DIFFICULTY: Easy, requires no special preparations.
PREPARATION TIME: 70 minutes
INGREDIENTS FOR 4 PEOPLE:
2 Piran sea bass – about 600-800 g each, or
1 Piran sea bass – about 800-1200 g
3 kg salt for baking
Optional ingredients:
2 egg whites
2 tbsp flour
potatoes
olive oil
garlic
twig of rosemary, preferably fresh
freshly ground pepper
RECOMMENDED SIDE DISH
Potatoes baked in salt or chard with potatoes make for excellent side dishes.

Clean the fish but don't scale it. Rinse it and dry it with a paper towel. Cover a baking tray with salt about 1 cm deep and place the fish on top. If preferred, put a few drops of olive oil, a twig of rosemary and/or some garlic into the stomach cavity. Cover the stomach cavity opening with a piece of tin foil to avoid the meat coming in contact with salt. Cover the entire fish with the remaining salt 1 cm thick or more. If preferred (we warmly recommend it), bury a few washed but unpeeled, half-cooked potatoes in the salt. Preheat the oven to 200-220 °C and bake for 30 to 60 minutes, depending on the size of the fish. While baking, the salt will harden and turn slightly brown. When the fish is done, crack the salt crust with a knife or kitchen mallet and remove all of the salt from the top half of the fish. To remove the skin (which can't be eaten because it hasn't been scaled), take a knife or fork and cut along the back from head to tail. Remove the foil from the stomach and make another cut past the pelvic fins to the tail. The skin is easily removed – lift it or roll it on a fork while taking care not to drop too much salt on the fish. Once the top half of the fish has been cleaned, it is ready to be served. Then remove the bones and head and clean the other half. If the fish is baked just right, the meat will not stick to the bones. If you want to make the salt crust around the fish even harder and browner, place it in a bowl before baking, add two egg whites and form a rough dough. You can also add two tablespoons of flour. The fish will bake equally well in both cases, the only difference is in the effort you'll have to make to break and remove the salt before serving. When the meat is ready to be served, you can add some mild olive oil to bring out the delicious and mild taste of sea bass baked in salt.

DIFFICULTY: Medium – the grill must be set up and maintained at the right temperature. Otherwise easy, requires no special preparations.
PREPARATION TIME: 30-40 minutes
INGREDIENTS FOR 4 PEOPLE:
4 Piran sea bass – 300-500 g each
a twig of rosemary (preferably fresh)
olive oil
salt
Optional ingredients:
"Trieste sauce" (never drizzled on the fish – serve it separately.)
RECOMMENDED SIDE DISH
chard with potatoes; grilled courgettes and aubergines, grilled slices of bread with garlic and olive oil; polenta slices

Dip a fresh or dried twig of rosemary in olive oil. Clean the sea bass and coat it with the rosemary-infused olive oil. Heat the grill to the right temperature for grilling. When a fish is placed on the hot grill, it should sizzle. It's important that the temperature is not too high or too low – if it is too high, the fish will burn, and if it is too low, the fish will be dry. Grill the sea bass on one side for 15-20 minutes without moving or turning it. When the fish's eye on the upward-facing side turns opaque, turn the fish. Grill for another 10-15 minutes. If you have smaller fish, grill them for 5-10 minutes on each side. While the fish are roasting, drizzle them with olive oil occasionally or use a rosemary twig dipped in olive oil. This will stop the fish from drying out. Before taking the fish off the grill, check the thickest part (usually where the head and body meets, near the gills). If there is no blood, the fish is done.

DIFFICULTY: Easy.
PREPARATION TIME: 50-60 minutes
INGREDIENTS FOR 4 PEOPLE:
4 Piran sea bass – 300-500 g each
potatoes
olive oil
garlic
onion
salt
freshly ground pepper
Optional ingredients:
a twig of rosemary (preferably fresh)

