House Recipes: Citrus and Fennel Seabream

This week, we’ve invited Soho House member Rupa Bodhani (@the_social_cook) to walk us through her perfect Easter recipe for fish lovers.

‘One of my biggest passions in life is gathering people together around food, and seeing them opening up and the conversation flowing. Food has the ability to do that,’ says Bodhani. ‘Then, bringing it all together with a beautiful table makes everyone feel a little more special.’ 

As an ex-fashion buyer-turned chef, recipe developer, and food and table stylist, Bodhani has been hosting supper clubs for the past four years. She’s been honing her skills as a chef by working in various restaurants, throwing her own events and creating content for Soho House, among other brands. ‘The typical food I make is bold with flavour and spices, inspired by my Indian heritage,’ she says. ‘I love to cook with the seasons when the produce is at its very best, and I’m a big fan of vegetables.’ 

Below, she shares her favourite Easter recipe and how to make it. 

Citrus and Fennel Seabream with roasted rosemary potatoes and cavolo nero puree

Ingredients
Serves four
 
Seabream or seabass (buy this descaled, gutted and cleaned)
1 tsp coriander seeds, crushed
1 tsp fennel seeds, crushed
1 orange 
1 lemon 
½ fennel bulb 
1 shallot 
½ bunch of parsley
Vegetable oil 
Sea salt and pepper 

For the rosemary potatoes:
4-5 potatoes (I used Koffmann)
3-4 garlic cloves 
1 sprig of rosemary 
Sea salt 
Olive oil

For the cavolo nero puree:
100g cavolo nero 
3 garlic cloves 
Sea salt 
30ml extra virgin olive oil
40g Parmesan

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/ 400°F/ gas mark 6. Boil the potatoes in salty water until they are cooked through, but not falling apart. Drain the water and let them steam dry. 
2. Put the potatoes in an oven tray, season with sea salt, and add the rosemary, garlic and some olive oil. Cook in the oven for 45 minutes, turning them half way. 
3. Next, make the spiced oil for the fish. Crush the coriander and fennel seeds, and add them to some vegetable oil (such as rapeseed), then season with salt and pepper. 
4. Slice the orange and lemon into rounds, and thinly slice the fennel and shallot. 
5. Arrange the fruit slices at the bottom of a baking tray, then add your sliced fennel and shallots. Now add the fish, scoring the top of it so that the spices can flavour it. 
6. Spread the spiced oil over both sides of the fish, and place some of the citrus slices and parsley inside it. 
7. Season well with salt and pepper, then cover with foil and bake for 40 to 45 minutes. Remove the foil for the last 10 minutes of cooking to brown the top. 
8. For the cavolo nero puree, boil a pan of water and add a teaspoon of salt. Cook the cavolo nero and garlic cloves for three to four minutes. Drain and add to a blender with some olive oil and salt, and blend until smooth. 
9. Use a fine grater to grate in the Parmesan and stir through. Serve with a squeeze of lemon juice.