Salmon Meuniére

Ingredient	For Two	For Two
salmon fillet	¾ pound	350g
salt	pinch	pinch
pepper	pinch	pinch
flour	to coat	to coat
butter	2 Tbsp.	2 Tbsp.
Sauce
soy sauce	2 Tbsp.	2 Tbsp.
lemon juice	1 Tbsp.	1 Tbsp.
water	1 Tbsp.	1 Tbsp.
sugar	1 tsp.	1 tsp.
green onion	1	1

This simple, elegant, and remarkably easy salmon dish has a French name, but is a perfect centerpiece to a Japanese meal. Serve with good white rice and a bowl of miso soup for the full effect.

Preparation

Mix sauce ingredients together.
Finely slice the green onion into small rings.
Slice the salmon fillet widthwise into two pieces.

Directions

Coat salmon with salt and pepper, then flour.
Pat the fish dry with a paper towel. Salt and pepper the surface of each piece to taste, then coat with flour. Only a thin coat of flour is necessary; dust off any excess.
Fry salmon.
Heat a frying pan to medium, then melt the butter in it. Fry the fish, skin side up, over medium heat until lightly browned. Turn over and continue frying until bottom is browned. Reduce heat to medium-low and cover until cooked through.
Serve.
Place each piece of salmon on a plate, sprinkle with the green onion, and pour sauce to taste over top.

Notes

It’s easy to burn butter, so you can substitute 1 Tbsp. each of butter and olive oil to grease the pan.
The fully Japanese-style way to serve this dish would be with a bowl of steamed white rice, chopsticks, miso soup, and one or more sides such as the cooked hijiki shown in the photo. The meal would be eaten with chopsticks in one hand and a small bowl of rice in the other, using the rice to catch any drips from each bite of food being eaten. Also note that, if you are going to go Japanese style, it’s worth finding high-quality short-grain white rice (sushi rice is a safe choice) and cooking it so it is sufficiently sticky to eat with chopsticks.
Alternately, for a more western-style experience, you can serve this with tartar sauce or your favorite fish accompaniment.