lemon/micro mustard on lemon sole; scallion/lovage potato

Its appearance is almost monochromatic in this photograph, but if I can use that adjective family to describe taste, our enjoyment of this entrée was polychromatic.

Also, while no sugar was added to either the fish or the vegetable, both were, oddly, and deliciously, incredibly sweet.

  • one really fresh 14.5-ounce lemon sole fillet from Pura Vida Seafood, rinsed then dried thoroughly, salted on both sides (with a little freshly-ground black pepper as well), brushed with a little good Italian white wine vinegar (Aceto Cesare Bianco white wine vinegar from Buon Italia), coated with a thin layer of a local whole wheat flour from the Blew family of Oak Grove Mills in the Union Square Greenmarket, sautéed for a couple of minutes over a medium-high flame inside a very heavy vintage oval tin-lined copper pan in 2 or 3 tablespoons of olive oil, the fillet turned over and cooked for another minute or so (the exact time, or even an approximate time will always depend on the thickness of the fish and the heat of the pan), the sole removed and arranged on 2 warm plates, the pan wiped with a paper towel, then 2 tablespoons of rich Organic Valley ‘Cultured Pasture Butter’, 3 tablespoons of juice from an organic Whole Foods Market lemon, and a handful of micro red mustard from Windfall Farms added, warmed for a minute or so, either over a low flame or, as the pan will still be hot, possibly none at all, the sauce poured onto the sole, and a very different micro red mustard, this one from Two Guys from Woodbridge, arranged on each plate as a garnish to one side