Sole Meunière
The dish that made Julia Child fall in love with French cuisine, sole meunière highlights the simple flavors of fresh fish, butter, lemon and parsley. Fish is the center of the dish, so using a quality fillet is important: A true English Dover sole is preferred. Clarified butter, which takes a few extra minutes to prepare, can take on heat without browning, making it ideal for pan-frying fish. A classic sole meunière is made with a bone-in fillet, but boneless sole is faster and easier. You'll find a recipe for clarified butter here. This recipe is part of The New Essentials of French Cooking, a guide to definitive dishes every modern cook should master.
- Total:
- Serves: 6 persons
Ingredients
- ½cup all-purpose flour
- 10-ounce skinless, boneless sole or other thin fish fillets, patted dry
- Kosher salt, to taste
- Freshly ground white or black pepper, to taste
- 4tablespoons clarified butter
- 4tablespoons unsalted butter, diced, at room temperature
- 3tablespoons minced parsley
- 1lemon, cut into wedges, for serving
Instructions
Step 1
Heat oven to 200 degrees and place a large oven-safe plate or baking sheet inside.Step 2
Place flour on a large, shallow plate. Season both sides of fish fillets with salt and pepper to taste. Dredge fish in flour, shaking off excess.Step 3
In a 12-inch nonstick or enamel-lined skillet over medium-high heat, heat 2 tablespoons clarified butter until bubbling. Place half of the fish fillets in the pan and cook until just done, 2 to 3 minutes per side, then transfer to the plate or baking sheet in the oven to keep warm. Add 2 more tablespoons clarified butter to skillet and heat until bubbling, then cook remaining fillets. Wipe out the skillet.Step 4
Arrange the fish on a warm serving platter. Top with parsley. In reserved skillet, heat remaining 4 tablespoons unsalted butter until bubbling and golden, 1 to 2 minutes, then pour evenly over fillets. Serve immediately, with lemon wedges on the side.