Rødspætte med Kartofler
A whole pan-fried plaice served with boiled potatoes, browned butter and lemon - the simplest Danish way to cook the North Sea's flattest fish.
- prep
- 15 min
- cook
- 15 min
- total
- 30 min
- serves
- 4
- level
- medium
Rødspætte, plaice, is the everyday flatfish of the Danish coast, and the classic way to cook it needs almost nothing beyond flour, butter and a squeeze of lemon.
The only technique that matters is browning the butter properly at the end - taken just past foaming to a nutty brown - and adding the lemon juice at exactly that point to stop it before it burns.
Part of our 20 best Danish recipes list.
method
Pat the plaice completely dry and dredge both sides lightly in the seasoned flour, shaking off the excess.
Heat half the butter in a large pan over medium-high heat until foaming.
Fry the plaice 3-4 minutes per side, until the flesh is opaque through to the bone and the skin is golden; work in batches if needed.
Transfer to warm plates and wipe out the pan.
Melt the remaining butter over medium heat until it turns a nutty brown and smells toasted, then immediately stir in the lemon juice to stop it cooking further.
Pour the browned butter over the fish, scatter with parsley, and serve with boiled potatoes and lemon wedges.
chef's tips
- Dry the fish thoroughly before flouring - any surface moisture steams the coating instead of letting it crisp.
- Watch the butter closely once it starts to foam; it goes from browned to burnt in under a minute, and the lemon juice needs to go in right at the nutty-brown stage.