Sole Meuniere With Balsamic Brown Butter Sauce Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F.
• Generously coat a large saute pan with olive oil and bring to a high heat. Season 2 of the fillets with salt. Dredge the fillets in flour and place them immediately in the pan with the hot oil. Do not flour the fish ahead of time or it will be gummy and mushy on the outside rather than crispy.
• When the fish has turned from translucent to opaque, about 2/3 of the way through the cooking, turn the fish over and cook on the other side. Remove the fish from the pan and reserve on a sheet tray in the oven. Repeat the process with the remaining 2 fish fillets. Keep the cooked fish fillets warm in the oven while you make the sauce.
• Remove any excess oil from the pan. Add the butter and thyme leaves. Shake the pan frequently to prevent scorching. When the butter has melted and is very bubbly, add in the lemon juice and whisk to combine. As the butter becomes bubbly again and starts to turn a nutty brown, season with salt and whisk in the chopped parsley. Taste to make sure it is delicious.
• Remove the fish fillets from the oven and plate them, spooning the sauce over the fish.

Steps:

• Season fillets with salt and pepper.
• Heat 2 tablespoons clarified butter in each of 2 large saute pans.
• Dredge fillets in flour, shaking off any excess flour. Place fillets in saute pans and cook over medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes per side, until golden brown and crispy. Remove fillets from pans and transfer on to a platter, sprinkle with parsley. Cover with foil.
• Remove remaining butter from one of the skillets and add the fresh butter. Heat until the butter begins to brown. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice and capers. Pour sauce over fish and serve. Garnish with lemon slices.

Steps:

• Dredge Season both sides of fish with salt and pepper while heating the clarified butter in a copper oval sauté pan (or a large sauté pan) over medium heat. Pour flour onto a large shallow dish and press both sides of the fish into the flour, making sure it is fully coated. Shake off any excess flour.
• Sauté Set the fish skin side up in the pan and sauté until golden brown underneath, about 4 minutes. Use a fish spatula (or two large, wide spatulas) to carefully flip the fish and sauté until the skin side is golden brown and cooked throughout (the flesh should flake with a fork and the thickest part of the fish should be opaque), about 3 minutes more.
• Make sauce Drop the butter pieces into the hot pan, around the fish, and let it melt. Sprinkle parsley over fish. When butter is frothy, squeeze the lemon over it (so the juice runs into the butter) and immediately spoon this over the fish. (Alternatively, transfer fish to a platter and sprinkle with parsley before adding butter and lemon juice to the pan, swirling to combine.)
• Serve Fillet fish and parcel portions onto plates, then spoon some more of the sauce on top, and serve.
• This recipe calls for removing the skin from one side only. Begin by snipping off the fins (see page 120). Next, make a small incision in the skin just above the tail. Hold the skin at the incision and then carefully peel back a small portion to make a flap. Holding the flap firmly in one hand and the tail firmly in the other, quickly pull the skin back toward the head to remove skin in one piece.
• True Dover sole, which comes only from the waters of the Atlantic off the Dover coast of England, is difficult to find in the United States and fairly expensive. Gray sole and petrale sole (both of which are actually types of flounder), are perfectly fine. If you'd rather not trim the fish yourself, ask your fishmonger to do this.
• Because clarified butter (page 88) has a higher smoke point than regular butter, it is the cooking fat of choice for sautéing delicate fish such as sole.
• Wondra is a low-protein flour that has been processed so it dissolves instantly. (It is often called "instant flour" for this reason.) Since it is less likely to clump than all-purpose flours, it has long been a favorite among chefs for the ultralight coating it gives sautéed fish.

Steps:

