Easy Sole Meuniere

This was the dish that appeared in the opening scenes of Julie and Julia. It was Julia Child's first dinner in France, and she fell in love with French cuisine after one bite. With such high expectations placed upon it, I was a little intimidated by the dish, despite its simple ingredients. Since I didn't have the guts to cook a whole fish and fillet it post-cooking, I tried Ina Garten's recipe.


The dish comes together very quickly. Make sure to measure all your ingredients before you start to cook, and have everything conveniently placed near the stove. The fish was surprisingly easy to make, and tasted like it took much more effort than it actually did.


Easy Sole Meuniére
Adapted from Barefoot Contessa, Back to Basics
By Ina Garten


¾ c all purpose flour
Salt and pepper
6 fresh sole fillets, about 4 oz each
6 Tbs butter
2 tsp grated lemon zest
6 Tbs freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 Tbs fresh minced parsley


Preheat oven to 200˚F. Have 3 heat-proof dinner plates ready.

Combine flour, 2 tsp salt, and 1 tsp pepper in a shallow dish. Set near stove. Heat 2 Tbs butter in a large skillet over medium heat until bubbling ceases. Dredge two fillets in flour mixture and place them in the skillet. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook for two minutes. Carefully flip with a spatula. Sprinkle one third of the lemon zest over the top of the fillets. Pour one third of the lemon juice into the pan, and cook fish another minute. Transfer fish and sauce to one of the plates. Keep warm in oven. Cook the remaining fillets like the first two, using up the remaining butter, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Sprinkle fish with parsley, salt, and pepper. Serve immediately.