Branzino al Forno

Name: Branzino al Forno
Prep time: 60 min
Yield: 4 people
Ingredients: 2 – whole sea bass, scaled and gutted (about 700 g each); 500 g – waxy potatoes, thinly sliced; 300 g – cherry tomatoes, halved; 80 g – black olives, pitted; 1 – lemon, half sliced and half juiced; 2 – garlic cloves; 4 sprigs – thyme; 3 tbsp – chopped flat-leaf parsley; 100 ml – dry white wine; 60 ml – extra virgin olive oil; To taste – salt and black pepper

Baked fish with cherry tomatoes, olives and herbs – photo by Valeria Boltneva, Pexels

Branzino al forno is a simple, elegant way to cook the sea bass: the whole fish is roasted in the oven with potatoes, juicy cherry tomatoes, olives, lemon and fragrant herbs. The flesh stays moist and delicate, while the vegetables soak up the juices.

It is loved for its fresh, Mediterranean flavour and its easy preparation. It brings a whole fish to the table with very little effort, perfect for a light dinner or a festive lunch.

Difficulty Easy

Prep time 1 h

Servings 4 people

Wine White – Pinot Grigio or Vermentino

Cost Medium

Whole fish with fresh herbs on a platter – photo by Masuma Rahaman, Pexels

Fresh whole fish on ice – photo by Deane Bayas, Pexels

The story

The sea bass, called branzino in most of Italy and spigola in Venice and parts of the Adriatic, has been a favourite fish of the Mediterranean since antiquity. The ancient Romans prized it and the fish ponds of the coast were stocked with it, a sign of how highly it was valued on wealthy tables. Its mild, delicate flesh makes it ideal for simple cooking.
Roasting a whole fish in the oven is a typical coastal technique, common from Liguria to Sicily, each region adding its own accents: Ligurian cooks use olives and pine nuts, the south prefers tomatoes and capers, and in Tuscany it is often baked with potatoes and rosemary. There is no single recorded origin of branzino al forno, but the idea of cooking fish whole, with vegetables and herbs, is deeply rooted in family kitchens along the Italian coastline, especially for festive meals and Christmas Eve.

Ingredients

2 whole sea bass, scaled and gutted (about 700 g each)
500 g waxy potatoes, thinly sliced
300 g cherry tomatoes, halved
80 g black olives, pitted
1 lemon, half sliced and half juiced
2 garlic cloves
4 sprigs thyme
3 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley
100 ml dry white wine
60 ml extra virgin olive oil
To taste salt and black pepper

Method

1
Preheat the oven to 200 °C and rinse the fish inside and out, then pat them dry.
2
Toss the potato slices with half the oil, a little salt and thyme leaves, and spread them in a large baking tray; roast for 15 minutes.
3
Season the inside of the fish with salt, pepper, garlic, lemon slices, parsley and a few thyme sprigs.
4
Add the cherry tomatoes and olives to the tray with the half-cooked potatoes.
5
Lay the fish on top, drizzle with the remaining oil and make two or three shallow cuts across the skin.
6
Pour the wine around the fish and roast for 25–30 minutes, until the flesh is opaque and flakes easily near the bone.
7
Squeeze over the lemon juice and sprinkle with fresh parsley.
8
Fillet the fish at the table and serve with the vegetables and the pan juices.

Tips & variations

Variations: swap the sea bass for sea bream, bake it in a salt crust for a super moist result or add a few capers to the tray.
Make ahead & storage: prepare the vegetables and stuff the fish a couple of hours ahead; leftovers keep for one day in the fridge and are good cold with lemon.
Common mistakes: overcooking the fish (check at the thickest part near the bone), slicing the potatoes too thick so they stay hard and forgetting to dry the fish before roasting.

Photos: Valeria Boltneva, Masuma Rahaman and Deane Bayas via Pexels (free licence)