Lemon Dover Sole

Name: Lemon Dover Sole
Yield: makes 6 servings
Ingredients: 3 pounds flat fish, such as flounder, halibut, or sand dab; 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt; 2 tablespoons olive oil, or as needed; Ingredients for Lemon Butter Sauce (page 166, see Note)

December 9, 2011

While in the port town of Fécamp in Normandy, France, I stopped for lunch at a tiny hotel-restaurant that had no more than four tables and was run by a husband-and-wife team who apparently did everything from the cooking to serving to making the beds themselves. The catch of the day was Dover sole and the chef served it lightly pan-fried and practically swimming in a bath of the most wonderful lemon-butter sauce I’d ever tasted. The Dover sole sold in Europe is a delicate flat fish native to European waters, including the English Channel on which the town of Fécamp sits. When I’m in the United States, I use Pacific Dover sole or another delicately flavored, fresh, flat fish from waters closer to home. This dish is excellent served with Broiled Asparagus (page 145).

Cooks' Note

The best time to prepare the sauce is indicated in the recipe.

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