• The French excel at exquisitely wrought and technically challenging fish dishes, like bouillabaisse and lobster Thermidor. However, they are just as enamored of simpler recipes that focus on preserving the pristine beauty of their seafood. Sole meunière is a perfect example. To prepare it, sole, a succulent, flat white fish, is pan-fried in butter until crisp-edged and tender, then served with brown butter pan sauce, a sprinkling of parsley and a wedge of lemon. (The term meunière means in the style of the miller's wife, and refers to the flour in which the fish is dredged before frying.) Except for the browning of the butter, the ingredients are kept in their most elemental form. Yet together they create a dish of incomparable harmony and depth. In its most traditional presentation, sole meunière is made with the whole fish, then filleted tableside. You can still find it served that way at old-school French restaurants all over the world. But for the most part, home cooks use sole fillets, which makes the process faster and easier - and only slightly less flavorful and juicy than when the fish is cooked on the bone. Unlike a lot of classic French cuisine, sole meunière requires almost no advance preparation and very little time at the stove. It is one of the quickest ways to get to dinner, and you probably already have flour, salt, pepper, butter and lemon on hand. All you need is a beautiful piece of fish. That fish does not have be Dover sole, especially given that in recent years, its sustainability has become an issue (not to mention the fact that it is very expensive). Other flat, white, flaky fish will cook up nearly as well, and will taste delightful when pan-fried and smothered in brown butter. After all, there are very few things that wouldn't.
• With over 100 cataloged preparations, sole is one of the most esteemed fish in French cuisine, and sole meunière is the signature dish. It is the plainness of the recipe that makes it seem at once universal and utterly French. Almost all coastal cultures have some version of lightly fried fish, but only in France is it smothered in brown butter. Little is known about how sole meunière came to be, though we do know that for at least the past century it's been a specialty of Normandy. "Le Guide Culinaire," by Auguste Escoffier, which was first published in 1903, lists several variations of the dish, including sole meunière with eggplant, with grapes, with cucumbers and with various kinds of mushrooms. However, it is likely that the dish is much older, since it is so very basic. Sole meunière has long been an extravagance, a costly fixture on the menus of many fine French restaurants. That is because it is traditionally made with Dover sole, a flat fish with delicate and buttery white meat, which separates easily from the bones. It is that combination of simplicity and luxury that makes it compelling. Elaborate adornments are not necessary, as was made clear in an edition of "Larousse Gastronomique" from the early 20th century: "Sometimes the serving of fish cooked à la meunière is decorated with slices, or half-slices, of lemon, rounds of radish, cutout pieces of beetroot and sprigs of parsley. This kind of ornament is quite useless and not at all in keeping with the recipe." Today most French cooks would agree that you need nothing more on top of your buttery sole than a lemon wedge and a hint of parsley. That is the easiest lesson you can learn from French cooking: When you have perfect ingredients, less is more. Above, "Pleuronectes Solea, the Sole."
• Skillet Use a 12-inch skillet, which should be large enough to fit the length of your fish. A heavy-duty nonstick or well-seasoned cast-iron pan will help keep the fillets from sticking, making them easier to flip and keep whole. But a stainless steel pan is fine if you're careful when flipping.Spatula A tapered fish spatula makes flipping delicate fillets a bit easier, but any spatula will work.Wirecutter, a product recommendations website owned by The New York Times Company, has a guide to the best nonstick pans and spatulas.
• 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. The fish is pan-fried in clarified butter, which can take on heat without browning; a recipe is below.
• Clear, golden clarified butter can withstand heat without burning for a longer period and at a higher temperature, making it ideal for pan-frying. When you make it, you are essentially removing the water content and white milk solids from the butter. The process is simple and takes just a few minutes.
• Sole meunière is the kind of recipe that moves quickly once you start cooking, so it's best to give it your full attention. Have the ingredients ready before you begin.• Use good butter: European-style butter with a high fat content (at least 82 percent) works best here because it contains less moisture than regular butter. • If you don't want to clarify your butter, use a combination of oil and regular butter instead. You will end up with a more neutral and less buttery flavor, but the recipe will still work. (If you decide not to clarify, then it is especially important to use that high-fat, European-style butter.) Or you could use ghee, which is basically clarified butter in which the milk solids have been allowed to brown before being removed. It has a lightly caramelized, nutty flavor. • Patting the fish dry before dredging helps the flour cling evenly to the fillet, rather than clump in the damp spots. • Season the fish itself rather than seasoning the flour. This gives you more precision and control over the seasoning.• In a classic sole meunière, white pepper is used partly for aesthetics. If you want to use black pepper, that's fine. • Keep an eye on the fish: When it has finishing cooking, it should be opaque, tender and not too firm. Plunge your fork into the thickest part of the fillet. There should be no resistance. That's how you will know it's done. • Set your oven to its lowest temperature, and use it to keep the first round of fish warm. This is an easy way to make sure dinner comes to the table at the right temperature. Placing the just-cooked fish on a warm plate before it goes into the oven helps, too.
• Sole meunière is the most basic of dishes to prepare, which makes it easy to swap the fish or augment the seasonings to suit your taste. You don't need Dover sole to make this dish delectable. Instead, look for local, sustainable, flaky, mild white-fleshed fillets with a mild flavor. Other varieties of sole (including winter sole and lemon sole), halibut and flounder will work well. Or try scrod, cod, hake, trout, salmon, bass, swordfish, sardines or blackfish. Add a pinch or two of minced sturdy herbs like rosemary, thyme or savory, or ground spices such as cumin, coriander, paprika or curry powder, to the brown butter as it's simmering. If you want to make the dish more substantial, add cooked vegetables to the pan with the butter. Diced sautéed cucumber, shallot or onion, wilted spinach, grated zucchini, cubed eggplant or mushrooms would all do nicely. For a slightly more elaborate garnish that won't overwhelm the flavors of the dish, substitute other soft, leafy herbs for the parsley. Basil, tarragon, coriander and chives are good candidates. Other citrus, such as Meyer lemon, lime, grapefruit or sour orange wedges, can stand in for the usual lemon.
• Photography Food styling: Alison Attenborough. Prop styling: Beverley Hyde. Additional photography: Karsten Moran for The New York Times. Additional styling: Jade Zimmerman. Video Food styling: Chris Barsch and Jade Zimmerman. Art direction: Alex Brannian. Prop styling: Catherine Pearson. Director of photography: James Herron. Camera operators: Tim Wu and Zack Sainz. Editing: Will Lloyd and Adam Saewitz. Additional editing: Meg Felling.
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Steps:

