Sea Bass with Smoked Tomato and Pearl Barley

A simple dish for this time of year but packed full of flavour

Ingredients: 

3 Tablespoons Olive Oil 

Pinch of Halon Mon Garlic Sea Salt

Pinch of cracked black pepper 

Splash Halen Mon Oak Smoked Water 

200g Cherry Tomatoes

2 Sea Bass Fillets 

30g Pine Nuts, toasted 

Lemon Juice 

Half Onion thinly sliced

75g Peal Barley 

Vegetable Stock 

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Mix 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, the Halen Mon Garlic Salt and pepper  along with  splash of Halen Mon Oak Smoked Water together in a bowl, then add tomatoes and toss to make sure every bit is nicely coated. Spread out over a baking tray then place in the oven for 40–45 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the pearl barley. Heat the olive oil in a pan over a medium heat and gently fry the onion until soft, about 8 minutes. Stir in the barley, then pour in the vegetable stock. Bring to the boil, then turn down to a simmer and cook for 40 minutes until tender and the stock has been absorbed. Season well.

Towards the end of the cooking time, season the sea bass fillets on both sides with salt. Warm the remaining tablespoon of olive oil in a frying pan over a medium-high heat, then add the fish, skin-side down and fry for 3–4 minutes until the skin is golden and the fish is almost cooked. Turn and cook the other side for 1–2 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fillet, toward the end of the cooking splash the fillet with some Halen Mon Oak Smoked Water.

Once the barley and the roasted veg are ready, tip the tomatoes into the barley, folding them in gently so as not to squish them too much.

Divide the barley between 2 plates, sit the sea bass fillets on top and sprinkle with the pine nuts and parsley.

Finish with a good squeeze of lemon juice over the fish before serving.