Bake or Roast Branzino with Lemon
Bake or Roast Branzino with Lemon Garlic & Wine is one of the most flavorful, soft, and delicate fish to eat. Branzino is stuffed with lemon slices, garlic, and fresh parsley and baked with wine until the fish is fully cooked. A delicious seafood dish that’s easy to prepare and costs much less than ordering it in a restaurant.
What is a Branzino?
Branzino is a European Sea Bass and it’s usually baked or grilled and served with olive oil and fresh herbs dressing drizzled on top, or on the side.
It is one of my favorite seafood dishes and one I enjoy making at home all the time!
When you make any seafood dinner at home, especially branzino it will only cost you about one-third of the price compared to ordering in a restaurant. That is a great saving!
When Buying Branzino…
If you purchase branzino at your local seafood market, ask the guy behind the counter to remove its head, tail, and guts. Then have him scale it for you.
If you prefer to leave it whole, then ask the fishmonger to only remove its guts, but still, scale it for you.
Then follow our easy recipe!
It only takes a few minutes to prep, and into the oven, it goes! It bakes in less than 30 minutes!
You can easily grill branzino outdoors on your barbecue, and we have a recipe for Grilled Whole Branzino if you’d like to try it.
How to Serve Branzino?
Best to serve branzino with freshly squeezed lemon juice on top, or on the side. Then drizzle lightly over the fish with some extra virgin olive oil to give it the final touch and more flavor. Garnish with freshly chopped parsley sprinkled on top.
Cook’s Notes and Tips:
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Branzino is a fish with bones. Before serving, you will have to remove the spine and large bones and discard them. Then use a spatula to transfer the meat to a serving dish or platter.
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Because of the bones, branzino is a fish I would not recommend serving to small children.
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Ovens will vary, so with that said, you may need more or less baking/or roasting time.
Also, Branzino’s will vary in weight and in thickness, and you will need to check on the fish to see if it’s fully cooked near the end of cooking time.
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HOW CAN WE TELL WHEN the fish is fully cooked? You can tell when the body is firm when you touch it, or lightly press down on it.
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Always use a good quality of extra virgin olive oil for serving with this recipe.
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Branzino is available all year long in most supermarkets that have a fish department, like Whole Foods.
HOW TO BAKE or ROAST BRANZINO with LEMON? (*full recipe card below!)
Ingredients for Bake or Roast Branzino with Lemon:
- 2 small Branzino’s ( about 1 pound each)
- extra virgin olive oil
- 4 garlic cloves- sliced
- 2 lemons – divided
- 1 cup fresh Italian parsley – chopped
- 1 tsp. dried rosemary
- sea salt and freshly cracked ground black pepper
- 3/4 cup white wine
- 1/4 cup lemon juice, and extra for serving
Directions to Bake or Roast Branzino with Lemon:
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (204 C). Rinse fish, and pat dry. Line a baking pan with foil wrap and spray with cooking oil (for fast clean-up).
2. Place fish onto a pan. Stuff the cavity of each fish with some garlic slices, 2 to 3 lemon slices, and some fresh parsley. Season the outside of the fish with some salt, pepper, and rosemary.
Drizzle extra virgin olive oil inside the cavity, and over the fish as well.
3. BAKE uncovered at 400 degrees F (204C) for 12 to 15 minutes.
4. Then pull the pan out and turn the fish over.
5. Pour the wine and lemon juice over the fish, and bake for an additional 12 to 15 minutes.
*Optional: Just before you remove the fish from the oven, TURN the oven to broil, and broil fish for about 3 minutes, until skins blister. Remove from the oven.
How to Debone Branzino and Serve?
To Debone the Fish: place the fork inside the center of the cavity and gently flip the fish open.
Next, lift, remove, and discard the “spine” down the middle and all large bones you can find.
Then, remove the parsley and lemon slices to the side, and discard.
To Serve Branzino: use a spatula to help transfer the meat of the fish onto a serving dish or platter.
Next, lightly drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and squeeze fresh lemon juice on top. Garnish with lemon slices and freshly chopped parsley.
Serve immediately. Serves 2
Our family loves when I make their favorite seafood dinners like this one. This is a delicious recipe and one that is very easy to do!
Don’t be afraid to try it.
Bake or Roast Branzino with Lemon Garlic & Wine is a wonderful seafood dish you can easily cook in the comfort of your own kitchen!
ENJOY!!
…Thanks for PINNING!
More Delicious Seafood Recipes!
