Tag Archives: pompano

Pan Fried Pomfret with Meuniere Butter

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From Nola Cuisine

When we returned home from our recent trip to New Orleans I couldn’t get Galatoire’s out of my head, especially the Pompano with Crabmeat Yvonne, although the whole meal was very memorable. By the way, the Galatoire’s Cookbook is phenomenal, an absolute keeper. Their Meuniere Butter is to die for with crabmeat and especially with crabmeat and Pompano, so I decided to search for some Pompano, which I find only very rarely from one source here in Michigan. He didn’t have it but suggested that I try something similar, Pomfret.

Pomfret, or Butterfish, are in the same family as Pompano, in fact they look like a little Pompano, but you cook them whole; my fish guy suggested Pan Frying, which is what I did, topped with Galatoire’s Style Meuniere Butter (recipe below). A great guy with a great suggestion.

I also served these with Brabant Potatoes, another excellent part of our meal at Galatoire’s.

The Pomfret were super fresh and delicious, although not quite Pompano, lacking the sweetness by a bit, but very similar in flavor and texture, while in shrinky-dink size.

I cut the heads off for the sake of my wife, who like most Americans, is squeamish about making eye contact with her dinner. I personally like to be able to give my dinner a wink if it tastes good, or the unforgivable Stink Eye if I didn’t care for how it tasted, that’s just me.

Here is the recipe:

Pan Fried Pomfret with Galatoire’s Style Meuniere Butter

2 Pomfret per person, heads removed if you have squeamish guests
1 Cup All Purpose Flour
1 Tbsp Kosher Salt
1/2 tsp Cayenne
1 tsp Freshly Ground Black Pepper
Vegetable Oil for pan-frying
1 Recipe Galatoire’s Style Meuniere Butter (recipe below)
Lemon Wedges
Chopped Italian Parsley for garnish

Combine the flour, salt, cayenne, and black pepper in a bowl. Dredge the prepared Pomfret in the seasoned flour and set aside for 15-20 minutes.

In a large Cast Iron Skillet add about 1/2 an inch of oil to the pan, heat over medium flame until a sprinkle of flour flares up and starts to brown.

Add the floured Pomfret to the pan, in batches if necessary, so as to not overcrowd the pan. Pan-fry until golden brown on each side and cooked through.

Serve on a platter with lemon wedges, and top with the Meuniere Butter (recipe below), garnish with chopped Italian parsley. The flesh flakes away easily from the bones when eating, just use your fork to gently flake it away.

Galatoire’s Style Meuniere Butter Recipe

2 Sticks Unsalted Butter
1 tsp Kosher Salt (or use Salted Butter and omit the salt)
1 & 1/2 tsp Fresh Lemon Juice
1 & 1/2 tsp Red Wine Vinegar
Large Sauce Pan (make sure that your pan is large enough, as the sauce will flare up when you add the liquids to the hot butter)

In a large sauce pan melt the butter over medium heat, add the salt (if using unsalted butter). Cook the butter, stirring frequently, until the fat is a nice golden brown and the solids just start to brown. Along the way the butter will go through a lot of changes, foaming, etc. When the butter reaches the appropriate color remove from the heat, stand back and very carefully add the juice and vinegar. **WARNING** it will flare up quite violently so make sure you are using a big enough pan! Pour a genourous portion of the Meuniere Butter over the fish, be sure to give it a stir as the dark brown solids contain a lot of the flavor.

Related Posts:

Our Dinner at Galatoire’s
Redfish Courtbouillon
Fried Catfish with Hush Puppies and Creole Tartar Sauce

Be sure and check out my ever growing Index of Creole & Cajun Recipes, which links to all of the recipes featured on this site!

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Galatoire’s Restaurant

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We had a very aggressive dining schedule on our most recent trip to New Orleans last month, the finale being dinner at Galatoire’s on our last night in the city.

