Steamed Sole with Smoked Trout Consommé

Recipe from Iacopo Falai

Adapted by Melissa Clark

Steamed Sole with Smoked Trout Consommé — Fred R. Conrad/The New York Times

Total Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
Rating: 3(5)
Notes: Read community notes

Featured in: THE CHEF: IACOPO FALAI; First Came the Smoker, Then the Ingredients

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Ingredients

Yield:4 to 6 appetizer servings

For the Onion Confit

2½Spanish onions, 1 diced, 1½ thinly sliced
2tablespoons sugar
1tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
3sprigs fresh thyme, tied with kitchen string
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the Consommé

18-ounce whole smoked trout
1leek, trimmed and cleaned
1small carrot, peeled and sliced
1stalk celery, sliced
½fennel bulb, trimmed and sliced
2garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
2bay leaves
2juniper berries
1teaspoon kosher salt
4egg whites
1plum tomato, roughly chopped and crushed

For the Sole

18-ounce sole fillet, cut into 3-inch by 1-inch pieces
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1tablespoon canola oil
1bunch ramps, trimmed and cleaned

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

Step 1
To prepare confit, purée diced onion and ½ cup water in blender. Strain liquid through a sieve into a bowl.
Step 2
Put a large sauté pan over high heat until very hot. Sprinkle sugar evenly over pan. As soon as it melts and begins to turn gold, add sliced onions. Reduce heat and stir until onions are golden, about 5 minutes.
Step 3
Deglaze pan with onion juice and olive oil. Add thyme, salt and pepper. Cut parchment paper to fit pan, making a small hole in the center to let steam escape. Place parchment on top of onions and simmer over medium-low heat until juice evaporates and onions turn amber, about 20 minutes. Discard thyme before serving.
Step 4
To prepare consommé, remove trout skin and discard. Remove most of the trout meat and reserve for other use; leave some meat on bone.
Step 5
In a medium pot over medium-high heat, combine leek, carrot, celery, fennel and garlic. Sauté for 3 minutes. Pour in 6 cups water and add bay leaves, juniper berries, salt and trout bones. Bring to bare simmer and cook over low heat for 45 minutes. Strain through a fine mesh sieve. Return broth to pot and simmer over medium heat for 15 minutes. Strain again.
Step 6
In a small bowl, whisk together egg whites and tomato. Return broth to pot over medium heat. Add egg mixture and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Immediately reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes (egg mixture should gradually form a crust on surface of broth). Remove crust with slotted spoon and discard.
Step 7
Put a coffee filter inside a sieve over a bowl. Strain broth through filter.
Step 8
To prepare sole, rinse fish and pat dry. Season with salt and pepper. In a pot, bring consommé to a simmer. Set a steamer basket inside pot above consommé. Arrange fish in steamer, cover and steam until fish is opaque and just cooked through, 3 to 5 minutes.
Step 9
Meanwhile, heat canola oil in a medium pan over medium-high heat. Add ramps and a pinch of salt and pepper and sauté until bulbs are golden, 1 to 2 minutes.
Step 10
To serve, spoon a little confit in serving bowls. Arrange fish pieces on top. Spoon a little consommé around fish. Garnish with ramps.