Some might say that cooking is easy, just buy great ingredients and keep it simple. One of the greatest dishes I ever saw prepared was a "simple" Dover Sole Meuniere prepared at Restaurant Girardet in 1981. Some might say, how pedestrian a dish. In the hands of a master, it was a revelation.
First, the sole was prepared for cooking by removing the skin, cutting off the fins and head, and removing the intestines. A special Dover sole pan was heated and filmed with clarified butter. The sole was bathed in milk, seasoned, dredged in all-purpose flour and placed into the pan. Fresh butter was added as needed, skimmed of foam as it cooked and basted with the cooking butter. After cooking both sides about 3-4 minutes each, the pan was degreased, fresh butter added, freshly chopped parsley sprinkled on the fish and fresh lemon juices to finish the dish. A waiter was standing by to take the fish out, still steaming, for a tableside procedure to fillet the fish and present it to the guests. Simple, precise and perfect.
My dear friend chef James Sly was a master of this simple dish. Here is a blog he wrote some time back. He has a great story of how he introduced Santa Barbara to the famed Dover sole preparation at the request of Julia Child. Sadly James left us in August of 2019.
Tastefully
Chef Michael Hutchings
Frédy Girardet (born 17 November 1936) is a Swiss chef who cooks in the French tradition. Often considered one of the greatest chefs of the 20th Century, his self-named restaurant in Crissier, Switzerland (near Lausanne, Switzerland) earned three Michelin stars and before Girardet's retirement in 1996 was often called the greatest restaurant in the world.
