Turbot is the prized European flatfish Scophthalmus maximus — a broad, almost circular, left-eyed bottom-dweller of the North-East Atlantic and Mediterranean whose firm, white, faintly gelatinous flesh is sweet, delicate and held in fat, snowy flakes. Long called the king of flatfish, it is the noblest of the lot in classical kitchens, where a whole turbot is roasted or poached on the bone to keep the flesh meltingly moist and to draw the rich gelatine from the head and frame into the sauce.