This Lemon Butter Sauce for fish is outrageous – 3 minutes, 2 ingredients, totally restaurant worthy.
The secret is browned butter – called Beurre noisette in French. Learn how to pronounce it so you can loftily tell your family and friends “we’re having French tonight!” (But don’t tell them how simple it is?)
Restaurant-style Lemon Butter Sauce for Fish!
Great quality fish is not cheap. But worthy of investment because:
it’s good for you;
a beautiful piece of fish requires very little done to it to make a meal that you’d pay serious $ for at a fancy seafood restaurant; and
they’re quick to cook.
And so I present to you, your new favourite posh-yet-easy-and-super-quick way with fish: Pan fried until golden then drizzled with a 3 minute Lemon Butter Sauce that you’re going to go nuts over.
The Lemon Butter Sauce
The Lemon Butter Sauce is just made with butter and lemon. But it’s not “just” butter and lemon.
It’s brown butter and lemon.
If you’re new to brown butter, this is going to change your world – it’s addictive. Brown butter is everything you love about melted butter, boosted with an incredible nutty, toasty aroma.
The French call it Beurre noisette. The literal translation is “hazelnut butter”, and even though hazelnuts don’t come into the equation at all, we get it. 🙂
How to make Lemon Butter Sauce
3 minutes, 3 steps, 2 ingredients:
Melt butter;
Leave until the butter turns brown and the smell suddenly changes and becomes nutty – about 3 minutes;
Stir through lemon juice.
The recipe video is helpful if you’re a first timer to browned butter – especially the pre and post comparison.
Quick Tips
While brown butter is simple to make, if it’s on too high a heat, it can go from nutty perfection to burnt in seconds. So here are a few quick tips:
Use a silver based small skillet or pot so you can see when the butter changes colour;
Make the Lemon Butter Sauce before the fish so you can concentrate on getting it right. It stays warm for up to 30 minutes – but if you are delayed and it solidifies, it only takes 10 seconds in the microwave to melt it back to its original state; and
Don’t try to make the Lemon Butter Sauce in the same skillet as the fish – the pan will be too large.
Use sparingly – it’s rich!
And you don’t need much – this stuff is rich! The recipe makes slightly more than you need because running out of sauce in the middle of dinner is dismal, but in all honesty, my standard serving is 1 tablespoon of Sauce per fillet of fish.
It looks a lot browner in the bowl than it does when you drizzle it over the fish. Which is actually perfect – it’s a bright yellow Lemon colour once drizzled. 🙂 If it was just plain melted butter, you wouldn’t have that same intense deep yellow colour that you see on the plate – nor would it pool on the plate like in the photo below.
The fish fillet is pictured in this post with the Kale and Quinoa Salad I published on Monday. 🙂 Keeps for days in the fridge, my friends! Don’t think of it as a trendy “health food” salad. It’s just a darn tasty filling salad that just happens to star 2 superfoods. Tested and proven!
Here are a few more ideas for things to serve this fish with:
Mashed potato or mashed cauliflower (for a low carb option)
For a true indulgent restaurant experience, try Paris Mash – the richest, creamiest mashed potato in the world
Curried Basmati Rice – this aromatic pilaf would be terrific paired with the fresh fish flavour
A garden salad or leafy greens with French Vinaigrette or Italian Dressing
Broccoli Salad or Magic Broccoli (the best roasted broccoli ever!)
And more fish recipes!
Honey Garlic Salmon and Lemon Honey Glazed Salmon – super quick!
See all Fish recipes
Hope you enjoy! – Nagi x
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
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Lemon Butter Sauce for Fish
Ingredients
Lemon Butter Sauce:
- 60 g / 4 tbsp unsalted butter , cut into pieces
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- Salt and finely ground pepper
Crispy Pan Fried Fish:
- 2 x thin white fish fillets (120-150g / 4-5oz each), skinless boneless (I used Bream, Note 1)
- Salt and pepper
- 2 tbsp white flour
- 2 tbsp oil (I use canola)
Serving:
- Lemon wedges
- Finely chopped parsley, optional
Instructions
Lemon Butter Sauce (see video):
- Place the butter in a light coloured saucepan or small skillet over medium heat.
- Melt butter then leave on the stove, whisking / stirring very now and then. When the butter turns golden brown and it smells nutty – about 3 minutes, remove from stove immediately and pour into small bowl. (Note 2)
- Add lemon juice and a pinch of salt and pepper. Stir then taste when it has cooled slightly. Adjust lemon/salt to taste.
- Set aside – it will stay pourable for 20 – 30 minutes. See Note 3 for storing.
Crispy Pan Fried Fish:
- Pat fish dry using paper towels. Sprinkle with salt & pepper, then flour. Use fingers to spread flour. Turn and repeat. Shake excess flour off well, slapping between hands if necessary.
- Heat oil in a non stick skillet over high heat. When the oil is shimmering and there are faint wisps of smoke, add fish. Cook for 1 1/2 minutes until golden and crispy on the edges, then turn and cook the other side for 1 1/2 minutes (cook longer if you have thicker fillets).
- Remove immediately onto serving plates. Drizzle each with about 1 tbsp of Sauce (avoid dark specks settled at the bottom of the bowl), garnish with parsley and serve with lemon on the side. Pictured in post with Kale and Quinoa Salad.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
LIFE OF DOZER
3 hours ago: as usual, refusing to get out of the car knowing what lies ahead – a hose down.
