Grilled sea bass with tabbouleh

Matt Tebbutt’s grilled sea bass recipe is a Middle Eastern-inspired stunner: butterflied sea bass blackened under a hot grill, lacquered with a sweet-sour spiced tomato, tamarind and date molasses glaze, then piled onto fresh lemony tabbouleh with roast tomatoes, charred chard, toasted pine nuts and a glossy pomegranate drizzle. Healthy, dairy-free and made for sharing.

Jump To Recipe Original recipe by Matt Tebbutt
From Saturday Kitchen 14 November 2026
Optimised by our culinary team – featuring a Nutri-Score B, four ingredient swaps, a 5-stage timed method, and 3 techniques for success.

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How the timings work

• Two heat sources run at once: a hot oven (220C/200C fan) roasts the vegetables while the grill (on high) chars the fish – the hob only works early on, for the glaze.
• The first 15 minutes: fry and simmer the tamarind glaze on the hob while the bulgur soaks in cold water.
• While the tabbouleh rests for its final 10 minutes: squeeze the bulgur dry first, then get the tomatoes and red onion into the oven for their 15-minute roast.
• While the vegetables finish (5-10 minutes once the chard and pine nuts join the tray): season, oil and get ready to grill the fish.
• The last 8-10 minutes: blacken the skin, brush on the glaze and caramelise briefly – then everything lands on the platter together, dressed with pomegranate molasses, lemon and parsley.

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Method

Make the glaze first (15 minutes)

1. Fry the garlic: Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a frying pan over a medium heat and fry 4 finely chopped garlic cloves for 2 minutes until fragrant but not coloured.
2. Bloom the spices: Add 1 tbsp tomato purée, 1 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp ground coriander, 1 tsp smoked paprika and ½ tsp chilli flakes and stir to combine – the paste should sizzle gently and deepen in colour.
3. Simmer the glaze: Grate 400g ripe tomatoes on the coarse side of a box grater (skins stay behind – that’s the point), then add them to the pan with 2 tbsp tamarind paste and 1½ tbsp date molasses. Simmer for 5-10 minutes until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon – a thin glaze won’t cling to the fish. Stir in the juice of 1 lemon and season with salt and pepper.

While the glaze simmers: make the tabbouleh (about 25 minutes, mostly soaking)

4. Soak the bulgur: Cover 50g fine bulgur wheat with cold water in a mixing bowl and leave for 10-15 minutes until tender.
5. Squeeze it dry: Drain and squeeze out as much water as you possibly can – wet bulgur makes a watery tabbouleh, so don’t skip the squeeze.
6. Toss the tabbouleh: Add 20g very finely chopped flatleaf parsley, 10g chopped mint, 3 deseeded and finely chopped ripe tomatoes, ½ small very finely chopped red onion and 1 small deseeded chopped cucumber. Add the juice of 2 lemons and 100ml extra virgin olive oil, season with salt, pepper and a pinch of sumac, mix well and leave for 10 minutes before serving so the flavours meld.

Roast the vegetables (20-25 minutes)

7. First roast: Preheat the oven to 220C/200C Fan/Gas 7. Put 4 tomatoes (8 wedges each) and 1 red onion, cut into wedges, on a baking tray, drizzle with olive oil and season. Roast for 15 minutes until slumping and browning at the tips.
8. Finish the tray: Add the roughly chopped head of chard and 50g pine nuts to the tray and roast for another 5-10 minutes – the chard wilts and the nuts toast to gold. (Watch the pine nuts: they burn in a blink.)

Grill the sea bass (8-10 minutes)

9. Prep the fish: Preheat the grill to high. Season the butterflied sea bass with salt and pepper and brush all over with 2 tbsp olive oil using a pastry brush.
10. Blacken the skin: Put the fish skin-side up under the hot grill and cook until the skin blackens and blisters in patches – that charring is the flavour, not a mistake.
11. Glaze and finish: Turn the fish flesh-side up and brush generously with the glaze. Return it to the grill briefly – a minute or two – until the glaze caramelises without burning (the sugars in the date molasses catch fast, so stay put) and the fish is cooked through: opaque, flaking easily and, for certainty, reading 62°C at the thickest part on a probe thermometer.

Plate up (3 minutes)

12. Serve: Put the sea bass on a serving platter with the tabbouleh, roasted tomatoes, red onion, chard and pine nuts. Drizzle over 50ml pomegranate molasses, finish with lemon wedges and 2 tbsp chopped flatleaf parsley, and take it straight to the table.