- Baked Halibut & Sea Bass Oreganata
- Cod Livornese
- Easy Baked Shrimp Scampi Dinner
- Baked Salmon with Dijon Basil Pesto Sauce
- Easy Baked Swordfish
- Roasted Red Snapper – Italian Style!
- Dover Sole Livornese
Yield: 2 to 4 servings
Bake or Roast Branzino with Lemon Garlic and Wine
Bake or Roast Branzino with Lemon Garlic and Wine. Branzino is a European Sea Bass fish. It is a very flavorful, soft, and delicate fish to eat, especially when branzino is baked with some lemon slices, sliced garlic cloves, white wine and fresh parsley.
Prep Time
10 minutes
Cook Time
30 minutes
Total Time
40 minutes
Ingredients
- 2 small Branzino's ( about 1 pound each)
- extra virgin olive oil
- 4 garlic cloves- sliced
- 2 lemons - divided
- 1 cup fresh Italian parsley - chopped
- 1 tsp. dried rosemary
- sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper, to taste
- 3/4 cup white wine
- 1/4 cup lemon juice, plus extra for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (204 C).
- Rinse fish, pat dry. Line a baking pan with foil wrap and spray with cooking oil.
- Place fish onto the pan.
- Stuff the cavity of each fish with some garlic slices, 2 to 3 lemon slices, and some fresh parsley.
- Season the outside of fish with some salt, pepper, and rosemary.
- Drizzle extra virgin olive oil inside the cavity and over the fish as well.
- Bake uncovered at 400 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes.
- Carefully pull out the pan as much as you can, or remove it ( if it's easier). Using a spatula and a large spoon to turn the fish over, and pour the wine and lemon juice over the fish and continue to bake for another 12 to 15 minutes.
- Optional: Turn the oven to broil, and broil fish for about 3 minutes, until skin blisters.
- Fish should be firm when you touch it with a fork. Remove from the oven. Let it sit for a few minutes before working on it.
To Debone and Serve Branzino:
- Place the fork inside the center of the cavity and gently flip the fish open. Lift, remove, and discard the spine and all large bones. Remove the parsley and lemon slices and discard.
- Transfer the meat of the fish onto a serving dish or serving platter.
- Lightly drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and fresh-squeezed lemon juice over the fish. Garnish with lemon slices and fresh parsley.
- Serve immediately.
- Serves 2 to 4
Notes
Branzino has many bones, and you will need some patience to remove most of them after it's cooked. Everyone needs to be reminded to eat it slowly and take their time. Not recommended for small children.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
2 to 4 servingsServing Size:
1 cupAmount Per Serving: Calories: 163Total Fat: 3gCholesterol: 45mgSodium: 89mgCarbohydrates: 3.7gFiber: 0.8gSugar: 0.8gProtein: 21.8g
Thanks for the recipe! This turned out just as in the restaurant. Served it for our Mother’s Day lunch. I did not buy the whole fish, but filets with skin on, still attached to the tail, so I baked one on top of the other, just as the recipe called for. Easy and beautiful result. Everyone enjoyed it. This will become a staple in our home.
Thank you!
Hi Helen, so glad to hear you enjoyed our recipe. We make branzino often, it’s one of our favorites. Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving a sweet comment. It helps everyone who reads them. 🙂
how long do you bake this if its filets…it seems too long
Hi Karen!! If the filets are thin, they will need less time, anywhere from 5 to 8 minutes, and maybe you can even lower the oven temperature to 375 degrees, so they won’t burn. It’s best to keep an eye on them. You can tell if they are fully cooked when you press lightly on them and they feel firm to the touch. I hope this helps.
What can I sub for rosemary. I hate rosemary
Hi Jamie! You can add in dried oregano instead of rosemary. Also, use lots of fresh basil and Italian parsley in place of the other herbs! Hope this helps!
Yum – I would really love this recipe. I've never seen this fish in our market but I am looking now – had it in Florida I think. I love it!
Hi Tricia,
I know that Whole foods sells Branzino usually every Friday and we sometimes even find it at our local fish market. I am sure you can find it!
If I ever see Branzino at the market, I'd love to try this! This sounds like a such a delicious preparation.
Thanks for another fantastic recipe featuring classic flavors – this branzino looks outstanding!
wonderful! I just had roasted branzino for the first time a couple of weeks ago (at a restaurant) your preparation looks spot-on. a delectable fish
What a gorgeous branzino recipe!
i have never cooked with sea bass before but now I must! This looks great!
I bet this tasted delicious! Adding this one to my to-cook bookmark list!
I love the really fresh, lemony flavors in this meal!