Ingredients

Step by step

1. For the sauce, put the stock and wine into a medium pan and boil rapidly for 15 minutes until reduced by half. Add the cream; bubble the sauce for a couple of minutes. Set aside. Peel the cucumber, cut in half lengthways and neatly scoop out the seeds with a teaspoon (or a melon baller, if you have one), then slice.
2. Wash the rice in cold water until it runs clear; drain well. Melt the butter in a medium-sized pan, add the shallots and bay leaves, cover and cook for 10 minutes until soft but not browned. Stir in the rice, saffron, ½ teaspoon of salt and 400ml boiling water. Bring to the boil, stir once, lower the heat, cover and leave to cook over a low heat for 8 minutes. Turn off the heat; leave undisturbed for a further 2 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, preheat the grill to high. Slash the skin of the sea bass fillets a few times, then brush the fillets on both sides with the melted butter and season with salt and black pepper. Put the fillets skin-side up on a buttered baking tray.
4. Slide the fish under the grill, about 5cm from the heat, and grill for 7-8 minutes or until the skin is nicely browned and the fish just cooked through. Meanwhile, bring the sauce back to a simmer and whisk in the chilled butter a small piece at a time, then stir in the sliced cucumber. Season to taste and stir in the basil.
5. Put the pilaf and fish on 4 warmed plates. Spoon the sauce over; serve.