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Home » All Recipes » Pan Fried Basa with Fiery Tomato Sauce and Grilled Asparagus

Pan Fried Basa with Fiery Tomato Sauce and Grilled Asparagus

December 26, 2014 by Dhanya Samuel 9 Comments

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I love to experiment with cuisines, drawing inspiration from different styles of cooking, recipes, cuisines etc… and finally bringing it together as my own. This is one such dish.

I first came across this fiery tomato sauce in a South African cookbook. Known as Babette’s fiery sauce, it was listed as one of the basic sauces used in the cuisine. I just knew that I had to try it out as the flavours were incredible. It is a basic tomato sauce, easy to prepare and can even be made in bulk and stored. And being a basic sauce, it can be combined with different ingredients creating whole new dishes each time.

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I decided to go the seafood route with this sauce when I found some fresh basa fillets at the local farmer’s market. And when you have fresh produce, there is not much that you need to do; just a dash of seasoning is enough to draw out the flavour. I used salt, pepper and cumin to season the fish with a generous squeeze of lemon juice.

The grilled asparagus was a last minute addition, again a find at the local farmer’s market. You can use any kind of grilled vegetable that you want based on what’s in season.

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Pan fried Basa with fiery tomato sauce and grilled asparagus – a perfect spring recipe; succulent pieces of basa spiced with cumin and pan fried, served on a bed of hot herby, garlicky tomato sauce and some grilled asparagus on the side for an extra bit of crunch and flavour.

Pan fried fish, tomato sauce and grilled asparagus served on grey plate
Print Recipe

Pan fried Basa, Fiery Tomato Sauce, Grilled Asparagus

Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Modern Australian, Seafood

Ingredients

For the fish:

  • 2 basa fillets cut into 6 portions, wash and pat dry (use any other white fish if you cannot get basa)
  • Salt to season
  • Freshly milled black pepper to season
  • ½ tsp roasted cumin powder
  • Vegetable/olive oil – to pan fry the fish

Babette’s fiery sauce:

  • 3 ripe red tomatoes diced
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 2 sprigs parsley
  • 1 scotch bonnet chili
  • 6 tbsp sunflower oil
  • Salt to season
  • Freshly milled black pepper to season
  • Lemon juice
  • A pinch of sugar

For the asparagus:

  • Asparagus stalks trimmed and cleaned
  • Salt to season
  • Freshly milled black pepper to season

Instructions

  • Marinate the fish pieces with salt, pepper, cumin and lemon juice; keep aside for 30 minutes.
  • To prepare the sauce, blend tomatoes, garlic, parsley, chilli and oil in a blender till smooth. Add water if too thick.
  • Heat a pan and add the sauce; reduce on low heat till a thicker consistency is obtained. Season with lemon juice, salt, pepper and a pinch of sugar. (Make sure to taste and adjust seasonings accordingly).
  • Pan fry the fish pieces, drain on a towel and keep aside.
  • Season the asparagus with salt and pepper; grill till done.
  • To assemble, spoon the sauce on a plate, place the fish on top and add the grilled asparagus.
  • Garnish with chopped parsley leaves.
  • Enjoy while warm!

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. RecipeTin (@Recipe_Tin)

    June 23, 2016 at 12:21 am

    This is fantastic! Love the flavors you’ve put here! Look at that tomato sauce. Yum!

    Reply
    • vanyadhanya

      June 23, 2016 at 8:36 am

      Thanks Nagi, I had almost forgotten this dish. Time I made it again.

      Reply
  2. Ka

    November 18, 2015 at 6:19 am

    This tasted great! Had to substitute the chilli for a capsicum but still turned out nice.

    Reply
    • vanyadhanya

      November 18, 2015 at 6:25 am

      awesome; glad to hear you enjoyed it.

      Reply
  3. chefceaser

    January 1, 2015 at 8:12 am

    Reblogged this on Chef Ceaser.

    Reply
  4. Maureen | Orgasmic Chef

    December 27, 2014 at 12:40 pm

    What a beautiful dish and I love all the ingredients that you’ve put together to get the best flavour.

    Reply
    • vanyadhanya

      December 27, 2014 at 1:17 pm

      thanks Maureen

      Reply
  5. afracooking

    December 26, 2014 at 4:54 pm

    What a fabulous combination of flavours! Love it!

    Reply
    • vanyadhanya

      December 26, 2014 at 8:46 pm

      thanks dear

      Reply

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Hi, I am Dhanya. The Spice Adventuress is my alter ego. Through her, I fulfill my desire to put my thoughts into words, explore my restless creative soul and express it through food and photography.

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