Sole
Solea solea · Fish
Top 10 pairings
The finest flatfish, above all the Dover sole: slender, oval and sand-brown, with thin fillets that are firm, fine-grained and gently sweet. It starred in classical French cooking as sole meuniere, fried in foaming butter.
Picking a good onedrag
Just landed: bright, firm, seaweed-freshOff: soft, dull, smelling sour
Counter freshEveryday bestCook to 63 C / 145 F inside, then stop. Sold thawed? Eyes and firmness may lag, but it must smell fresh.
Eyes and gills, whole fishEyes a little sunken, gills paler
Skin, or a skinned filletBright, not glossy, cloudy slime
Press the fleshLess elastic, still springs back
Smell at gills, belly or filletNeutral and mild, no seaweed left