Butter-roasted Megrim Sole with Mussels and Cider is a modern Ulster (Northern Irish) recipe for a classic dish of megrim sole fried in butter and served with a mussel, cider, shallot, cream and fennel sauce. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Ulster version of: Butter-roasted Megrim Sole with Mussels and Cider.
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This is a modern recipe from Ulster, showing the best that the Irish sea has to offer.
Ingredients:
2 whole megrim soles, cleaned, skinned and trimmed
500g mussels, scrubbed and de-bearded
1 tbsp rapeseed oil
50g butter
100ml cider
1 shallot, finely chopped
100ml cream
1 tbsp herb fennel, chopped
pea shoots, to garnish
salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste
Method:
Pat the fish down then season with salt and black pepper.
Heat the oil in a large frying pan. When hot (the oil should be almost smoking), add the fish fillets and cook for about 3 minutes before flipping the fish over and adding 40g of the butter. Cook, whilst basting with the butter for 1 minute then turn the heat off, but leave the pan in place.
In the meantime, add the remaining butter to a large pan and use to fry the shallot for about 5 minutes, or until golden brown. Stir in the cider and bring to a simmer. Add the mussels, cover with a lid and cook for 2 minutes, shaking the pan occasionally, or until the mussels are open.
Remove the mussels and take out their meats. Bring the liquor to a boil and cook until the volume has reduced by half. Add the cream, bring to a boil and cook until thickened.
Adjust the seasoning of the sauce to taste, stir in the mussel meats and add the fennel.
Arrange the soles on a warmed serving plate and spoon over the mussel sauce. Garnish with the pea shoots and serve.