• Sole: Heat a saute pan over medium-high. Season both sides of fish with salt and pepper. Place flour in a shallow dish. Dredge each fish in flour, turning and pressing lightly to coat. Shake off excess and place on a platter.
• Swirl half of oil and butter in pan and, when foam subsides, place 1 fish in pan, white skin-side down. Saute until browned on first side, 4 to 5 minutes. Turn fish over carefully and saute until other side is crisp and golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes more. Transfer to a serving plate.
• Repeat with remaining oil and butter to saute remaining fish, then transfer it to another plate.
• Beurre noisette: Sprinkle half of parsley on each fish. Heat butter in a medium saucepan over high, swirling to melt. Cook until starting to brown, then remove from heat, and, as butter darkens to a hazelnut color, toss in capers and lemon juice; swirl to combine. Pour beurre noisette over fish and serve.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 200 degrees and place a large oven-safe plate or baking sheet inside.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.

Steps:

• Put some flour on a large place, add the fish, cover with the flour on both sides and shake off the excess.
• Reserve 2 TBs of the butter. Heat the oil and remaining butter over medium high heat in a nonstick frying pan large enough to hold both fish side by side. When it sizzles, add the sole and cook for about 3 minutes. Turn them over and cook on the other side for 3 minutes. Sprinkle the first side with salt while the second side is cooking.
• When the fish is cooked through, transfer to warmed dinner plates and season the second side.
• Return the frying pan to the heat, add the remaining 2 TBS butter and melt over high heat. When it begins to sizzle, lower the heat and add the lemon juice. Cook, scraping the pan for about 10 seconds; do not let the butter burn. Pour this sauce over the fish and sprinkle with parsley. Serve immediately with sliced lemon.

Steps:

• Put the flour in a shallow dish. Season the fish with salt to taste. Dredge the fillets lightly in the flour, shaking off any excess.
• Heat 2 large nonstick sauté pans over medium heat. When the pans are hot, spray them generously with cooking spray, and add 2 fillets to each pan. Cook until the fish is golden brown and just cooked through, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer the fish to a serving platter; tent it with foil to keep the fish warm.
• Raise the heat under the sauté pans to high. Add the spinach to one sauté pan, and wipe the other one out with a paper towel. Season the spinach with salt, and cook, stirring often, until the spinach has wilted, about 3 minutes. Spoon the spinach next to the sole on the platter.
• While the spinach is cooking, when the other pan is very hot, add the butter to it. Cook the butter, swirling the pan occasionally, until it is has browned and smells nutty, about 3 minutes.
• While the butter is browning, place the cornstarch in a small bowl, and whisk in the lemon juice and chicken broth. When the butter is ready, whisk the chicken broth mixture into the pan. Simmer the sauce, stirring constantly, until it has thickened, about 2 minutes.
• Season the sauce with salt and pepper to taste; stir in the parsley. Pour the sauce over the fish, and serve.
• Fat: 44.8g (before), 10.7g (after)
• Calories: 640 (before), 259 (after)
• Protein: 26g
• Carbohydrates: 16g
• Cholesterol: 78mg
• Fiber: 4g
• Sodium: 512mg

Steps:

• Season flour with salt and pepper to your preference, then dredge fillets in the mixture, shaking off any excess.
• Heat 2 tablespoons clarified butter in a large saute pan. When heated, place fillets in pan and cook over medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes per side, until golden brown and crispy. Remove fillets from pan and transfer to a platter; sprinkle with parsley, then cover with foil.
• Remove remaining butter from the skillet and add the fresh butter. Heat until the butter begins to brown. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice and capers. Pour sauce over fish and serve. Garnish with lemon slices.