Sole

Roberto Pillon, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Common sole is a flatfish with fine, white, delicate flesh and a mild, sweet flavor. It is one of the most prized fish in classic French and Spanish cuisine, and is often the most expensive fish at the market. The classic preparation is meunière — dusted in flour and pan-fried in butter with lemon. It is typically sold whole or as fillets and requires careful, gentle cooking.

Culinary substitutes

Turbot

Both are prized European flatfish with delicate white flesh — turbot is thicker, meatier, and firmer while sole is thinner and more delicate.

Peixe-espada-preto

Both are delicate white fillets fried in a light coating — sole is firmer and holds its shape better, scabbardfish is softer and cheaper.

Handling fish at home

$ · searing fillets and whole small fish, plancha-style

Get crisp skin instead of a fillet welded to the pan

Skin-on fillets, which need a hot, even surface to release cleanly.

Lodge 12-Inch Cast Iron Skillet

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$$ · filleting, skinning, and trimming whole fish

Fillet a whole fish without wasting half of it

Following the bones and contours of whole fish with a narrow, flexible blade.

Victorinox Fibrox 8-Inch Flexible Fillet Knife

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