Simple Fish with Lemon Butter

This dish was inspired by my fave food writer, Nigel Slater. There’s something to be said for classic flavour combinations like fish, lemon and butter! I love how it makes both a brilliant sauce for the fish and a tasty dressing for the salad leaves.fish

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Simple Fish with Lemon Butter

Total Time 15 minutes minutes

Servings 2 people

Ingredients

• 2 fish fillets
• 2-4 tablespoons butter
• 4 tablespoons lemon juice
• salad leaves to serve

Instructions

• Heat a frying pan on a medium high heat. Rub fish with a little oil. Season with salt.
• Cook fish for 3-5 minutes on each side or until cooked to your liking.
• Remove fish from the pan and divide between two plates.
• Wipe out the pan with paper towel to remove any excess oil. Add butter and lemon to the pan and bring to a simmer.
• Serve fish with lemon butter drizzled over and salad leaves on the side.

Variations

vegetarian – serve the lemon butter with pan fried mushrooms or eggplant. Also good with cooked beans or lentils.

dairy-free / paleo – replace butter with extra virgin olive oil. No need to heat, just combine with the lemon juice.

carnivore – replace fish with lamb or pork chops. Chicken breast or thigh fillets are also nice with lemon butter.

carb lovers / more substantial – serve with home made fries, roast spuds or mash. You could also toss cooked pasta into the lemon butter.

more veg – add more exciting raw or pickled veg to the salad leaves like carrot, zucchini, red bell peppers (capsicum), snow peas.

more wintery – replace salad leaves with cooked greens.

Waste Avoidance Strategy

fish fillets – freeze them.

butter – will keep in the fridge for weeks.

lemon – whole lemon will keep wrapped in a plastic bag in the fridge for months.

salad leaves – are highly perishable. My first path would be to use them for another meal (salad for breakfast!) but if that isn’t possible you can pop them in the freezer. They will wilt down but can then be used anywhere you’d use wilted greens. At least this way they wont go slimey.

Problem Solving Guide

fish sticking to the pan – make sure your pan is hot before adding the fish and be generous with the oil.

fish burning – reduce the heat or turn the fish so the other side gets cooked.

bland – you may need a little more salt or lemon juice.

Serving Suggestions

Lovely as a simple meal on its’ own.

Prepare Ahead

No. Best when freshly cooked.

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