This dish is pretty simple. The trickiest part is mounting the sauce with butter and not breaking the sauce. This is easily avoided by simply paying attention and pulling the pan from the heat while adding (mounting) the butter, returning it to the heat if the pan cools too much. The sauce is a little tart and goes well with the fish. By not turning the fish before putting it in the oven the fish will develop a very crisp crust on the top, which is a perfect foil to the buttery sauce. White pepper is used in the sauce because it looks better, and the flavor is better suited to the sauce.
INGREDIENTS:
4 6-ounce skinless boneless pieces of salmon Salt and pepper to taste (use white pepper for the sauce, black for the fish) 1 shallot, minced ½ cup dry white wine, such as pinot blanc or verdhelho 3 ounces white wine vinegar, or tarragon vinegar 1 ounce lemon juice 12 tablespoons butter, cut into pea-sized bits +1 more ¼ cup, well packed, chervil leaves Grapeseed oil as neededMETHOD:
Heat the oven to 425°. Heat an oven-proof pan large enough to hold all 4 salmon pieces without crowding over medium-high heat. Heat a 1 quart sauce pan over medium heat.
Season the fish with salt and pepper. When the large pan is quite hot, lightly film with oil. Carefully place the salmon into the pan. Cook, without moving the fish, until you can see the side of the fish turning pale about 1/8th to ¼ of an inch up from the pan, about 4-5 minutes. Place the pan into the hot oven. It should finish in about 8 minutes.*
Place 1 tablespoon butter into the saucepan. As soon as it is melted and stops foaming. Add the shallots and stir. Add a little salt to the pan. Sauté until the shallots are tender and translucent, but do not allow to brown. Add the vinegar and lemon juice and cook down by 80%. Add the wine and reduce it by 50%. Lower the heat to low, and add 4-5 bits of butter at a time to the pan. Whisk vigorously or swirl the pan until the butter melts into the sauce and becomes emulsified. Continue doing this until all the butter is used. Be sure to stir or swirl vigorously. If the sauce appears to be thinning and there is butter liquefying around the edges, pull the pan from the heat and add more butter immediately, whisking hard to reincorporate the butter that has “broken”. Continue until all the butter is used and the sauce thickened a little and is smooth. Fold in the chervil gently and keep warm, not hot. If needed, place it over a water bath (a larger pan with a small amount of gently simmering water), but do not let the pan bottom come in contact with the hot water.
After 8 minutes of oven time, the salmon should be ready to go. Check it by pressing gently but firmly straight down with a fingertip near the thin end of the fish. The fish should give and flake. Another way to tell is if you give the pan a sharp jerk towards you and it slides. When the fish is ready, slip a spatula under it and invert the piece of fish onto a plate. Do this with all 4 pieces, then use a spoon to pour sauce over the fish. Serve right away.
Chef’s Notes:
*Fish takes about 8 minutes for each inch of thickness (or for the first inch, whatever thickness it is). Although it seems like a lot of butter, making less of this sauce can be tricky until you have had practice. Once you learn this sauce, it is easy to play with. You could use red wine and the sauce will be reddish. Add orange juice, or blood orange juice for color and flavor. Buerre blanc is quick and easy, and goes well with so many things. Use it on seafood, omelets, steak (with lots of peppercorns), and vegetables.
Serves: 4
Source: Chef Andrew E Cohen
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