Filets de Soles Vénitienne

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •30 cm / 12-inch lidded sauté pan
• •1.5 litre / 1½-quart saucepan
• •5 cm / 2-inch heart cutter or paper template and sharp knife
• •Mini food processor and fine-mesh sieve
• •Fish slice or broad flexible spatula
• •35 cm / 14-inch oval serving platter

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the beurre vert

   Bring a small saucepan of water to a boil and prepare a bowl of ice water. Blanch the spinach and parsley for 15 seconds, then drain and chill them immediately. Squeeze them in a clean towel until no water remains. Chop finely, then process with the chervil, tarragon, and 3 tablespoons of softened butter until vividly green and nearly smooth. Press the beurre vert, green herb butter, through a fine sieve and refrigerate it. If the paste releases green water, squeeze it again before adding the butter; water left in the herbs weakens the final emulsion.

   The short blanch fixes the green color without cooking away the fresh character of the herbs. Chill promptly and squeeze hard.
2. 2

   Fry the heart croutons

   Cut one neat heart from each slice of pain de mie using a 5 cm / 2-inch cutter or a paper template and sharp knife. Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a wide skillet over medium heat. When the foam subsides, fry the eight hearts in one layer until evenly butter-gold, about 60 to 90 seconds per side. Transfer them to a rack and season with a small pinch of salt. If the butter begins to darken before the bread colors, lift the pan from the heat briefly and lower the flame.

3. 3

   Fold the sole

   Pat the sole fillets thoroughly dry. Season both sides with about half the remaining salt and half the white pepper. Lay each fillet with its smoother presentation side down, fold the thin tail inward, then bring the broad end over it to make a compact packet of even thickness. Set each one seam-side down. Even folding matters because a loose tail cooks before the thick end and breaks when lifted.

4. 4

   Poach at a tremble

   Coat a 30 cm / 12-inch lidded sauté pan with 1 tablespoon of butter and arrange the folded fillets in one snug layer. Warm the fish fumet separately, then pour it around the fish until it reaches roughly halfway up their sides. Cover with a round of parchment and the lid. Hold the liquid at the barest tremble for 5 to 7 minutes, until the centers are opaque, resilient under light pressure, and reach 145°F / 63°C. Never let the fumet boil. If it does, slide the pan completely off the heat until the bubbling stops, then continue over a lower flame. Lift the fillets carefully to a warm plate and cover loosely with parchment.

   A fish slice supports the whole folded fillet. Tongs pinch the layers apart and leave the cook wondering where the neat packet went.
5. 5

   Reduce the liquor

   Strain the poaching liquor into a measuring jug, then return it to the sauté pan. Boil briskly until reduced to ¾ cup (180 ml / 180 g), skimming away any pale foam, about 6 to 8 minutes. Taste as it concentrates. The reduction should be distinctly fish-scented and savory without becoming salty; if it goes too far, add a spoonful of hot water to restore the volume. This reduced liquor is the bridge between the sole and its sauce.

6. 6

   Build sauce Vénitienne

   Simmer the shallot, wine, and tarragon vinegar in a small saucepan until only about 1 tablespoon remains. Add the reduced poaching liquor, simmer for 1 minute, then strain and keep hot. In the clean saucepan, melt 2 tablespoons of butter, stir in the flour, and cook this roux blanc, a white roux, for 90 seconds without allowing it to color. Add the hot flavored liquor gradually, whisking after each addition, then simmer gently for 3 minutes. Whisk in the cream. Before the herbs enter, the sauce must napper, coat, the back of a spoon; reduce it if thin or loosen it with a spoonful of hot water if too thick. Remove from the heat for 30 seconds, then whisk in the cold beurre vert a little at a time and finish with the lemon juice. Do not boil it again. If an oily ring appears, stop. Ça se rattrape: place 1 tablespoon of cold water in a clean saucepan and whisk in the broken sauce one spoonful at a time until smooth, keeping it away from direct heat.

7. 7

   Arrange and coat

   Warm and dry an oval serving platter. Arrange the eight sole packets in a circle, alternating each one with a heart crouton and turning the points outward. Taste the sauce for salt and white pepper, then spoon it generously over the fillets and into the center, allowing it to pool around the bases of the croutons while leaving their upper faces crisp. Serve at once. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Choose sole fillets of similar width and weight, ideally 2½ to 3 ounces each. True Dover sole is splendid, but careful folding and poaching matter more than a prestigious label. If using another delicate flatfish, say plainly that the species changed even though the technique did not.
• •The fumet must be clean and lightly salted because it reduces by more than half. If a prepared fish stock tastes salty from the carton, dilute it before poaching or the finished sauce will become severe.
• •Fresh chervil gives sauce Vénitienne its delicate anise note. If it cannot be found, use additional tender parsley with a few extra tarragon leaves, knowing that the result will be more forceful and less delicate.
• •Butter, not margarine or a spread. The beurre vert must melt into a smooth emulsion, and added water or manufactured fats make that unnecessarily difficult. We don't apologize for butter.
• •The hearts are not idle decoration. Their butter-browned edges provide the contrast the soft fish and sauce need. A paper heart template and sharp knife work perfectly when no cutter is in the drawer.
• •Pour a restrained Chablis or another dry white Burgundy. It has enough acidity for the butter and cream without trampling the sole or the green herbs.

Advance Preparation

• •Have the fish fumet ready before service. It may be refrigerated for up to 2 days or frozen, then brought to a simmer shortly before the sole is poached.
• •The beurre vert can be prepared 1 day ahead, covered tightly, and refrigerated. Cut and fry the heart croutons up to 4 hours ahead; keep them uncovered at room temperature and refresh them for 3 minutes in a 300°F / 150°C oven if they soften.
• •The fillets may be trimmed, checked for bones, and folded up to 2 hours ahead. Keep them covered and refrigerated, but season them only shortly before poaching.
• •Poach the fish and finish sauce Vénitienne immediately before serving. The completed sauce loses its green color and may separate if held over direct heat.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 330g)