Made this tonight OMG!! it was sooo good.. Thanks Nagi. this will be a firm favourite in our house 🙂
Fantastic to hear Kim! Thanks for letting me know! N x ❤️
Dozer is wet and serious, is he tired? Yes, yes , I’ve sent him with Easter cake to Germany….. Mira loved it, we were laughing. Thank you. Good and sooo easy sauce, Yu I. You are not wrong the price of fish is I enought to give headache to Families. Hope you have good W/end, from tomorrow we are back to warm weather each day more and more for 05-06 days. Nagi we have draught, 02 weeks ago fires are still burning under ground about 07 M bellow and its wide about 05.5 Km. They had to move out nursing home and other people and this could go for weeks if NO RAIN. Ok, be good, Regards to your both.
It’s the endless summer Vera!!!! LOVE IT! (Though I know it’s kinda bad…. reflection on changing environment…)
I just love your blog, Nagi! I’ve made your Pulled Pork Enchiladas and Parmesan Crusted Chicken. Will try this fish w/browned butter SOON! I also love your IG account and your general happy outlook on life. And of course, DOZER! XO’s Shelly
Awww thanks for your great message Shelly! So glad you’re enjoying my IG feed too! N xx
I like your web u are so real u are great! I wonder if I can use bottled Lemmon juice in the butter sauce? I don’t always have lemons . Thankyou
That will be fine Madeline! You might need an extra squirt or so to get the right lemon flavour to your taste 🙂 N xx
I love to cook fresh cod this way. But I’m sure it’s good with most white fish. Plate of your fish, a fresh baguette for dipping and a glass of white sounds perfect to me.
Loved your before and after butter browning scene in the video.
Bread for mopping up the sauce…. HOW HAVE I NEVER THOUGHT OF THAT??!! 😳
Hi Nagi,
Thanks for this quick easy recipe. Please can you tell me why you use unsalted butter and then add salt? Does it make a difference to the cooking or flavour if I use salted butter?
Hi Michelle! I use unsalted because I like to control the amount of salt I add to my food. 🙂 As a rule, I keep blocks of unsalted butter to use in cooking and salted butter for toast etc. It is totally fine to use salted butter! N xx
Thanks. Unsalted butter is much more expensive in South Africa. Love your food!
So simple, but looks so yummy! Need to make this soon
Hope you do! It’s SO GOOD!! N xx
Hi Nagi,
Thanks for this great receipe! Can’t wait to make this fish dish with the amazing sauce! It looks so delicious!
We love the great photo of your precious boy, Dozer. He is just so cute!!! We are total dog lovers, and have fallen in love with him. So, keep his photos coming, please! By the way, how old is he? We assume that he is a Golden Retriever. Is that true?
Thanks again for having such a wonderful blog, which we have become addicted to!
Hi Barbara! I’m so glad you’re enjoying my blog, thank you for the compliment! Yep, Dozer is a golden retriever and he’s almost 6 years old (thanks for the reminder that his birthday is soon!!!). He is a cheeky bugger. N xx
I love nutty Brown butter and also add capers to the fish
Oooh yes! It’s like piccata – on steroids! 🙂 N x
OH YES!!!! I love brown butter on fish, chicken and steaks……takes it to another whole level!!! We eat a lot of chicken and steak….I eat a lot of fish!!!! So simple to make too…thanks for all your great recipes…..so much appreciate you….much love to Dozier!!!!
I know!!! It’s like a magic secret ingredient!!! 🙂 N xx
LOVE LOVE LOVE Brown Butter-it is amazing on steaks too! I have made variations of this, it is great on chicken but I used lime for that one. I can’t wait to try it with lemon and on some yummy fish!
Thanks Nagi!
Poor Dozer, I hate the hose too 🙂
YES to that!!! I was actually tossing up whether to do a steak of fish! 🙂 N xx PS Dozer thanks you for your understanding 😂
Once again, you remind me of something I really like but, have gotten away from doing..
Browned butter (with lemon) will be made and used soonest.. :O)
Ross
😇 N xx
You give the best idea’s many hugs to from Canada😉
Thanks Kelly!!! I find the same with the recipe sites I subscribe too – sometimes you just need a prompt for the simplest of things! N xx
This looks delish! I would have never thought of browning the butter for fish! It sounds wonderful! Thanks for the recipe, Nagi!
It’s so good Deb! Makes all the difference 🙂 Very cheffy!
yes! Yes! YES!!!! Brown butter is magical. It makes everything taste better. And I’m lucky I’ve got a Honey who loves to fish. Although his fishing hasn’t been up to par. Our weather here has been craaaaaazy. We’ll be giving it another go in May. Another little addition — smoked paprika or chipotle. OMG!!! Out of this world delicious. And let’s make ourselves a promise — we will brown butter for future use. Seriously, it freezes beautifully. OMG!! I should tell my readers that. I love that nutty smell and taste, don’t you?? Well, duh!! Of course you do or you wouldn’t have written about it. Poor Dozer, he looks like you’re going to scold and punish him. Sending hugs for both you and Dozer.
I’m sooooo jealous that you have an abundant supply of fresh fish!
I can’t stop drooling over this butter sauce. Brown butter is seriously the BEST and I’m wondering why I don’t cook with it more often. Note to self – “make brown butter.” And only 3 minutes, I mean, I don’t know how this could possible get any better. I can’t wait to make this sauce.
I KNOW!!! I hear you Danielle 🙂 N xx