Peel the potatoes, cut them into relatively thin slices and add salt and pepper to taste. Add some olive oil, thinly sliced onion and garlic. Shake the baking tray to distribute everything evenly. Preheat the oven to 220 °C and roast for 10-20 minutes. In the mean time, scale and clean the sea bass and dry it with a paper towel. On one side, score the skin 3 to 5 times about 5 mm deep and then add salt and pepper. If preferred, you can put a twig of rosemary (preferably fresh) in the stomach cavity. After the potatoes have been roasting for 10-20 minutes, place the fish on top of them with the scored side facing up. Drizzle with olive oil and cover the baking tray with tin foil. Roast at 220 °C for 30 minutes and then remove the foil. Roast for another 10 minutes. Pour about 1 dl of dry white wine in the baking tray and roast for another 5-6 minutes. When it is done, take a knife or fork and cut along the back of the fish from head to tail. Make another cut along the bottom side past the pelvic fins to the tail. Serve the top half of the fish. Then remove the bones and head and clean the other half (other than the spine, most bones are in the stomach cavity walls and along the pelvic, pectoral and dorsal fins). If the fish has been roasted just right, the meat will not stick to the bones.

DIFFICULTY: Easy.
PREPARATION TIME: 50-60 minutes
INGREDIENTS FOR 4 PEOPLE:
4 Piran sea bass – 300 g each
button mushrooms
potatoes
olive oil
garlic
salt
freshly ground pepper
Optional ingredients:
10 black aromatic olives (choose good olives)
a twig of rosemary (preferably fresh)
tomato
pepper
courgettes

Clean the fish and dry it with a paper towel. Place it on a baking tray, add some salt and pepper and coat it with olive oil (including the inside of the stomach cavity). If preferred, you can put a twig of rosemary (preferably fresh) in the stomach cavity. In a bowl, mix together potatoes cut into pieces, button mushrooms cut into quarters, olives cut into rings, thinly sliced garlic, salt, pepper, finely chopped (crushed) rosemary and olive oil. For a change, you can replace mushrooms with other vegetables, e.g. a sliced potato, a pepper cut into sticks, or courgettes cut into sticks. Stir well and transfer into the baking tray. Distribute the potatoes evenly, including under the fish, and cover the tray with tin foil. Preheat the oven to 180 °C and roast for about 45-50 minutes (1 kg sea bass) or until the potatoes are done (test them with a fork before taking the tray out of the oven). After 30-35 minutes, remove the tin foil and roast for another 15 minutes. When it is done, take a knife or fork and cut along the back of the fish from head to tail. Make another cut along the bottom side past the pelvic fins to the tail. Serve the top half of the fish. Then remove the bones and head and clean the other half (other than the spine, most bones are in the stomach cavity walls and along the pelvic, pectoral and dorsal fins). If the fish has been roasted just right, the meat will not stick to the bones.

DIFFICULTY: Easy, requires no special preparations.
PREPARATION TIME: 50 minutes
INGREDIENTS FOR 4 PEOPLE:
4 Piran sea bass – 300-500 g each
salt
whole peppercorns
freshly ground peper
2 bay leaves
1 onion
a few cloves of garlic
1 tomato
1-2 tbsp apple or wine vinegar
1-2 tbsp olive oil
parsley
lemon
rice
Optional ingredients:
soup vegetables (2 carrots, some celeriac)
RECOMMENDED SIDE DISH:
white rice

Place the fish in a pot; if the fish is too large, cut it in half. Cover it in lukewarm water – the quantity and temperature depend on whether you just want to cook the fish or whether you also want to cook some delicious fish soup. If you only want the fish, use 1-2 fingers of warmer water and don't cover the fish completely so it can be steamed. If you also want to make soup, add more cold water. Add salt and freshly ground pepper to taste, 1 tablespoon of vinegar, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, 2 bay leaves, 5-10 peppercorns, soup vegetables (carrots, celeriac), a halved tomato, a halved onion and a few cloves of garlic. Gently simmer on a low flame for 20-30 minutes. When the sea bass is done, season to taste with lemon, olive oil, freshly ground pepper, some garlic and parsley. You can also cook some white rice (I recommend organically produced Acquerello rice) and add it to the soup.

