The other white fish: skate
Are you English?鈥� The question surprised me. I answered with a simple no. 鈥淲ell, did you live in England for a while?鈥� Again, no. I was curious as to what had the fishmonger at convinced that I had some English connection. Turns out it was the pound or so of skate wing fillet he鈥檇 just wrapped up for me.
Long considered a trash fish, skate has grown in popularity in recent years. But it鈥檚 been quite popular in the UK for some time. In fact, Marion remembers being in a restaurant in Paris with her sister that had skate on the menu one evening several years ago. The only people ordering it were visiting Brits.
Skate is a deliciously mild, slightly sweet fish that isn鈥檛 at all fishy. And its muscle structure makes for a beautifully exotic presentation on the plate, as you can see above.
Skates are cartilaginous fish 鈥� their skeletons are made of cartilage, rather than bone. They鈥檙e related to rays, which they closely resemble, and sharks. Skates are kite-shaped flat fish with large wings; these wings are the edible part.
Thinking of Marion鈥檚 Paris experience 鈥� and, having recently watched again, of Julia鈥檚 life-changing moment when she tasted sole meuni猫re on her first day in France with Paul 鈥� I decided I would use this simple, classic French preparation for the skate.
Except, as with all 鈥渃lassics,鈥� there were countless variations on the theme. Thyme, broth, wine and even heavy cream were mentioned in various recipes I came across. So I went with the constants I found 鈥� lemon juice [and the zest 鈥� I can rarely pass up lemon zest in any recipe involving lemon juice], parsley and lots of butter. Flour is another constant, a given, in fact. According to , 鈥淢euni猫re means miller鈥檚 wife and refers to the dusting of flour on the fish.鈥� And then I threw in another bit of bright tartness, capers.
If you can鈥檛 find skate wing fillets, other white-fleshed fish 鈥� sole, flounder, halibut or ocean perch, for instance 鈥� may also be used. But besides the mild, sweet flavor that makes seeking out skate worthwhile, it鈥檚 not as insanely fragile as some white-fleshed fish, sole in particular. It held together nicely, even after it was cooked on both sides. And still, it was delicate enough to be cut with a fork. Regarding its non-fishy mildness, when we came home to our closed up apartment the next day after running errands, there was no lingering fish smell at all. However, the kitchen still smelled of butter!
If you do find skate, make sure it has already been filleted. Dealing with countless pieces of cartilage in non-filleted pieces of skate can be a real pain.
Skate Meuni猫re with Browned Butter and Capers
Serves 4
2 skate fillets, about 1 pound or a little more total
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
Flour
2 tablespoons canola oil, divided
5 to 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
Juice and zest of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons capers, chopped
1 generous tablespoon chopped flat parsley
Preheat oven to 200 degrees F. Cut skate fillets into 2 equal pieces. Season with salt and pepper on one side. Dredge in flour on both sides, shaking off excess.
Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium flame. Add 1 tablespoon each of oil and butter, swirling to mix as butter melts. Place 2 skate fillets in pan, seasoned side down. Saut茅 for about 3 minutes, then carefully turn with a wide spatula. Cook on second side until just cooked through, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer fillets to plate and keep warm in oven while you cook the remaining two fillets, first adding more oil and butter to skillet, if necessary. Transfer second batch of fillets to oven too.
Wipe skillet clean and return to flame. Melt remaining 4 tablespoons of butter in skillet. Cook, occasionally stirring, until butter browns, 3 to 4 minutes. Meanwhile, plate skate fillets. Add lemon juice, zest, capers and parsley to skillet, stirring. The lemon juice will make the pan spatter like crazy. That鈥檚 okay. Just be careful. Turn off the heat and spoon sauce over fillets. Serve immediately.
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