Lemon sole with spiced brown butter shrimps
Simply cooked lemon sole finds a perfect match in spiced brown shrimps with a nutty, herby butter. Smart enough for a dinner party, easy enough for a midweek meal. Ask your fishmonger to fillet the fish.
Ingredients
- 2 lemon sole, filleted to get 4 fillets from each, skin on
- olive oil, for grilling
For the spiced brown butter
- 175g/6oz unsalted butter
- 1 banana shallot, finely diced
- pinch cayenne pepper
- pinch freshly grated nutmeg
- pinch smoked paprika
- 2 tbsp Lilliput capers
- 1 lemon, grated zest and juice
- 140g/5oz brown shrimps
- 50²µ/1ΒΎ΄Η³ϊ hazelnuts, toasted and roughly crushed
- ΒΌ bunch fresh tarragon, finely chopped
- ΒΌ bunch fresh flatleaf parsley, finely chopped
- ΒΌ bunch fresh chives, finely chopped
- salt and pepper
Method
Preheat the grill to high.
To make the spiced brown butter, heat the butter in a frying pan over a medium heat until it turns a nut-brown colour – this may take a couple of minutes. Add the shallot, reduce the heat and cook gently, stirring, for 1 minute.
Take the pan off the heat and add a generous pinch of each spice. Swirl the pan for a minute or so and then add the capers, lemon zest and juice and the shrimps. Return to a gentle heat for about 2 minutes, then add the hazelnuts and herbs. Season with salt and pepper.
Sprinkle the lemon sole fillets with salt on both sides and lightly drizzle with olive oil. Place the fillets on a baking tray lined with foil, skin-side up.
Place under the hot grill for 3 minutes. If the skin peels off the fish is done; if not, continue to cook for another minute.
Carefully peel off the skin from each fillet and transfer to serving plates. Spoon the spiced brown butter shrimps over the top and serve immediately.