Galatoire’s Restaurant
209 Bourbon Street
New Orleans , LA 70130

Galtoire’s is a legendary restaurant, right on Bourbon street, surrounded by strip clubs, bars and even sharing a wall with a sex shop. It’s odd to step from the raucousness of Bourbon Street into a restaurant which has seen over 100 years of history, elegance and tradition, and still manages to be unpretentious and a hell of a lot of fun. Jean Galatoire opened the restaurants doors in 1905, and it has remained in the family ever since, they’re on their fourth generation of family ownership. In November of 2005 the family also opened Galatoire’s Bistro in Baton Rouge. Richard at Appetites gives a good comparison of the two restaurants here.

After all of my trips to New Orleans over the years, I finally made it to Galatoire’s, and it was well worth the wait.

In addition to wonderfully prepared French Creole Cuisine, the highlight of a visit to Galatoire’s will most likely be your waiter, probably one of the most knowledgeable in the city. Our waiter was Tony, an excellent waiter, friendly, jovial, and just one hell of a nice guy.

We started off with Souffle Potatoes and Shrimp Remoulade, I had a Sazerac, which Galatoire’s serves on the rocks, unless specified otherwise. Hey, when in Rome, right?

The Souffle Potatoes are a lost art, except in the old line Creole restaurants of New Orleans, those being Antoine’s, Arnaud’s, and Galatoire’s. They were easily my favorite part of the whole meal, out of sheer respect for the stalwart adherence to tradition and quality. Not to mention they are just a delicious and addicting appetizer. Little edible zeppelins as crispy as a potato chip with a perfect Bearnaise Sauce for dipping.

The Shrimp Remoulade was also fantastic, and my favorite Remoulade Sauce that I’ve had in the city thus far. In my opinion a perfect balance of flavors. (Galatoire’s Shrimp Remoulade Recipe)

Next I selected a nice French White Burgundy for the meal, and Tony brought us a staple for any great dining experience in New Orleans, a loaf of New Orleans French Bread, soft in the center with a flaky crust that keeps the busboys busy with their crumbers.

The fish selections were Pompano, Flounder, and Cobia. My wife asked if the Flounder would be good Amandine style and Tony kind of swayed and suggested it broiled with Jumbo Lump Crabmeat and Lemon. As I told my wife, trust your waiter. Listen to him. As a matter of fact, many regulars of Galatoire’s will let their waiter order for them. It basically goes like this…What would you like today? Lunch please.

I ordered Pompano with Crabmeat Yvonne and had my first taste of true Meuniere butter, Galatoire’s style, I fell in love with it and it’s now part of my repertoire. The Pompano was everything it should be, buttery flesh that melts in your mouth. The Crabmeat Yvonne topping is sauteed Mushrooms, Artichoke bottoms, Jumbo Lump Crabmeat with Meuniere butter. It is named for the Granddaughter of Jean Galatoire and daughter of Justin Galatoire. She worked in the restaurant starting as cashier in 1938. She managed from 1964 until 1997 when she retired and she was president of the business from 1984 until her death in 2000.

Our side dish was Brabant Potatoes, so named for their square shape. They were crispy and deliciously tossed in a New Orleans Bordelaise which is kind of a garlic butter.

Dessert was a creamy Creme Carmel which is a must at Galtoire’s…

…as is Cafe Brulot, flamed tableside. Brandy and Orange Liqeur are flamed in a Brulot bowl with Orange and lemon peels, cinnamon sticks, and cloves…

Tony ladles the flambe for flourish…

The flambe is extinguished with good strong Cafe Noir.

The finished product is ladled into coffee cups.

A perfect end to an extraordinary evening at Galatoire’s. Tony introduced us to one of the Galatoire family members who manages the restaurant, a delightful gentleman who thanked us for our patronage, and even took our picture in front of the restaurant.

By the way Galatoire’s also has a phenomenal Galatoire’s Cookbook that came out shortly before the storm, it’s a keeper. Great pics, recipes, and history.

Be sure and check out my ever growing Index of Creole & Cajun Recipes!

Related Recipes:

Pan Fried Pomfret with Galatoire’s Style Meuniere Butter
Sazerac Recipe
Bearnaise Sauce Recipe
New Orleans Style Bordelaise
Shrimp Remoulade Recipe
Brabant Potatoes Recipe

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