This Lemon Butter Sauce for fish is outrageous β 3 minutes, 2 ingredients, totally restaurant worthy.
The secret is browned butter β calledΒ Beurre noisetteΒ in French. Learn how to pronounce it so you can loftily tell your family and friends βweβre having French tonight!β (But donβt tell them how simple it is?)
Restaurant-style Lemon Butter Sauce for Fish!
Great quality fish is not cheap. But worthy of investment because:
itβs good for you;
a beautiful piece of fish requires very little done to it to make a meal that youβd pay serious $ for at a fancy seafood restaurant; and
theyβre quick to cook.
And so I present to you, your new favourite posh-yet-easy-and-super-quick way with fish: Pan fried until golden then drizzled with a 3 minute Lemon Butter Sauce that youβre going to go nuts over.
The Lemon Butter Sauce
The Lemon Butter Sauce is just made with butter and lemon.Β But itβs not βjustβ butter and lemon.
ItβsΒ brown butter and lemon.
If youβre new to brown butter, this is going to change your world β itβs addictive. Brown butter is everything you love about melted butter, boosted with an incredible nutty, toasty aroma.
The French call itΒ Beurre noisette.Β The literal translation is βhazelnut butterβ, and even though hazelnuts donβt come into the equation at all, we get it. π
How to make Lemon Butter Sauce
3 minutes, 3 steps, 2 ingredients:
Melt butter;
Leave until the butter turnsΒ brown and the smell suddenly changes and becomes nutty β about 3 minutes;
Stir through lemon juice.
The recipe video is helpful if youβre a first timer to browned butter β especially the pre and post comparison.
Quick Tips
While brown butter is simple to make, if itβs on too high a heat, it can go from nutty perfection to burnt in seconds. So here are a few quick tips:
Use a silver based small skillet or pot so you can see when the butter changes colour;
Make the Lemon Butter Sauce before the fish so you can concentrate on getting it right. It stays warm for up to 30 minutes β but if you are delayed and it solidifies, it only takes 10 seconds in the microwave to melt it back to its original state; and
Donβt try to make the Lemon Butter Sauce in the same skillet as the fish β the pan will be too large.
Use sparingly β itβs rich!
And you donβt need much β this stuff is rich!Β The recipe makes slightly more than you need because running out of sauce in the middle of dinner is dismal, but in all honesty, my standard serving is 1 tablespoon of Sauce per fillet of fish.
It looks a lot browner in the bowl than it does when you drizzle it over the fish. Which is actually perfect β itβs a bright yellow Lemon colour once drizzled. π If it was just plain melted butter, you wouldnβt have that same intense deep yellow colour that you see on the plate β nor would it pool on the plate like in the photo below.
The fish fillet is pictured in this post withΒ the Kale and Quinoa Salad I published on Monday. π Keeps forΒ daysΒ in the fridge, my friends! Donβt think of it as a trendy βhealth foodβ salad. Itβs just a darn tastyΒ filling salad that just happens to star 2 superfoods. Tested and proven!
Here are a few more ideas for things to serve this fish with:
Mashed potato or mashed cauliflower (for a low carb option)
For a true indulgent restaurant experience, try Paris MashΒ β the richest, creamiest mashed potato in the world
Curried Basmati Rice β this aromatic pilaf would be terrific paired with the fresh fish flavour
A garden salad or leafy greens with French Vinaigrette or Italian Dressing
Broccoli Salad or Magic Broccoli (the best roasted broccoli ever!)
And more fish recipes!
Honey Garlic SalmonΒ andΒ Lemon Honey Glazed SalmonΒ βΒ super quick!
See all Fish recipes
Hope you enjoy! β Nagi x
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
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Lemon Butter Sauce for Fish
Ingredients
Lemon Butter Sauce:
- 60 g / 4 tbsp unsalted butter , cut into pieces
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- Salt and finely ground pepper
Crispy Pan Fried Fish:
- 2 x thin white fish fillets (120-150g / 4-5oz each), skinless boneless (I used Bream, Note 1)
- Salt and pepper
- 2 tbsp white flour
- 2 tbsp oil (I use canola)
Serving:
- Lemon wedges
- Finely chopped parsley, optional
Instructions
Lemon Butter Sauce (see video):
- Place the butter in a light coloured saucepan or small skillet over medium heat.
