Dover sole meunière

Serves: 2

If they like it, it serves 2 otherwise

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 10 minutes

Totaltime: 25 minutes

There are three brown butter sauces that traditionally accompany Dover sole: 1. Beurre meunière, which is made with parsley and lemon juice. 2. Beurre amandine, with the addition of sliced toasted almonds. 3. Beurre grenobloise, with the addition of lemon, capers, and small croutons.

Ingredients

2 x 400-450g Dover soles, trimmed and skinned on both sides
Salt and freshly ground white pepper
25g plain flour
4 tbsp vegetable oil
50g unsalted butter, divided
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp chopped parsley
1 lemon, cut into crowns for serving

Preparation

Season the Dover soles with salt and white pepper. Coat both sides with flour and then pat off the excess.

Heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan. Add one of the soles, lower the heat and add a teaspoon of the butter. Fry over a moderate heat for 4–5 minutes, until golden brown. Carefully turn the sole over and cook for 4–5 minutes until golden brown and cooked through.Transfer to a serving plate and keep warm. Repeat with the second fish.

To remove the bones:

Transfer the fish to a clean cutting board. Use a spoon to score the fish down its vertebrae and separate the fish from its spine, creating two bottom fillets. Carefully transfer the dover sole fillets, cooked side down, to a plate. Remove the backbone by using the spoon to guide and separate the backbone from the flesh. Create two more fillets with the thicker side of the fish and place these fillets, cooked side up, on top of the two bottom fillets, reassembling the fish on the plate.

Make the Beurre meunière sauce:

Discard the frying oil and wipe the pan clean. Add the remaining butter and allow it to melt over a medium heat. When the butter starts to smell nutty and turn light brown, add the lemon juice, parsley and some seasoning. Pour some of this beurre noisette over each fish and serve with the crowned lemons.