DIFFICULTY: Easy.
PREPARATION TIME: 10-15 minutes
BAKING TIME: 30 minutes
INGREDIENTS FOR 4 PEOPLE:
800 g Piran sea bass fillet
salt
freshly ground pepper
capers
tin foil (or baking paper)
Optional ingredients:
onion, sliced
garlic, thinly sliced
parsley
olive oil
white wine
some butter
a slice of lemon
boiled potatoes in chunks
vegetables, cooked and sautéed (broccoli, carrot, chard, leek, courgettes)
RECOMMENDED SIDE DISH:
boiled potatoes in chunks
vegetables, cooked and sautéed (broccoli, carrot, chard, leek, courgettes)

Use tin foil to make four boats. Dry the sea bass fillets with a paper towel and place one into each boat. Add salt and pepper to taste and drizzle with olive oil. Fold the foil closed, twist the edges together and place the boats on a baking tray. Preheat the oven to 200 °C and bake for 30 minutes. If you want to steam the fish, place a pan with some water on the oven bottom. In addition to the sea bass fillet, you can also add onion slices, thinly sliced garlic, parsley, some olive oil or butter, some quality white wine, a slice of lemon, boiled potatoes in chunks or cooked and sautéed vegetables into the boats. This will make the dish tastier, but it will also overpower the delicate, tender flavour of fresh Piran sea bass. The fish can be served still inside the boats or you can take the boats apart and place their contents on a plate.

DIFFICULTY: Easy.
PREPARATION TIME: 50-60 minutes
INGREDIENTS FOR 4 PEOPLE:
4 Piran sea bass – 300-500 g each
salt
freshly ground pepper
Optional ingredients:
olive oil
garlic
chopped onion
slice of lemon
parsley
some butter
RECOMMENDED SIDE DISH
boiled potatoes and chard; polenta with parmesan.

Clean the fish, dry it thoroughly with a paper towel, add salt and pepper to taste and wrap the fish in tin foil. Place the parcel on a baking tray, preheat the oven to 200 °C and bake for 50 to 60 minutes or less for smaller fish (30 min). If you want to steam the fish, you can put a pot with about 1 cm of water on the oven bottom. If preferred, you can put a slice of onion, some sliced garlic, parsley, a slice of lemon, some olive oil or butter in the stomach cavity. Apart from olive oil, I don't recommend any of these with a fresh fish, because it overpowers the tender, delicious flavour of fresh sea bass. You can serve the fish lightly drizzled with good olive oil.

DIFFICULTY: Easy, requires no special preparations.
PREPARATION TIME: 20 minutes
INGREDIENTS FOR 4 PEOPLE:
1 smoked Piran sea bass
8 mandarin oranges (clementines)
lamb's lettuce, cleaned and washed
mozzarella or young goat cheese
olive oil
salt
freshly ground pepper
1 tbsp chestnut honey

Peel the mandarin oranges, slice them into thin circles and place them on plates. Cover each slice with a few bunches of lamb's lettuce. Clean the smoked sea bass. Cut the fillets into small pieces about 2 cm in size and scatter them on top of lamb's lettuce. Cut the mozzarella or young goat cheese into 1 cm cubes, warm them in a pan on some olive oil and add a few cubes to each plate. Add salt and pepper to taste, decorate with a thin drizzle of honey and serve.

DIFFICULTY: Easy, requires no special preparations.
PREPARATION TIME: 30 minutes
INGREDIENTS FOR 4 PEOPLE:
bones, skin, heads left over after filleting, or 2 Piran sea bass – 300-500 g each
salt
whole peppercorns
freshly ground pepper
2 bay leaves
1 onion
a few cloves of garlic
1 tomato
1-2 tbsp apple or wine vinegar
1-2 tbsp olive oil
parsley
lemon
rice
Optional ingredients:
soup vegetables (2 carrots, courgettes, leek, celeriac, cauliflower, aubergine)
RECOMMENDED SIDE DISH
white rice

Put the fish bones, skin and heads in a pot and cover them in cold water. Add salt and freshly ground pepper to taste, 1 tablespoon of vinegar, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, 2 bay leaves, 5-10 peppercorns, soup vegetables (carrots, celeriac), a halved tomato, a halved onion and a few cloves of garlic. Simmer gently on a low flame for 15-20 minutes. When the soup is done, add some lemon, olive oil, freshly ground pepper, garlic and parsley to taste. You can also cook some white rice (I recommend organically produced Acquerello rice) and add it to the soup.