I have never been a huge fan of farm-raised fish. In 2000, when I cooked at the James Beard House in New York with two other local chefs, we decided on an all- Colorado menu. Because it was scheduled for November, there wasn’t much to work with besides cheese and potatoes and whatever local proteins we could find. The other two chefs quickly — and shrewdly — picked two reliable Colorado staples, beef and lamb, suggesting that I prepare a dish with farmed Colorado striped bass.
Even though the fish was as fresh as it could be, it had the muddy taste that a lot of farmed white fish has, a taste that comes largely from the synthetic feed the fish consume. I did everything I could to make the fish taste palatable, even, in desperation, tried dousing it with truffle oil. I made up my mind never to use farmed bass again.
Ten years passed. I ordered the bass at a local restaurant, only because it was the only fish they were serving that night. The bass, to my surprise, had a moist texture and a clean flavor that I associate with wild fish. I called my fish purveyor, who told me that indeed the product was better than it had been since I last tried it 10 years ago, an improvement he attributed to a change in the fish feed.
Hybrid striped bass, which is farmed by Colorado Catch in Alamosa, is a fish I serve at Duo and Olivea. Because the fish has a beautiful skin that crisps up nicely, I serve it with the skin on. (If you’re going to serve the fish with the skin on, make sure of course that it has been scaled first, and run the back of a knife against the skin to brush off any stray scales.)
I like to prepare the fish by cooking it slowly skin side down so the skin gets crisp, then turning over it and basting it with butter or whole herbs. Serve the fish with olive oil mashed potatoes or a warm vegetable salad with fennel (fennel and bass are often paired together).
John Broening cooks at Duo and Olivea restaurants in Denver.
Skin-on Colorado Bass
Serves 4
Ingredients
4 skin-on bass fillets (about 5 ounces each), scaled, pin bones removed
Salt and freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
A few sprigs fresh thyme
Half a lemon, seeds removed
Directions
With a sharp knife, make three shallow cuts in the skin of each fish (this will keep the fish from curling). Season lightly with salt and pepper. In a large saute pan over medium heat, warm the olive oil and add the fish, skin side down to the pan. If the fish starts to curl, press down on the fish with a small plate. Cook the bass about 4 minutes on the skin side, until golden brown around the edges. Carefully turn the fish over. Add the butter, thyme and a squeeze of lemon juice. Tilt the pan, and with a large spoon, continuously baste the fish with the fat in the pan until the flesh is cooked, about 2 minutes. Transfer the fish to a platter, and cover with the pan juices. Serve immediately.
