June 25 2023

A Simple & Delicious Recipe for Striped Bass

by Shane Uriot
13 comments

This is a guest post recipe from our friend Shane Uriot. It was originally published in June of 2017 but has become one of the most popular on the site! We've chosen to update and re-publish Shane's recipe today.

The best time of year is upon us. Big striped bass have finally made their way up the coast and are here to stay, which means fresh fish for dinner.  

In the day leading up to me writing this recipe, the Cape Cod Canal had been been "on fire" and the striper fishing was great. I hit the canal and was fortunate to have some great luck while fishing with my great friends Trevin and Jeremy. 

We began fishing the "Big Ditch" at sunrise and soon noticed huge schools of mackerel running in close to the rip-rap. We knew it was only a matter of time until the big bass moved in.

The author's friend Jeremy with a nice fish caught during a picture-perfect morning for fishing at the Cape Cod Canal.

Jeremy and I both managed to pull up some decent sized keepers and seeing as my freezer was running low on fish, I decided that I would keep my bass.


Preparing the Striped Bass

I often run into people who say they've either had a bad experience eating striped bass, or have no idea what to do with it. However, when the fish is prepped and cooked properly, striped bass is one of my all time favorite fish to eat!

First and foremost, when you decide to keep a striper, it is important to treat the fish with respect by bleeding it out and getting it on ice quickly.

Bleeding a striped bass will make a huge difference in taste and expedites death, which means less suffering for the striper. I would suggest cutting the red gill rakes with a knife and letting the fish bleed out into salt water.

Striped bass (and most other fish) are best when eaten fresh. If you don't expect to consume all of the fish during the first 48 hours, then I recommend you freeze any remaining fillets as soon as possible.

When freezing any fish I would suggest using a vacuum sealer. I portion my vacuum sealed bags with two pieces of fish in each.

When vacuum sealing, be sure to brine the fish and follow proper vacuum sealing steps in order to preserve freshness for many months.  

If you really have to, then it's okay to use normal freezing bags with striped bass. However, other fish such as bluefish don't keep well at all in normal freezer bags. Vacuum sealing is best for maximum freshness.


The Recipe

When it comes to cooking fish, I find that it's always best to use simple and fresh ingredients.

For this dish you will need:

  • 1 5oz fillet of striped bass
  • 1 lemon
  • 2 tablespoons of Old Bay seasoning
  • Salt and Pepper to your preference
  • 1 sprig of thyme
  • Assorted vegetables
  • 1 sheet of aluminum foil
  • 1 bunch of flat leafed parsley

Season the fillets with sea salt, cracked black pepper, and Old Bay Seasoning on both sides. Take a sheet of tin foil large enough to fold up over the fillets and place the fillet in the center of the foil.

Cut the lemon into decent sized slices and place on top of the bass. Top the lemons with some fresh thyme and roll the foil up, covering the fillets.

When you roll up the foil around the bass fillet, make sure you leave a little room, because the juice from the lemons will start to steam in the foil, helping cook the fish as well as keeping it moist.

Light up the grill to medium heat and add the fish in the foil to the grill.  It should only take about 15 to 20 minutes for the fish to become cooked and flakey, depending on your grill.

To check, carefully open the foil. Be aware there might be a fair amount of steam coming from the foil-you don’t want to burn yourself!

If the fish is solid white and firm to the touch than you know it is done.

Remove the cooked thyme and lemon wedges, and top with fresh parsley and a squeeze or two of fresh juice from a lemon.

I find that adding fresh herbs to a cooked dish really helps balance out the flavors of the meal. Share it with the people you love and enjoy!

Of course a great beer is always an added bonus. I suggest a citrusy IPA with this meal. I am drinking a Treehouse Tornado in the photo below.


The Perfect Side Dish

When I am grilling striped bass, I like to use fresh vegetables as a side dish. For this dish I decided to skewer a mix of portabella mushrooms, tomatoes, peppers, onions, and zucchini, and grill them next to the bass.

If you don’t like this combination, substitute what you don’t like for what you do. Just make sure you soak the skewers if they’re made from wood so that they don’t burn on the grill.

Add salt, pepper, and olive oil to the veggies, mix them up, and then skewer them as you would like, placing them on the grill with the fish.


In Conclusion

I hope you get a chance to enjoy this easy striped bass recipe. Please let me know what you think by leaving a comment below! 

I would also be interested in hearing about some of your favorite ways to cook bass and other white fish.

Tight lines and Happy Cooking! ??

Shane

About the author 

Shane Uriot

Our friend Shane was the director/editor of the first 2 seasons of My Fishing Cape Cod TV. Shane enjoys all types of fishing, from plugging the canal for stripers, to casting spoons for trout.


  • Followed your recipe tonight with a couple of slight changes. Since I found Old Bay seasoning salty and peppery enough, I omitted adding additional salt & pepper. Also placed a few onions and orange pepper slices around the lemon slice. Delicious!! Thank you for the recipe!!

  • Hello Ryan. The recipe looks great. I have no BBQ grill available. I want to try this recipe in the oven. Any recommendations on what temperature and also bake vs broil. I intend to use the aluminum foil packaging. Thank you.

    • Hey Ryan – I haven’t tried it with other white fish, but I am sure that it would hold up just as well!

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