainability rating for Northeast Atlantic mackerel. It's sad to hear of stocks declining due to overfishing, particularly as mackerel has previously been plentiful and provided a brilliant-value fresh-fish option. As a sustainable alternative, the MCS recommends North Sea herring and Cornish sardines. (If knowing what fish to eat feels as confusing to you as it does to me, then it's worth using the MCS Good Fish Guide,
Like most cold-water oily fish, mackerel is a source of all- important omega-3 fatty acids, which we are told are essential for good health. Advice is to eat at least one portion of oily fish per week and, while most of us tend to reach for salmon and tuna, I was interested to learn that sea bass – a white fish – is a good source of omega-3s, too. (To save you looking it up, the most sustainable option to buy is ASC-certified farmed sea bass, available at Waitrose, Sainsbury's and Ocado.)
Quick to cook and nicely delicate, sea bass marries well with summery herbs and vegetables. This week's recipe pairs it with roasted fennel, which has a soft anise flavour that sweetens as it cooks and is wonderful with all seafood.
4 sea-bass fillets, £7.50; 2 large fennel bulbs, £3
2 x 400g can green lentils , £1.10; 1 lemon, 30p
METHOD
Preheat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7.
Trim the fennel fronds and reserve. Cut each bulb lengthways into slim wedges, trimming out the core and gnarly outer leaves. Toss with 2 tbsp olive oil, season and spread on a roasting tin (add 4 unpeeled garlic cloves if you have them). Roast for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, rinse and drain the lentils well.
Add the lentils to the roasting tin, squeeze over the juice of half a lemon and stir everything together. Roast for another 10 minutes.
Season the sea bass fillets all over and lay on top of the lentils and fennel, skin-side down. Drizzle with a little more oil and roast for a final 6-7 minutes or until cooked through. (If you want a crisp skin on your fillets, frying is best. In a large pan, fry skin-side down in oil and butter for 3 minutes, then turn and cook flesh-side down for 1 minute.)
Serve scattered with the fennel fronds and extra lemon wedges for squeezing. A dollop of garlic mayonnaise wouldn't go amiss, too.
Do you have a great recipe for eating well and cutting food bills? Email editor@ If we print it here, we'll send you a bottle of champagne
*This cost assumes you already have some basic store-cupboard ingredients. prices taken from aldi and correct at time of going to press.
