‘Blast From the Past Recipe’

Pan Fried Plaice with Shrimp & Lemon Butter Sauce served with Samphire (Serves 4)

As it’s the season for samphire, I thought it would be a good idea to re-share this recipe – it’s one of my favourite simple fish dishes. It’s delicious with or without the samphire, but if you can get it, it will add a subtle salty flavour which complements the lemon butter sauce beautifully.

100g unsalted butter

2 lemons, juiced and zest finely grated

2 tablespoons olive oil

4 large plaice fillets, skinned

180g brown shrimps

1 tablespoon chives, chopped

1 tablespoon parsley, chopped

80g Samphire (optional)

Sea salt and black pepper

1. First prepare the sauce. Place the butter in a small saucepan over a medium heat, then cook until the butter starts to turn to a nutty brown colour. Remove from the heat and add the lemon zest and juice, then season with salt and pepper. Keep warm whilst you cook the fish.
2. Heat the oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Season the plaice fillets with salt only and add to the pan, cook for 1½-2 minutes on each side. (You will probably have to cook the fish in batches, adding a little more oil to the pan, keeping the fish warm whilst you cook the second batch).
3. Meanwhile place the samphire in a pan of boiling water and simmer for 2-3 minutes, drain and set aside.
4. At the same time add the shrimps to the lemon butter sauce and reheat gently until the sauce is boiling, boil for 1 minute, remove from the heat and add the parsley.
5. Place the plaice fillets on plates, sprinkle over the cooked samphire and spoon over the shrimp and lemon butter sauce. Serve simply with some steamed new potatoes.