Whole Sea Bream Recipe Cooked in Salt

This whole Sea Bream recipe uses salt as a cooking chamber. It is so simple to make and it is the best way to retain the freshness of the sea. It is a fancy dish and it presents well. The perfect combination to impress your guests at a dinner party, and you would not believe how simple it is to do!

Jump to:

• When to eat Seafood “les mois sans R”
• How to buy Sea Bream
• How to bake a whole Sea Bream
• How to cook a salt-baked fish
• Other fish you can cook in salt
• Ingredients
• Preparing the fish
• Baking and Serving Sea Bream in salt
• Cooking the Samphire seaweed
• How to serve the Sea Bream cooked in salt
• What else can you serve with the sea bream
• Recipes you might also like
• 📋Whole Sea Bream Recipe Cooked in Salt

When to eat Seafood “les mois sans R”

Summer is at an end and the temperature is slowly cooling down. It is seafood time!

In the 18th century, due to the numerous cases of food poisoning during the summer months, Louis XV banned the sales of Oysters and Mussels during “les mois sans R”; “The months without R”, May, June, July and August.

With modern refrigeration technology, and strict Health and Safety regulations, the risk is now very low.

However, I don’t like to take risks, especially since we love seafood and had food poisoning too many times. So we avoid eating seafood during July and August, the hottest months of the year.

On the other hand, when it is very hot, fish is a lighter and fresher option than meat, so we make exceptions. We eat local seafood.

After all, Sea Bream is fished locally in the Mediterranean sea so it is easier to find it fresh.

How to buy Sea Bream

We only buy our seafood from a fishmonger we trust, not necessarily expensive ones.

My favourite place to buy fresh fish is Ventimiglia fish market, unbeatable for variety, freshness and price.

One recommendation I give you, ask your fishmonger to clean your fish. You just don't want to mess with that. You will have your kitchen full of fish scales. Most fishmongers will do that anyway.

To serve with sea bream I bought some samphire seaweed, they are the asparagus of the sea. They are chunky, salty, and taste like the fresh sea. A perfect combination.

How to bake a whole Sea Bream

Some people may get discouraged to cook a whole fish, but it is not difficult at all as long as you keep the temperature and cooking time exactly as from the recipe.

Overcooked seafood is not pleasant at all, it gets dry, though and sometimes bitter. A whole fish should be cooked only until the skin is crisp and the flesh opaque.

You can bake the fish covered or uncovered:

• If covered ( or wrapped in foil or paper) bake at 355 F- 180 C for 25 minutes a small fish and for 35-40 a large one
• If uncovered, add some juices and cook at 355 F - 180 C for about 30 minutes

You can cook it in the oven on a layer of potatoes and fill the stomach with herbs. If you want to preserve some nice juices, you can wrap the fish in a paper parcel.

Herbs and vegetables that can be added to the pan or wrapped in the fish parcels are:

• Parsely
• Onion
• Cherry tomatoes
• Fennel
• Garlic
• Lemon
• If you fancy, you can also add ½ cup of dry white wine.

How to cook a salt-baked fish

When the fish is fresh I love to cook it in Salt, it retains the freshness of the sea, it is simple to do and presents well. The perfect combination to impress your guests at a dinner party!

This dish is served in the best seafood restaurants, and I have seen people paying a fortune for it, but in reality, it is the simplest dish to prepare at home.

Other fish you can cook in salt

Beside Sea Bream, you can use any other fish like Bass, Mullet, Cod, Hake, Mackarel, Salmon, Trout, Snapper or Tilapia. Although, they have to be whole with the skin intact, not already filleted as the flesh will absorb too much salt.

The salt acts like a baking chamber releasing its seasoning and trapping all the juices and flavours inside. I can assure you, the fish will not be too salty!

There is no need to add any seasoning as the flesh of the fish will absorb the right amount of salt to enhance its flavour while maintaining its moisture. Although, if you wish you can fill the stomach with any of the herbs I listed above.

Once cooked, you just need to break the salt crust and gently remove it. This is the only difficult part of the recipe as you need to make sure the salt is removed without breaking the flesh.

Ingredients

The ingredients you need are very simple

• at least 1.5 Kg of coarse Sea Salt (Gros Sel Marin) for 1 kg of fish, depending on the size of your casserole.

It sounds a like lot, but each kilo of salt only costs between € 1 to € 2. No need to buy an expensive one as it will be discharged when serving the fish.

I recommend buying 2 to 3 bags per kilo of fish, better more than less. Any salt leftover can be used to salt the water for boiling pasta, or vegetables.

Use a pan that is just the size of the fish as the fish has to be completely enclosed in salt. Any opening will release heat and moisture.

However, if the pan is too big, you will need to use a lot of salt. Plus cleaning it afterward!

Preparing the fish

1. Preheat the oven at 220 C / 430 F
2. Cover the bottom of a pan with 2 in, 5 cm of salt,
3. Place the whole fish (which has been trimmed, scaled and gutted) on top of the salt.
4. Cover the fish with another layer of salt, making sure it is all covered. Sprinkle with water to seal.

Baking and Serving Sea Bream in salt

5. Cook the fish for 30 minutes in a hot oven at 430 F - 220 C
6. Gently remove the salt from the fish, making sure the fish remains intact. You may need a hammer to break the top.
7. Place it on a large plate to clean and serve.
8. The fish will be perfectly seasoned.

Cooking the Samphire seaweed

The samphire seaweed is very easy to prepare:

1. Rinse the samphire grass under running water
2. Bring to boil a large pan of water (you do not need to add salt)
3. Boil the samphire grass for 2 to 3 minutes
4. Drain and season with extra virgin olive oil and fresh lemon juice

How to serve the Sea Bream cooked in salt

The combination of Seabream and samphire is perfect as they both have a very delicate flavor of the sea. To keep them warm I serve them in Nambe serving tray and if you don't know what they are, you are going to discover that you needed them all your life.

Nambe is an alloy of 8 different metals, one of which is aluminum. It has the unique quality of temperature retention. You can put it in the fridge or in the oven and it will keep your food cold or warm for a long time.

It is perfect for dinner with friends and the food is kept warm for a long time. Besides its thermal quality, every Nambe product has an outstanding design, in fact, it has been featured in several modern art museums from the British Museum in London to the Museum of Modern Art in New York

What else can you serve with the sea bream

Since its flavor is very delicate, I serve it with a very mild side dished: an Italian or homemade Mayonaise potato salad and green beans seasoned with olive oil, lemon, garlic and parsley.

As a starter, you can serve a light Chayote mousse with mussels, a Salmorejo soup or a salmon tartare. All light options are perfect for a fresh summer dinner party.

For seafood ideas for the Feast of Seven Fishes, check out this Web Story.

Recipes you might also like

If you are looking for more Italian Seafood recipes, you can check the category: Seafood

Also check the recipes below:

• Fish Pie with a Mediterranean Twist
• Healthy Cod Recipe
• Homemade Paella Seafood And Sausage
• Pasta With Black Ink Cuttlefish Recipe
• Swordfish Wheel
• Baked Swordfish and Braciolette
• Stuffed Calamari Recipe
• Warm Octopus Salad “Legs” and Potato
• Fried calamari

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