Whole roasted gilthead seabream, served with lemon-thyme butter

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Preparation

Allow the butter to reach room temperature. In the meantime, de-stalk the thyme leaves, saving the sprigs. Zest and press the lemon. Finely chop the shallot.

In a bowl, use a wooden spoon to incorporate into the soft butter the thyme leaves, lemon zest and half the lemon juice, as well as the finely chopped shallot until completely emulsified. Salt lightly and pepper well, then roll the butter in cling wrap to form a log. Refrigerate the butter until needed.

Finely chop the onion and halve the garlic clove. Place one half in the chest of each fish, also adding the thyme sprigs. Make incisions in the skin, a few millimetres deep every 2 cm on each side of the seabreams. Salt and pepper well on each side.

Pour half the olive oil into a large non-stick skillet and brown each side of the seabreams for about 3 minutes until the skin is crispy.

Place the fish on a baking sheet and roast in the oven for 15 minutes at 375 °F (190 °C). Remove the fish from the oven and allow to rest for a few minutes before serving.

In the meantime, very finely slice the fennel bulb using a vegetable slicer. Do the same with the green apple, placing the fennel and apple in a mixing bowl. Pour in the remaining lemon juice and olive oil, season to taste and toss well.

Tip: Keep the fennel fronds to make a vegetable broth and add any remaining leaves to the salad.

Serve the fish at the centre of the table on a large platter with a side of crisp fennel salad. Top the fish with slices of lemon-thyme butter, letting it melt slowly.

Source : Martin Juneau