When winter settles in and Meyer lemons are in season, the tendency is to reach for heavy, slow-cooked fare. This dish keeps the hearty, bold character of cold-weather ingredients but uses a lighter cooking approach to deliver a plate that still feels bright, delicate, and satisfying.
Info
- Cook time: 55 minutes
- Total time: 2 hours 35 minutes
- Yield: 4
Ingredients
- 4 gold beets (about golf ball size or slightly larger), scrubbed
- 4 Chioggia beets, scrubbed
- 1 tablespoon pure olive oil
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 bulb celery root
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- 2 tablespoons grapeseed oil
- Four 4- to 5-ounce sea bass fillets
- 1 Meyer lemon
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup fresh chervil leaves
- Freshly ground white pepper
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 350°F.
- In a bowl, coat the beets with the pure olive oil and season generously with salt and black pepper. Transfer to a pressure cooker, add water until it reaches halfway up the sides of the beets, and secure the lid. Cook at high pressure until the beets are tender all the way through, about 45 minutes. Following the manufacturer’s instructions, release the lid and let the beets cool until you can handle them. Peel and cut into quarters. (The beets can be prepared up to 5 days ahead and stored in the refrigerator.)
- Slice the celery root into batonnets about 2 inches long and 1/4 inch thick. Heat 1/8 cup of the extra-virgin olive oil in a sauté pan, add the celery root, and sweat over medium heat for about 3 minutes. Season with a generous pinch of salt, add a splash of water, cover, and simmer over medium-low heat until the celery root is tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.
- For the fish, set a large ovenproof skillet over high heat and let it get very hot. Add the grapeseed oil. Season the fillets with salt and pepper, then lay them in the skillet. Lower the heat to medium and cook until the fillets start to brown, about 2 minutes. Flip the fillets and move the skillet to the oven to finish cooking, about 5 minutes more. Take the fillets out of the skillet and keep them warm while you complete the sauce.
- Put the celery root back on the stove, add the beets, and zest the lemon directly into the pan using a rasp. Pour in 1/4 cup water and bring to a boil. Once heated through, squeeze the lemon into the pan, shake the pan, then add the remaining 1/8 cup extra-virgin olive oil and the butter, swirling to emulsify the sauce. Roughly chop half of the chervil and stir it in. Taste and adjust with salt and white pepper.
- To plate, spoon a generous portion of the vegetable and sauce mixture into a bowl and set a fillet on top. Scatter some of the remaining chervil over the fish. Repeat for the remaining three servings.
