Crispy Trout Meuniere

On Fridays during Lent, we do not eat meat. On Fridays in my house it's nothing but craziness because the homegirlz and their friends are coming and going and I can't quite figure how much food we'll need for dinner.

We got cheese pizza for the kiddos and I made this for us. I like trout because it is a fairly thin and light fish, but holds up well during frying or broiling. Trout has a sweet taste and not the fishy taste we try to avoid.

It used to be we only were able to enjoy a good meuniere sauce when we went out to eat. I saw Emeril Lagasse prepare this sauce about four years ago on Emeril Live, tired it at home and fell in love with it. Don't let all of the butter in the sauce discourage you, the sauce is rich but not rich and greasy. It has such a velvety texture, you're going to love it too!

Let's make the meuniere sauce first.

In a small saucepan, combine 1/2 cup Worcestershire,

1 lemon peeled and quartered,

and 2 bay leaves. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes, until reduced by half and slightly thickened. Stir occasionally and mash the lemons against the side of the pan with the back of a spoon to break up into pieces.

Add 1/2 cup of heavy cream and cook until reduced by half, about 5 minutes.

Lower the heat to simmer and whisk in 2 sticks of cold butter, cut into small pieces. Add the butter several pieces at a time, adding each piece before the previous one has been completely incorporated. Continue until all the butter is incorporated and the sauce coats the back of a spoon. Remove the pan from the heat as necessary to keep the sauce from breaking.

Remove the pan from the heat strain sauce. As you are straining the sauce, press down with the whisk, through a fine mesh strainer, into a clean container. Cover to keep warm until ready to serve.

Place clean fillets on a sheet of wax paper and season with Emeril's Essence (Essence recipe follows this post) or with salt and pepper.

In a shallow dish, combine 1/2 cup of flour with 1 teaspoon of the Essence. In another dish, combine 1 egg with 1 tablespoon of milk to make an egg wash.

Dip fillets into the egg wash, shaking to remove any excess then dredge through the flour mixtures making sure the seasoned flour is adhering to both sides.

In a large skillet, heat 1/2 cup of Canola or vegetable oil over medium-high heat. Add the fish and cook until golden, about 5 minutes.

Turn and cook on the second side until golden and the fish is just cooked through, about 4 minutes.

Drain the fish on a platter lined with absorbent paper towels. Gorgeous!

To serve, spoon the sauce over the fish, serve with crispy roasted potatoes. I like to let my potatoes take a little dip in that meuniere sauce.

I did garnish with parsley and some chopped pecans, but I was so excited and hungry, I didn't snap any pictures. When you make this, you will forgive me and completely understand

Essence:

2 1/2 tablespoons paprika
2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon dried leaf oregano
1 tablespoon dried thyme

Combine all ingredients thoroughly and store in an airtight jar or container.
Yield: about 2/3 cup