Filets de Merlan Orly

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •4 to 5 quart heavy pot or Dutch oven
• •Clip-on deep-fry thermometer
• •Wire skimmer
• •Wire draining rack set over a tray
• •Small saucepan
• •Immersion blender and fine sieve
• •Oval serving platter and clean folded linen napkin

Instructions

1. 1

   Build the sauce tomate

   Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the onion, carrot, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon of the salt, and a pinch of white pepper. Cook gently for 7 to 8 minutes, stirring, until the vegetables soften without browning. Stir in the tablespoon of flour and cook for 1 minute; this blond roux gives the sauce its quiet body. Add the tomato paste and cook until it darkens slightly, then work in the crushed tomatoes a little at a time. Add the water and bouquet garni, bring to a gentle simmer, and cook uncovered for 25 minutes, stirring the bottom often.

   If the tomato catches, don't scrape the dark patch into the sauce. Ça se rattrape: pour the unburned sauce into a clean pan, leave the scorched layer behind, and continue over gentler heat.
2. 2

   Smooth and hold

   Discard the bouquet garni, blend the sauce until smooth, then pass it through a fine sieve if you want the classical finish. Return it to low heat and simmer until it coats a spoon but still pours freely. If it tightens too far, loosen it with a spoonful of water; if it is thin, reduce it uncovered. Taste for salt and pepper, cover, and keep it warm without boiling. The sauce is ready before the frying begins, because it must wait for the fish, never the reverse.

3. 3

   Mix the pâte à frire

   The source now reaches for Filets de Soles Orly (No. 893), its finished preparation applied here to whiting. Whisk 1 cup of the batter flour with the egg yolk, 1/2 teaspoon of the salt, 3/4 cup of the cold lager, and the tablespoon of neutral oil. Stop as soon as the batter is smooth and resembles pouring cream, then let it rest for 20 minutes. If it runs like water, whisk in reserved flour 1 tablespoon at a time; if it sits like paste, loosen it with reserved lager. Ça se rattrape.

4. 4

   Prepare the fillets

   Run your fingers over the whiting and pull any remaining bones. Pat every fillet completely dry, then season with the remaining salt and white pepper. A fishmonger raising the fillets replaces the brigade's fish station honestly; trimming them evenly at home is all the further butchery required. Keep the prepared fish cold while the fat heats.

5. 5

   Fry the parsley

   Pour the frying oil into a deep, heavy pot, filling it no more than halfway, and heat it to 175°C to 180°C. Lower the thoroughly dried parsley into the oil in two small batches, using a wire skimmer and standing back from the pot. It will spit if any water remains. Fry for 10 to 15 seconds, just until the bubbling calms and the leaves turn crisp but stay green, then lift them to a wire rack and season lightly.

6. 6

   Finish the batter

   Beat the egg white to soft peaks and fold it gently into the rested batter immediately before frying. This trapped air gives the shell its lightness, so fold only until no white streaks remain. Set the batter beside the pot, place the draining rack within reach, and make certain the sauceboat and serving platter are ready. From here, the dish moves without interruption.

7. 7

   Fry the whiting

   Bring the oil back to 180°C. Dip each fillet into the batter, let the excess fall away, and lower it into the fat away from you. Fry only two or three fillets at once for 3 to 4 minutes, turning once, until the coating is evenly golden and the fish flakes at its thickest point. Let the oil return to temperature between batches. If the coating slips, the fish was wet or the oil too cool: lift the fillet out, pat it dry once safe to handle, recoat it, and wait for the oil to recover. If the batter browns before the centre cooks, lower the heat and finish the batch near 170°C.

8. 8

   Drain and serve

   Lift the fillets to the wire rack and let them drain for 1 minute, without stacking or covering them. Arrange them on a clean folded napkin set over a warmed oval platter, tuck the fried parsley around them, and carry the sauce tomate to the table separately. Do not pour it over the fish. That separation is essential to Orly, preserving the crisp batter while letting each person add the sauce at the plate. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Choose whiting fillets of similar thickness, with moist pearly flesh and no harsh smell. Whiting is delicate, so carry it home cold and cook it promptly; careful frying matters more than buying the largest fillets.
• •A thermometer earns its place here. Very hot fat means about 180°C, not smoking oil. Below that the batter drinks fat, while much above it the shell darkens before the whiting cooks.
• •The source permits milk and flour, an à l’anglaise coating, ornamental skewers, and twisted shapes. Those are alternate services, not improvements. This version keeps the primary batter method because it states the Orly principle most clearly.
• •Serve a dry, brisk white with enough acidity for the fried batter and tomato sauce. Muscadet works beautifully. The fish itself will not wait while bottles are opened, so pour the wine before frying.

Advance Preparation

• •Make the sauce tomate up to 2 days ahead, chill it promptly, and reheat it gently while preparing the batter. Loosen it with a spoonful of water if it has thickened in the cold.
• •Mix the batter base up to 1 hour ahead and keep it cool, but beat and fold in the egg white only when the oil is hot.
• •The fillets may be pin-boned and dried several hours ahead, then refrigerated between clean towels. Season them shortly before frying.
• •Do not fry the fish ahead. The last-minute frying is not brigade scaffolding; it is the dish.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 340g)