SERVES 4
2-3 tbsp plain flour
sea salt and black pepper
2 Dover sole, about
350-450g each, skinned
and filleted
2 tbsp olive oil
200g unsalted butter,
diced
juice of 1 lemon
50g flaked almonds,
toasted
20-25 seedless green
grapes, skinned and
halved
100 CATCH OF THE DAY
Dover sole with brown butter
and grapes
This dish is our take on classic sole veronique - sole fillets
poached in a creamy sauce, then grilled and garnished
with grapes. Our version pairs the fish with a nutty brown
butter, which is the perfect foil for the sweet grapes. If
Dover sole seems extravagant, use a less costly member
of the sole family -lemon sole, perhaps. To make it easier
to skin the grapes, first blanch them in boiling water for a
minute, then refresh under cold running water.Preheat the oven to low. Tip the flour onto a plate and season with
salt and pepper. Coat the fish fillets in the seasoned flour, shaking off
any excess.Cook the sole fillets in 2 batches. Heat a large frying pan, then add half
the olive oil with a knob of the butter. Fry the fish for 3-4 minutes
until golden brown and just firm. Remove to a warm platter and cover
with foil while you fry the rest of the fish, using the rest of the oil and
another knob of the butter. When the fillets are all cooked, place the
tray in the low oven to keep warm.Return the frying pan to the heat and add the rest of the butter to
melt. Cook over a medium heat until the melted butter turns to a light
nut brown colour. Immediately take the pan off the heat and pour in
the lemon juice. Carefully pour the butter into another small pan and
discard the milk solids. Gently reheat the brown butter as necessary,
then tip in the flaked almonds and grapes. Season well t o taste.Place two sole fillets on eachwarm serving plate a nd spoon over the
sauce, making sure that the grapes and almonds are distributed evenly.
Serve at once, with sauteed potatoes and French beans.