Food - Drink
Why It Can Be Difficult To Make Authentic Sole Meunière
By HEATHER LIM
With dishes like boeuf bourguignon and coq au vin, it’s no surprise the French are famous for their cuisine. However, if you’re in the mood for something lighter you might opt for sole meunière, a simple, lemony fish dish. While this dish requires few ingredients and is relatively easy to prepare, there’s one reason it poses a challenge to home chefs in the States.
Sole meunière is made with sole fish that is lightly coated in flour, browned ever-so-slightly in a pan of clarified butter, and then drowned in browned butter and lemon sauce. It sounds simple, but as the name implies, sole meunière specifically requires Dover sole fish — otherwise, it’s just fish meunière — which is only found in Europe along the Eastern Atlantic.
If you’re in Europe, Dover sole is easy to find, but in the States, it’s quite expensive and hard to get your hands on. An appropriate substitute is Pacific Dover, a flounder that resembles the white, flaky flesh of a Dover sole, but doesn’t quite have the same mild, sweet flavor profile. However, if you’re not aiming for authenticity, feel free to use your preferred fish.