Sole à la Fermière

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •14-inch (35 cm) shallow broiler-safe gratin dish
• •12-inch (30 cm) skillet
• •2-quart (2-liter) saucepan
• •Fine-mesh sieve
• •Two broad fish spatulas
• •Instant-read thermometer

Instructions

1. 1

   Set the sole

   Heat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Pat the soles completely dry, then season both sides with most of the salt and half the pepper. Rub 1 tablespoon (15 ml / 14 g) of the butter generously over a shallow broiler-safe gratin dish large enough to hold both fish without overlap. Scatter in the shallots, parsley stems, thyme, and bay leaf, lay the soles over them, and pour the red wine around the fish. Cover closely with a lid, baking parchment, or foil.

2. 2

   Poach at a tremble

   Poach the covered sole in the oven for 18 to 24 minutes, checking after 15. The wine should barely tremble at the edges, never boil hard, and the flesh beside the backbone should turn opaque while remaining moist. Remove the fish at 138 to 140°F (59 to 60°C) in the thickest part; the final glaze will carry it toward 145°F (63°C). If the liquid begins bubbling fiercely, lift the dish out for one minute and lower the oven to 325°F (165°C). Do not surrender the fish to a boiling bath.

   Test beside the backbone with the tip of a small knife. The flesh should release with gentle pressure but not fall apart; waiting for dramatic flaking means the sole has already gone too far.
3. 3

   Toss the mushrooms

   While the sole poaches, melt 1 tablespoon (15 ml / 14 g) of the butter in a wide skillet over medium-high heat. Add the raw sliced mushrooms and toss them until they release their moisture, the liquid cooks away, and their edges turn golden, 6 to 8 minutes. Season with a pinch of the reserved salt and hold them warm. Keep the pan broad and uncrowded; mushrooms piled into a small pan stew grey instead of browning.

4. 4

   Strain and reduce

   Lift the soles carefully onto a rimmed tray with two broad spatulas and cover them loosely with parchment. Strain the cooking liquor into a 2-quart (2-liter) saucepan, discard the aromatics, and note its volume. Bring it to a brisk simmer and reduce it by exactly half, usually to about ¾ cup (180 ml), skimming away any pale fish protein that gathers at the surface. The volume is the guide, not a syrupy texture. If it slips past halfway, restore it with cold water, 1 tablespoon (15 ml) at a time. Switch the oven to a high broil and place a rack about 6 inches (15 cm) from the heat.

5. 5

   Bind the sauce

   Lower the heat until the reduced liquor sits just below a simmer. Whisk in the Manied Butter (No. 151) in three small pinches, allowing each to disappear before adding the next. Hold the sauce at the gentlest quiver for 60 to 90 seconds, without letting it boil, until it is nappé (coating the back of a spoon in a thin, even veil). If small lumps appear, pass the sauce through the clean sieve. If it tightens too far, loosen it with a teaspoon of cold water.

6. 6

   Monter au beurre

   Take the saucepan completely off the heat and monter au beurre (mount with butter): whisk in the remaining 4 tablespoons (60 ml / 57 g) of cold butter, one small piece at a time, until the sauce is glossy and softly thickened. Taste and add the remaining salt and pepper as needed. If a greasy ring appears, the pan was too hot. Stop adding butter and whisk in 1 teaspoon (5 ml) of cold water until the sauce comes together, then continue off the heat. Ça se rattrape. Once mounted, the sauce must not boil again.

7. 7

   Border and glaze

   Wipe the gratin dish clean and return the soles to it. Arrange the buttered mushrooms in a generous border around the fish, then spoon the sauce evenly over the sole. Set the dish beneath the fully heated broiler for 30 to 60 seconds, watching without looking away, until the glaze gleams and the first tiny bubbles appear at the rim. If your broiler needs longer, stop anyway. Glazing means gloss, not a crust, and the fish matters more than colour. Carry the dish directly to the table. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Ask the fishmonger to remove the dark skin, scale the white skin, gut the fish, and take off the heads while leaving the bodies whole. Dover sole has the firmness to survive poaching, transfer, and glazing without collapsing.
• •Choose a light red with lively acidity and modest tannin, such as Pinot Noir or Gamay, and make it a bottle you enjoy drinking. Reduction concentrates every virtue and every fault; a heavily oaked or aggressively tannic wine turns stern beside delicate sole.
• •Plain button mushrooms are correct. Slice them shortly before cooking, begin them raw in hot butter, and let their released water disappear before judging their colour.
• •Serve immediately. The mounted sauce is at its most supple straight from the broiler, and the sole gains nothing from waiting while dinner-party conversation wanders into its second act.

Advance Preparation

• •Have the fishmonger clean the soles up to one day ahead. Keep them covered in the coldest part of the refrigerator and pat them dry immediately before seasoning.
• •The aromatics can be prepared up to 4 hours ahead. Clean the mushrooms at the same time, but slice them closer to cooking so their cut surfaces remain pale.
• •The mushrooms may be sautéed up to 30 minutes ahead and rewarmed gently in their skillet while the sauce reduces.
• •Prepare the Manied Butter (No. 151) immediately before the reduced liquor is bound, as its own entry directs. The poached fish and mounted sauce should not be made ahead.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 215g)