LEMON SOLE
Lemon sole, or English sole, is a very colorful flatfish living in seawater. It can actually change its color to adapt to its environment. Sometimes lemon soles are grey though, and their belly - no matter what - is always white. The head is quite small, as opposed to e.g. a turbot, and the mouth is also quite small but it has very thick lips for its size. The skin is very smooth and slippery and has just some fine small scales. Lemon sole is one of the fish species that doesn't grow excessively big, up to 2 kg/4 lb at best. However, a common catch is not even half of this weight. As it often sits on the bottom of the seas (at shallower depths) it likes to eat worms and shrimps. The taste of its flesh therefore has some undertones of shellfish.
The life cycle of lemon sole is good to know to buy it in the right season. The fish usually mate during the warmer months of the year, from late spring to late summer, and their flesh is therefore best after these 'games' are over. Therefore, winter and late fall are the times when lemon soles are at their best, from a chef's point of view. Lemon sole is catched using trawling, and it can also be caught when trawling for shrimps. The flesh has a more pronounced taste than some other flatfish, and it is a cheaper alternative to a Dover sole.
See a video of sole fish swimming in water here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUzkxtGgJ04
Information on how to fillet a flat fish can be found in our how to section, where also other tips on fish preparation are located, so go there and look what you can do with this fine fish. Usually, such good fish as lemon sole is not much trifled with in terms of mixing it with a bunch of other flavors. It stands firm on its own, resting there on the plate, once it is cooked. A common way to cook lemon sole is simply frying it in a hot pan in some oil to brown it on both sides, and then finish it off with some butter (before frying, season the fish fillet with salt and pepper!). It is also nice to make this fish baked en papilotte, that is wrapped in a paper together with some aromatic vegetables like mirepoix plus some extra flavors, herbs, and white wine.
Lemon sole is good with the traditional flatfish ingredients, including butter (add at the end of pan-frying to give the fish a superb aroma), cream, lemon (to sprinkle at the end of cooking), garlic, onions and shallots, and white wine. More exotic options include truffles, and mustard with mushrooms. Lemon sole can also be eaten with other fish like anchovies, sardines, and why not some mussels or oysters, or shrimps. Some other classic additions to the sole are parsely and capers, chives, thyme, black pepper. For the sauces, choose the ones with butter in them, like hollandaise or some derivatives of it. When it comes to cooking techniques, lemon sole can be fried, or even grilled, and also steamed, broiled, or poached. Good luck with your own lemon sole creations!