Sole Diplomate

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Two shallow 9-by-13-inch / 23-by-33-cm baking dishes
• •Medium heavy saucepan
• •Small heavy saucepan for the pale meat-glaze
• •Fine-mesh sieve
• •Two broad fish spatulas
• •Wire rack set over a rimmed tray
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •Parchment paper and foil

Instructions

1. 1

   Reduce the meat-glaze

   Pour the pale chicken or veal stock into the smallest saucepan that holds it comfortably. Simmer steadily until only 2 tablespoons (30 ml) remain and the reduction coats a cold spoon with a thin, glossy film. This is your pale meat-glaze. If the original stock was watery rather than gelatin-rich, bloom the powdered gelatin in 1 tablespoon of cold stock before reducing, then whisk it into the finished glaze off the heat. If the glaze becomes sticky or dark, loosen it a teaspoon at a time with hot water. Keep it covered and warm.

   Use pale chicken or veal stock without tomato or roasted bones. The glaze should give shine and savory depth while remaining light enough not to stain the truffle with a dark, muddy coating.
2. 2

   Build Diplomate base

   Melt 2 tablespoons (28 g) of the butter in a medium heavy saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir in the flour and cook this roux for 2 minutes without letting it color; it should smell faintly of warm biscuit, never toast. Whisk in 1½ cups (360 ml) of the fumet a little at a time, making each addition smooth before the next. Simmer gently for 8 minutes, then reserve 1 tablespoon (15 ml) of the cream and add the rest. Reduce for 8 to 12 minutes, stirring often, until the sauce base coats the back of a spoon and measures about 1½ cups (360 ml). Pass it through a fine sieve, press parchment directly onto its surface, and hold it warm. If the roux forms lumps, whisk off the heat and strain it; the sauce has lost nothing.

3. 3

   Poach the sole

   Heat the oven to 325°F / 165°C. Butter two shallow 9-by-13-inch / 23-by-33-cm baking dishes and the dull side of two sheets of parchment with the remaining 1 tablespoon (14 g) butter. Season the sole lightly inside and out with the salt and white pepper, then place two fish in each dish without overlapping. Warm the remaining 4½ cups (1.08 L) fumet to about 150°F / 65°C and pour it around the fish; it should rise at least halfway up their sides. Lay the parchment butter-side down over the surface and cover the dishes snugly with foil. Poach in the oven for 12 to 16 minutes, until the fumet quivers only at the edges and the thickest flesh reaches 145°F / 63°C. If the liquid begins to boil, remove the dishes at once, uncover them, and lower the oven by 25°F / 15°C before continuing. Ça se rattrape if you catch it while the flesh is still supple.

   Use snug dishes rather than diluting the fumet with water. A shallow poach concentrates the fish's flavor and gives you much better control than a rolling pot.
4. 4

   Glaze the truffles

   While the sole poaches, set the 24 truffle slices in the warm pale meat-glaze and turn each one carefully so both faces shine. Warm them over the lowest heat for no more than 20 to 30 seconds, then lift them onto parchment in four groups of six. The glaze should cling, not fry. If it bubbles hard, remove the pan immediately; truffle aroma leaves faster than the cook expects.

5. 5

   Finish Sauce Diplomate

   Return the sauce base to low heat. Whisk the egg yolks with the lemon juice in a bowl, then whisk in 3 tablespoons of the hot sauce to temper them. Pour this liaison back into the saucepan and stir constantly until the sauce reaches 160°F / 71°C and thickens to a soft ribbon; do not let it simmer. Remove it from the heat and whisk in the lobster butter a small piece at a time, then fold in the diced lobster. Taste for salt and lemon. If the sauce looks oily or begins to bead, whisk in the reserved cold cream off the heat. If it fully separates, place a teaspoon of lemon juice in a clean warm pan and whisk in the broken sauce one spoonful at a time until it comes together again.

6. 6

   Napper and crown

   Lift each sole from its fumet with two broad spatulas and drain it on a wire rack over a tray for a full minute. This matters: trapped poaching liquid thins the Sauce Diplomate the moment it reaches the plate. Transfer the fish to warmed oval plates. Napper, coat each sole generously and evenly with the sauce, letting a little pool around it without burying its shape. Lay six glazed truffle slices in one clean row along the center of every fish. Serve immediately. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Ask the fishmonger for small Dover sole prepared for poaching, with the dark skin removed and the pale skin scaled. If only fillets are available, use eight thick fillets and shorten the poach to 5 to 7 minutes; the presentation changes, but the gentle fumet cookery remains the same.
• •The fumet must be very clear and lightly salted. Pass homemade fumet through a damp cloth without pressing the solids, or choose a prepared fish stock free of tomato and assertive herbs. Cloudy stock won't ruin the flavor, but it dulls the pale precision this dish is built upon.
• •Lobster butter supplies both shellfish aroma and the warm ivory-coral cast of Sauce Diplomate. Paprika-colored butter offers only color and misses the sauce entirely. A good fishmonger can often supply lobster butter alongside the sole.
• •When fresh black truffle is not in season, a whole preserved black truffle is the classical pantry's honest answer. Drain it well and slice it finely. Truffle oil cannot replace the slices, their texture, or the way the meat-glaze catches upon them.
• •Serve with Chablis, a restrained white Burgundy, or a blanc de blancs Champagne. Keep the accompaniment plain, such as buttered spinach or small boiled potatoes, because the sole already carries the full conversation.

Advance Preparation

• •The fumet and pale meat-glaze can be prepared up to 2 days ahead, cooled quickly, and refrigerated separately. Reheat both gently before continuing.
• •The roux, fumet, and cream sauce base can be made up to 6 hours ahead. Cover its surface directly, chill it promptly, and reheat over low heat before adding the yolks, lobster butter, and lobster meat.
• •Dice the cooked lobster earlier on the serving day and keep it covered in the cold. Slice and glaze the truffle shortly before serving so its aroma remains in the dish rather than the kitchen.
• •Poach the sole only when the table is nearly ready. The finished fish and yolk-bound Sauce Diplomate do not improve by waiting or reheating.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 260g)