Dover sole à la meunière recipe

As seen on Rick Stein’s Food Stories on BBC Two, this is Rick’s Dover sole à la meunière recipe. From his fishing trip in Margate in search for his favourite fish, Dover sole, he cooks the French dish Dover sole à la meunière which is also a classic on our restaurant menus.

Ingredients for Rick’s Dover sole à la meunière recipe

SERVES 2

• 2 x 400–450g Dover soles, trimmed and skinned 
• Salt and freshly ground white pepper 
• 25g plain flour 
• 4 tbsp vegetable oil 
• 50g unsalted butter 
• 2 tsp lemon juice 
• 1 tbsp chopped parsley 
• 1 lemon, cut into 6 wedges, to serve

For the sautéed potatoes

• 750g floury potatoes, such as Maris piper, peeled
• 15-20g Polenta, semolina or breadcrumbs
• 40g butter
• 3 Tbsp oil
• salt and pepper

For the buttered rainbow chard

• 150g rainbow chard
• 10g butter
• Salt and pepper

How to make Rick’s Dover sole à la meunière recipe

1. Season the Dover soles with salt and white pepper. Dip on both sides into flour and then pat off the excess. 
2. Heat the oil in a large well-seasoned or non-stick frying pan. Add one of the soles, lower the heat slightly and add a small piece of the butter. Fry over a moderate heat for 4–5 minutes, without moving, until richly golden.
3. Carefully turn the fish over and cook for a further 4–5 minutes until golden brown and cooked through. Lift on to a serving plate and keep warm. Repeat with the second fish and then remove the bones. 
4. Discard the frying oil and wipe the pan clean. Add the remaining butter and allow it to melt over a moderate 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 lemon wedges. 

1. For the sautéed potatoes – Cut the potatoes into 4cm  pieces. Put them into a pan of well-salted water (1 teaspoon of salt per 600ml/1 pint of water), bring to the boil and simmer until tender – about 7 minutes. Drain well and leave in a colander until the steam has died down.
2. Heat the butter and oil in a large, heavy-based frying pan.  It’s important not to over crowd the pan, so if you don’t have a really large pan, use two smaller ones. Add the potatoes and fry them over a medium heat for about 10 minutes, turning them over as they brown, until they are crisp, golden brown and sandy – the outside of the potatoes should break off a little as you sauté them to give them a nice crumbly, crunchy crust. Season with a little salt and freshly ground black pepper and serve immediately.

1. For the buttered rainbow chard – Wash the rainbow chard in water and shake and wilt in a pan, add the knob of butter and season with salt and pepper.

Happy cooking