- Melt butter then leave on the stove, whisking / stirring very now and then. When the butter turns golden brown and it smells nutty β about 3 minutes, remove from stove immediately and pour into small bowl. (Note 2)
- Add lemon juice and a pinch of salt and pepper. Stir then taste when it has cooled slightly. Adjust lemon/salt to taste.
- Set aside β it will stay pourable for 20 β 30 minutes. See Note 3 for storing.
Crispy Pan Fried Fish:
- Pat fish dry using paper towels. Sprinkle with salt & pepper, then flour. Use fingers to spread flour. Turn and repeat. Shake excess flour off well, slapping between hands if necessary.
- Heat oil in a non stick skillet over high heat. When the oil is shimmering and there are faint wisps of smoke, add fish. Cook for 1 1/2 minutes until golden and crispy on the edges, then turn and cook the other side for 1 1/2 minutes (cook longer if you have thicker fillets).
- Remove immediately onto serving plates. Drizzle each with about 1 tbsp of Sauce (avoid dark specks settled at the bottom of the bowl), garnish with parsley and serve with lemon on the side. Pictured in post with Kale and Quinoa Salad.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
LIFE OF DOZERΒ
3 hours ago: as usual, refusing to get out of the car knowing what lies ahead β a hose down.
Thanks a lot Nagi for sharing your recipes complete with the techniques and the notes. So far, all your recipes Iβve tried are beyond delicious!!!
Thank you.
5 Yums! I love anything brown butter and this recipe just shines! I seem to alternate my fish meals between this one and the one baked fish in lemon cream sauce. Easy and delicious π
I canβt believe how this turned bland catfish filets into a rich and delicious meal. I think Iβll make the same thing tomorrow,
I found some halibut very much on sale here in the PNW and used this recipe to cook the fish for sandwiches. For the effort I had to put in, I thought the result was really good!
This is so fast and amazingly delicious! Love it!
Super easy. Super good. Used fresh white fish from the .UP n MI
Oh! My! Goodness! This was so easy and delicious that my hubby said he could eat this everyday! I also made the Kale and Quinoa salad and that was also yummy!!! Your recipes never disappoint, Ms. Nagi! You are a gem!!
Delicious. I added finely chopped garlic to the butter the last 30 secs before removing from the heat. So good. I also just omitted the flour and just seared the fish with salt/pepper in avocado oil. Perfect, easy and tasty, thanks!
Perfect on my grilled Halibut Chunks from Tanners in Alaska. Yum!
Have made this before, and again tonight, S0 simple and so yummy.
Made the best snapper dinner with this recipe! Thank you so much. Full of flavour!
The beurre noisette was mind blowing. SO delicious!
I used this for frozen cod fillets that I cooked in the air fryer. Very nice.
Pan fried some fresh caught pike, and it was delicious. And it didnβt stick to the pan. Yay! Thanks.
Would this be okay with gluten free flour & avocado oil?
If you mean substituting avocado oil for the butter β no. Itβs the milk solids in the butter that brown to get the flavor, and avocado oil doesnβt have milk solids.
Wow !! π€€ Where have you been all my life! Made this sauce tonight for the first time, so simple so delicious. Itβs so tasty and masks the fish well that i feel itβs possible to mask any cheap crappy fish with it should the circumstances require that. π€ Great for those times! As well as all the other times. Wish I tried it years ago!
Excellent! Iβve never pan fried fish with flour β Iβm hooked. You say you donβt need much sauce but I say the more the merrier. I canβt decide if itβs better with or without extra lemon on top. We used lingcod or sea bass from the freezer and it was divine π€€π made the curried pilaf to go with and they seemed to compete a little so Iβd go with a milder side next time.
Oh my goodness. This was soooo goooood. It was also easy and quick
Another fantastic, easy, elegant win from my favorite chef, Nagi! I got some fresh saddle-tail snapper on a super markdown and they were elevated into the heavens with your sauce. Thank you! PS: LOVE your cookbook.
PSS: hire someone to go through and remove the spam comments. xx
You need not try another fish recipe . This recipe is absolutely fool proof and delicious . I am in love w this fish , we make it once a week . Always make sure your fillets are dry .