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Techniques for Success

1. Squeeze the bulgur properly dry

Tabbouleh should be a fresh, herby salad, not a soggy porridge. Bulgur soaked in cold water holds a surprising amount of liquid, and skipping the squeeze dilutes the lemon and oil dressing, leaving the salad flat and weepy on the plate.

Do it right: drain the bulgur in a fine sieve, then press and squeeze with the back of a spoon – or a clean tea towel – until no more water runs out before it meets the herbs and dressing.

Success looks like light, separate grains glistening with dressing rather than a puddle at the bowl’s base. Taste: bright, lemony, properly seasoned.

2. Cook the glaze down before it goes anywhere near the grill

The glaze carries this dish, and two things sink it: a watery glaze that slides off the fish, and a scorched one – the date molasses and tamarind are sugary, and under a fierce grill they burn in seconds, turning bitter and black.

Do it right: simmer the glaze 5-10 minutes until it genuinely coats the back of a spoon; apply it in a generous layer once the fish is turned; then watch the grill every second, ready to pull the fish the moment it caramelises to a deep mahogany.

Success looks like a glossy, brick-red lacquer with dark caramelised edges – charred in places, never blackened all over. Taste: sweet, sour, spiced and smoky in balance.

3. Grill skin-side up first, and trust doneness cues

Butterflied fish cooks fast, and the mistake everyone makes is overcooking it into dryness or under-charring the skin. Skin down against the grill also tears and sticks; skin up, it crisps and chars while the flesh steams gently.

Do it right: grill high, skin-side up, until it blackens and blisters; turn once; glaze; and finish briefly until the flesh is opaque right through and flakes easily – 62°C at the thickest part for certainty.

Success looks like blistered, lacy-charred skin and pearly opaque flesh that yields in large flakes. Taste: sweet, moist fish with smoky, spiced edges.

Technique	Failure if done wrong	Success looks like
Squeeze the soaked bulgur dry	Watery, flat, weepy tabbouleh	Light, separate grains glistening with lemony dressing
Reduce the glaze, then watch it under the grill	Glaze slides off, or burns bitter and black	A glossy mahogany lacquer with caramelised, not burnt, edges
Grill skin-side up, then finish to flaking	Dry, overcooked flesh or torn pale skin	Blistered charred skin and pearly flesh that flakes easily

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Tips and swaps

• Get ahead: The glaze keeps for 3 days in the fridge and the tabbouleh happily rests for an hour – on the day you only roast, grill and plate.
• Swaps: Sea bream or whole trout replaces the sea bass; quinoa stands in for bulgur (cook it, don’t soak, for a gluten-free tabbouleh); and honey plus extra tamarind substitutes date molasses.
• Watch the grill: The date molasses makes the glaze catch quickly – stay at the grill for those final minutes and pull the fish the moment the glaze turns deep mahogany.
• Leftovers: Cooked fish keeps for 2 days in the fridge – flake it cold into the leftover tabbouleh for a next-day lunch; the tabbouleh itself is arguably better on day two.
• Pregnancy-friendly: The fish is served fully cooked through (opaque and flaking, 62°C), so this dish suits anyone pregnant as written.
• Herb note: Chop the parsley very finely as the recipe says – it turns the tabbouleh emerald and fragrant rather than coarse and stemmy.

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Wine Pairing

Recommended by Helen McGinn:

Opta Arinto, Portugal, 2025 – Majestic, from £12

Opta Arinto 2025 comes from Portugal, where the Arinto grape earns its keep with ringing acidity and citrus drive. Expect crisp lemon and green apple, a subtle stony minerality and a clean, dry finish – a refreshing white made for seafood at a friendly price.

Char-grilled sea bass, sweet-sour tamarind glaze and herby tabbouleh want freshness above all. This Arinto’s citrus acidity echoes the lemon, cuts the olive oil and glaze, and its mineral snap keeps every mouthful of the sweet grilled fish feeling bright and clean.

Here are equally good alternatives that pair beautifully with this dish:

Vinho Verde – Asda, around £7
Light, zesty and faintly spritzy, it washes through the char and spice effortlessly.

Albariño – Tesco, around £11
Rías Baixas freshness with peachy fruit – a natural friend to grilled fish and citrus dressings.

Santorini Assyrtiko – Waitrose, around £19
Electric, saline and structured, it stands tall against the tamarind glaze.

* Prices checked November 2026 and may vary. The alternatives are our suggestions, not necessarily wines recommended by Helen McGinn.

 

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