Filets de Soles Pompadour

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Small heavy saucepan for the tomato reduction
• •Small saucepan and medium heatproof bowl for the bain-marie
• •Balloon whisk
• •Broiler-safe rimmed sheet pan and wire rack
• •Thin flexible fish spatula
• •Piping bag or sturdy food bag with one corner cut
• •Large oval serving platter

Instructions

1. 1

   Set the service

   Begin the Pommes de Terre Château (No. 2208) according to its own entry, timing the finished component to remain hot while the sole grills. Set the broiler rack about 6 inches from the heat and preheat the broiler thoroughly. Warm a large oval platter with hot water, then dry it just before plating. Measure ¾ cup (180 ml / 165 g) of the clarified butter for the sauce and reserve ¼ cup (60 ml / 55 g) for the fish.

2. 2

   Build both reductions

   Cook the tomato purée in a small saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring often, until it reduces to about 3 tablespoons and looks thick, smooth, and brick red. Set it aside to remain warm. In a second small saucepan, combine the vinegar, wine, shallot, peppercorns, and half the tarragon. Simmer until only 2 tablespoons of sharp, fragrant liquid remain, then strain it into a heatproof bowl and press firmly on the aromatics. Reducing these foundations is the work; do not try to make the finished sauce firm by chilling it.

3. 3

   Mount the Béarnaise

   Whisk the yolks, cold water, and strained vinegar reduction over a saucepan of barely simmering water. Keep the bowl above the water, never in it, and whisk until the yolks become pale, foamy, and thick enough to leave a clear ribbon for several seconds. Remove the bowl from the heat and whisk in the reserved ¾ cup of warm clarified butter drop by drop at first, then in a thin stream once the emulsion has taken. Fold in 2 tablespoons of the tomato reduction, the remaining chopped tarragon, the chervil, and enough salt and white pepper to sharpen the flavor. The Béarnaise tomatée should hold a firm ridge from the whisk. If butter begins to pool, stop adding it and whisk in a teaspoon of cool water; if the sauce breaks completely, place a teaspoon of cool water in a clean bowl and whisk in the broken sauce one spoonful at a time. Ça se rattrape. Hold the finished sauce over warm water, off the heat, for no longer than 30 minutes.

   A firm Béarnaise begins with a properly cooked sabayon. If the yolks never held a ribbon, more butter will only make a loose, greasy sauce.
4. 4

   Crumb the sole

   Pat the sole completely dry and season both sides with the remaining salt and white pepper. Brush each fillet generously with the reserved clarified butter, then press it lightly into the fresh breadcrumbs so both sides wear a fine, even coat. Shake away loose crumbs and let the fillets rest on a broiler-safe rack for 5 minutes. No flour and no egg belong here; butter is what fastens the crumbs and gives them their flavor.

5. 5

   Grill beneath the broiler

   Set the rack over a bare rimmed sheet pan and slide it beneath the fully heated broiler. Grill the first side for 3 to 4 minutes, until the crumbs are butter-gold with bronzed edges, then turn the fillets carefully with a thin spatula and grill for another 2 to 3 minutes. The sole is ready when the center has just turned opaque and flakes under gentle pressure, about 145°F (63°C) at the thickest point. If the crumbs color before the fish is ready, lower the pan one rack and finish more gently; if a patch of coating lifts during turning, press on fresh crumbs, touch them with butter, and give that spot another 30 seconds.

6. 6

   Assemble without delay

   Warm the meat glaze only until fluid. Arrange the sole fillets in two slightly overlapping rows on the warmed platter, then spoon or pipe the firm Béarnaise tomatée in a continuous cord around them. If the sauce tightened while waiting, whisk in warm water a few drops at a time until it moves but still holds its shape. Surround the fish with the hot Pommes de Terre Château (No. 2208). Brush each truffle slice with melted meat glaze and lay one on every fillet. Carry the platter straight to the table. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Dover sole gives the sweetest flavor and finest texture, but good lemon sole or small flounder fillets can carry the method honestly. Keep the pieces equal in thickness so the broiler finishes them together.
• •Use fresh white breadcrumbs ground very fine. Dry commercial crumbs form a hard shell and drink too much butter; these fillets want a delicate coat that browns quickly before the fish dries.
• •Fresh black truffle is magnificent when available. A whole preserved black truffle, drained and sliced thinly, is the classical pantry's honest answer outside its season; oily imitation truffle slices are not.
• •The tomato should tint and steady the Béarnaise, not turn it into ketchup. Reduce plain canned purée slowly until its raw edge disappears, then add only enough to give the sauce a warm coral color.
• •Serve a dry white Burgundy or another full, mineral white with enough body for butter and truffle. Keep it cool rather than icy, or the wine will disappear beside the sauce.

Advance Preparation

• •The tomato purée and vinegar reductions can be made a day ahead and chilled separately. Bring both to a warm room temperature before mounting the sauce.
• •The sole may be buttered and crumbed up to 30 minutes ahead, then held uncovered in the refrigerator. Longer holding softens the crumbs.
• •Have the Pommes de Terre Château (No. 2208) completed within 15 minutes of serving. The Béarnaise tomatée may be held warm for 30 minutes, but it must never be refrigerated or reheated over direct heat.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 460g)