Sea bass with braised courgettes & harissa mayo

• extra virgin olive oil↗2 tbsp tbsp
• thyme sprig↗1
• sea bass↗2

  fillets

• lemon↗½

  juiced

• extra virgin olive oil↗4 tbsp tbsp
• fennel seedspinch of pinch of
• red onion↗1

  finely sliced

• red chilli↗pinch of dried pinch of dried
• cherry tomatoes↗handful of handful of

  cut in half

• garlic clove↗1

  peeled and finely chopped

• medium or 1 large courgette2

  (about 200g), sliced 0.5cm thick

• white wine↗100ml ml

  or sherry

• lemon↗1

  juiced, plus extra wedges to serve

• dill↗handful of handful of

  chopped

• good-quality, shop-bought mayonnaise4 tbsp tbsp
• harissa↗1 tbsp

  or more, to taste

Step-by-step instructions

1. 1

   Stir the mayonnaise and harissa together and refrigerate until ready to use.

2. 2

   For the courgettes, heat the olive oil in a high-sided, non-stick frying pan over a medium-high heat. Cook the fennel seeds, red onion and chilli with a pinch of salt for 5 mins until softened and fragrant. Add the cherry tomatoes, garlic and courgette, then season and cook down for a few mins. Pour in the wine, lemon juice and about 200ml water and simmer for 15-20 mins until the tomatoes and courgettes are collapsing. Bubble off any excess water. Stir through the dill and keep warm while you cook the sea bass. (Take your fish out of the fridge 20 mins before you cook it to bring it up to room temperature.)

3. 3

   Heat the olive oil with the thyme in a non-stick frying pan over a low-to-medium heat. Place the sea bass fillets skin-side down in the pan. Season the flesh-side of the fillets with salt and pepper. Cook gently for about 8 mins until the skin is crisp (it might spit during this time, so best to wear an apron), then add a small amount of lemon juice and baste the flesh of the fish in the warm oil and lemon for about 4 mins, or until opaque and cooked through.

4. 4

   Divide the vegetables between plates and top with the bass. Serve with the harissa mayo and lemon wedges.