Meuniere sauce
Encyclopedia
Meunière refers to both a sauce and a method of preparation, primarily for fish. The word itself means "miller's wife". Thus to cook something à la meunière was to cook it by first dredging
it in flour. A meunière sauce is a simple preparation — brown butter, chopped parsley, and lemon — and the name refers to its unelaborate rustic nature.
the fish in seasoned flour (white flour or corn flour) and then cooking in a hot sauté pan with a small amount of clarified butter
. The alternative method is to pan-fry or deep fry the floured fish. In pan frying, oil or a combination of oil and butter is used — up to perhaps 3/4 of an inch deep. Deep frying is done in either a large fry pot or in a stand alone deep fryer. The floured fish is completely submerged in the hot oil. The frying techniques result in a crisper texture, but the sauce will need to be made separately. The sautéed fish will have a softer skin by comparison, but allows for the possibility of creating the sauce à la minute after the fish has been removed by adding fresh butter, parsley, and lemon.
Meunière sauce is a variation on a brown butter sauce. While there is general agreement on the addition of parsley and lemon, some chefs have been known to include ingredients such as Worcestershire sauce
, red wine vinegar, or beef stock. Another common variation is to use pecans rather than almonds in an Amandine.
. The rich abundance of seafood from the nearby Gulf of Mexico makes the simplicity of the meunière style appropriate. Galatoire's
claims to sell more Trout Meunière Amandine than any other dish. Soft-shell crab and redfish are also often available á la Meunière. Oysters en Brochette
are typically served with a meuniere sauce.
Dredging (cooking)
This article is about the cooking technique. For other uses, see Dredge .Dredging is a cooking technique used to coat wet or moist foods with a dry ingredient prior to cooking. Put most simply, dredging involves little more than pulling/rolling the wet food through the dry material to provide an...
it in flour. A meunière sauce is a simple preparation — brown butter, chopped parsley, and lemon — and the name refers to its unelaborate rustic nature.
Preparation
There are two primary ways to prepare the fish (most popularly, sole or trout). One is by sautéing—first dredgingDredging (cooking)
This article is about the cooking technique. For other uses, see Dredge .Dredging is a cooking technique used to coat wet or moist foods with a dry ingredient prior to cooking. Put most simply, dredging involves little more than pulling/rolling the wet food through the dry material to provide an...
the fish in seasoned flour (white flour or corn flour) and then cooking in a hot sauté pan with a small amount of clarified butter
Clarified butter
Clarified butter is milk fat rendered from butter to separate the milk solids and water from the butterfat. Typically, it is produced by melting butter and allowing the different components to separate by density...
. The alternative method is to pan-fry or deep fry the floured fish. In pan frying, oil or a combination of oil and butter is used — up to perhaps 3/4 of an inch deep. Deep frying is done in either a large fry pot or in a stand alone deep fryer. The floured fish is completely submerged in the hot oil. The frying techniques result in a crisper texture, but the sauce will need to be made separately. The sautéed fish will have a softer skin by comparison, but allows for the possibility of creating the sauce à la minute after the fish has been removed by adding fresh butter, parsley, and lemon.
Meunière sauce is a variation on a brown butter sauce. While there is general agreement on the addition of parsley and lemon, some chefs have been known to include ingredients such as Worcestershire sauce
Worcestershire sauce
Worcestershire sauce , or Worcester sauce is a fermented liquid condiment; primarily used to flavour meat or fish dishes.First made at 60 Broad Street, Worcester, England, by two dispensing chemists, John Wheeley Lea and William Henry Perrins, the Lea & Perrins brand was commercialised in 1837 and...
, red wine vinegar, or beef stock. Another common variation is to use pecans rather than almonds in an Amandine.
Creole cuisine
Trout Meunière and its variation Trout Amandine (speckled seatrout crusted in almonds, traditionally served with a Meunière sauce) are bedrock dishes of New Orleans Creole cuisineLouisiana Creole cuisine
Louisiana Creole cuisine is a style of cooking originating in Louisiana which blends French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Greek, Asian Indian, Native American, and African influences, as well as general Southern cuisine...
. The rich abundance of seafood from the nearby Gulf of Mexico makes the simplicity of the meunière style appropriate. Galatoire's
Galatoire's
Galatoire's is a restaurant at 209 Bourbon St. in the French Quarter of New Orleans, Louisiana, USA .Galatoire's Restaurant was founded in 1897 by Jean Galatoire, an immigrant from a small village near Pau, France in the foothills of the Pyrenees Mountains. The restaurant is still run by his fourth...
claims to sell more Trout Meunière Amandine than any other dish. Soft-shell crab and redfish are also often available á la Meunière. Oysters en Brochette
Oysters en Brochette
Oysters en brochette is a classic dish in New Orleans Creole cuisine. Raw oysters are skewered, alternating with pieces of partially cooked bacon. The entire dish is then breaded and then either deep fried or sautéed. The traditional presentation is on triangles of toast with the skewer removed...
are typically served with a meuniere sauce.