How To Cook Chilean Sea Bass (10-Minute Recipe) - Well Seasoned Studio (2024)

Chilean Sea Bass (also referred to as Patagonian Toothfish) is a truly luxurious fish that is incredibly simple to cook at home. It has a rich, buttery taste, and a delicate flaky texture. All you need to learn how to cook Chilean sea bass at home is a large skillet, a few fish filets, some olive oil, Kosher salt, and black pepper.

Pan seared Chilean sea bass is absolutely delicious on its own — it has a high fat content, giving it not just great flavor, but also making it easy to prepare. If you cook it properly, it’s very unlikely to dry out!

Here’s why you’ll love it so much:

• Clean, simple ingredients!
• Takes on the flavor of just about any sauce you pair with it!
• Can be pricy to order out at restaurants. Much more economical to prepare it yourself at home!

Truly, this is the best Chilean sea bass recipe! The possibilities are endless. We love to top this with a silky smooth lemon beurre blanc or orange beurre blanc, but you could serve this with anything from a garlic butter sauce to ginger scallion sauce. It’s so versatile!

How To Shop For Chilean Sea Bass

There’s no denying that Chilean sea bass is an expensive fish. If you’re going to spend the money, make sure you’re buying a high quality piece of sea bass. Here’s how to tell if it’s quality:

• The fish should smell clean and fresh, and a bit like the ocean (but not in a bad way!).
• The flesh of the fish should be bright white and firm. The flesh should also be smooth, without having already flaked (before cooking).

Most of what we can find locally here in the tri-state area is all labeled Patagonian toothfish,versus Antarctic toothfish (another type of sea bass that is found in cold waters, near Antarctica).

If you can’t find sea bass (but we hope you can, it is the best ever!), look for black cod, sometimes labeled sablefish or butterfish (this is different than the less expensive Pacific or Norwegian cod).

How To Pan Sear Chilean Sea Bass

There are plenty of options when cooking seafood: you can grill, steam, bake, or fry them all. But we love the texture and how simple it is to make pan seared Chilean sea bass.

Preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Pat the Chilean seabass dry with a paper towel, then season the fish generously with Kosher salt and black pepper on both sides.

Heat a tiny bit of a light, neutral oil (such as grapeseed, canola, or vegetable oil) or unsalted butter in a large skillet. When very hot, place fish skin side down in the pan. Cook for 4 minutes, then use a fish spatula to carefully flip over. Cook the second side an additional 4 minutes. That’s it!

How To Serve

Try serving pan seared Chilean sea bass with roasted broccolini (or other roasted vegetables), over creamy mashed potatoes or steamed rice, with sautéed garlic spinach, or over couscous.

Once you learn how to make pan seared Chilean sea bass filets, you’ll love pairing them with a variety of sauces. Our go-to is this lemon beurre blanc, made with butter, shallot, white wine, a little vinegar, fresh lemon juice, and a touch of heavy cream! It isdivine.

Not into a bright lemon sauce? Pan seared sea bass is is also deliciouswith ginger scallion sauce, garlic butter sauce, homemade teriyaki sauce, or charred scallion sauce.

Don’t forget a chilled glass of white wine! Sancerre would be perfect this!

This is such an easy recipe to make and enjoy. Your guests will feel like they’re dining at a five star restaurant, but we both know how truly easy it is to cook Chilean sea bass at home.

If you make this Pan Seared Chilean Sea Bass recipe, please let us know by leaving a review and rating below!

If you’re searching for another great recipe that features firm, white fish, such as Chilean Sea Bass, consider substituting it for halibut in our British-inspired Fish Pie. Seriously comforting and cozy!

And make sure to sign up for ournewsletterand follow along onInstagram,TikTok, YouTube, Pinterest, andFacebookfor moreWell Seasonedrecipes! DON’T FORGET to tag us on social channels when you make a recipe at #wellseasonedstudio !! We LOVE seeing what you’re up to in the kitchen!

How To Cook Chilean Sea Bass (10-Minute Recipe)

Learn how to cook Chilean sea bass at home! This rich, buttery white fish is delicious pan seared on a stove top. It cooks quickly and will take on the flavor of any sauce you pair with it. We recommend pan seared Chilean sea bass with lemon beurre blanc. Gluten-free, Dairy-free.

Servings: 4 servings

Calories: 535kcal

Nutrition

Serving: 1filet | Calories: 535kcal | Protein: 34g | Fat: 44g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 131mg | Sodium: 437mg | Potassium: 1mg | Vitamin A: 595IU | Calcium: 1mg | Iron: 1mg