North German Sole Fillets: Seezungenfilets Büsumer Art

Büsum is a city of about 5000 on the North Sea coast of the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. In more modern times, while standard German, Hochdeutsch, is the common language, the local language dating back to ancient times in this area is Low German.

 

Sole is a general name for certain related types of flatfish the world over, with some types especially common in the North Sea area of Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and the British Isles; and indeed, the type often caught in the shallow waters around Britain is  called "Dover sole," although Dover sole is also caught in parts of the Mediterranean and in the Bay of Biscay. The thing to remember is, all types of sole are flatfish, but not all flatfish are sole. When I was much younger, 'fillet (also 'filet') of sole' was a common dish of sole in a lemony butter and caper sauce. Fish and seafood are often pretty expensive, and such is the case with sole. If you can't find sole, you can use flounder, cod or snapper, and they are pretty good substitutes, but they ARE substitutes, not exactly like sole, although they are very similar in taste (mild), but not always in texture (sole is rather firm and flaky). In German the sole flatfish is called "Seezunge," literally "sea tongue," and yes, "See" and "Zunge" are close relatives of English "sea" and "tongue." As far as I know, North Sea brown shrimp are pretty much exclusive to Europe; at least in terms of easy availability and price. In Germany, these small brown shrimps are called "Krabben," which is the standard German word for "crabs" (singular: Krabbe), and the close relative of English "crab/crabs." You can easily substitute small cocktail shrimp (they're already shelled, cleaned and cooked; all they need is to be heated through) or you can cut medium or large shrimp into halves or thirds.  

 

Ingredients (4 servings):

 

1 1/2 pounds of sole fillets

6 tablespoons butter, divided use (more, if needed)

1/4 cup dry white wine

1/3 cup finely chopped onion (best to use white onion, but I used red, as can be seen in the photos)

1/4 cup flour

1 1/2 cups seafood stock

1/2 pound small shrimp (1 to 2 inches long, or 3 to 4 inch shrimp halved)

1/2 cup milk (I use evaporated canned milk)

1 tablespoon brandy

2 tablespoons chopped parsley

 

In a skillet, melt 3 tablespoons of butter over low heat, add the wine and finely chopped onion; cook for about 3 to 4 minutes, then add the fish fillets and cook until done (add more butter, a tablespoon at a time, if needed, and this is in addition to the amount I have in the ingredients above). Remove the fish to a plate/platter until you make the sauce (this is where the firmer texture of sole can help keep the fillets from breaking apart). Add remaining 3 tablespoons butter to the skillet (still over low heat), then add the flour and stir it into the butter, letting it cook about 90 seconds to take out the raw flour taste, but don't let it brown! Slowly add the seafood stock, stirring constantly to incorporate the flour mixture and begin to thicken the liquid. Bring to a simmer and let cook until thickened and smooth, then stir in the milk, followed by the brandy, stir well to mix it in. Add the shrimp and mix them into the sauce so that they heat up, which doesn't take long (keep the heat low or very low, do not boil!). Add the sole fillets to the sauce to reheat them. Serve the sole fillets topped with sauce and shrimp, and finished with some chopped parsley.  

 

I forgot to add the parsley to these ...

WORD HISTORY:

Sole-This is the noun, although English also has an adjective, meaning "one, single, alone," which is NOT related to the noun. The ultimate origin of "sole" is uncertain, but it is related to "soil," a word that is a merger of two different Latin words, one of which makes "soil" partially related to "sole." "Sole" goes back to the Latin noun "solum," which meant "ground, base, foundation, bottom." This gave the basis for the Latin noun "solea," meaning, "bottom of a shoe, a sandal (a flat type of footwear)," and from the sandal meaning came the meaning, "a type of flatfish." "Solea" came to be rendered as "sola," and Latin-based Old French had it as "sole," which seemingly was borrowed by English not long after the Normans arrived (as it is in late Old English), but only with the "sandal, bottom of the foot" meanings. The fish name was borrowed from French in the middle of the 1200s, and the meaning "bottom of a shoe or other footwear" began to be used in the latter part of the 1300s. English cousin, German, has "Sohle," which "seems" to have been borrowed by Old High German directly from Latin (in the 800s?). Low German has "Sahl."  

Pepper Cream Gravy: German/Austrian Pfefferrahmsauce

Besides the form "Pfefferrahmsauce," I used in the title, this gravy/sauce is also called and spelled "Pfefferrahmsoße," "Pfefferrahmsosse" in German. The "rahm" part is a word for "cream" in German, and it is a close relative of English "ream," a word with that same meaning now confined to dialect,* (not related to the word of the same spelling and used for a "paper measurement"). The gravy has some "zip" from the crushed peppercorns and the ground pepper, but the "zip" is also mellowed by the cream, and the heat is nothing like the heat in dishes which have hot chilies added. This gravy is a frequent accompaniment to steak, pork or even chicken (I replace the beef stock with chicken stock in the recipe then). 
 
Ingredients:

2 tablespoons butter
1 onion, pretty finely chopped
2 tablespoons flour 
2/3 cup beef stock
2 ounces brandy
3 tablespoons green peppercorns, crushed, but not obliterated
2 tablespoons ground black pepper
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 cup heavy cream (or canned milk), keep 4 tablespoons separate
salt (if the beef stock is salty, you can leave this out or just use a small amount)

Melt the butter in a skillet over low heat. Add the onion and saute until the onion softens a bit. Add the crushed green peppercorns,** the ground black pepper, the lemon juice, the brandy and the beef stock. Increase the temperature to medium high and let the mixture come to a simmer. Stir in the heavy cream and turn the heat to high. Let the mixture well up/bubble up, stirring "almost" constantly. Have the 4 tablespoons of heavy cream well mixed with the 2 tablespoons of flour; gradually add this to the hot liquid, stirring constantly, until the gravy thickens. Turn down the heat to low and let the gravy simmer for just a minute. Served over steak or chopped steak, along with mashed potatoes. 

* For the history of the word "ream," here is the link to the article with that word: http://pontificating-randy.blogspot.com/2016/04/schnitzel-with-creamy-mushroom-gravy.html

** I wrap the whole peppercorns in a napkin or paper towel, then I use a kitchen mallet to tap and crush them. I've also used a rolling pin to roll over the wrapped peppercorns to crush them, and I have also crushed them by using a mortar and pestle.   

Pepper Cream Gravy with chopped sirloin steak, mashed potatoes and buttered corn... 

WORD HISTORY:
Vial-The ultimate origin of this word is unknown, and the beginning has been spelled with an "f," "ph," or "v" in a number of languages, including German, a close relative of English, in which its version was initially spelled with an "f," then a "v" and then a "ph" (modern "Phiole"). It goes back to transliterated Ancient Greek "phiále," meaning, "a shallow bowl for drinking," which was borrowed by Latin as "phiala," with the same meaning, and which later altered to "phiola." This passed to Old French as "fiole," but by then with the meaning, "bottle or small flask." This was borrowed by English circa 1400, initially as "fiole," then as "viole," then as "phial," and then as "vial," although some still spell it with the "ph," which returned the spelling to the old Latin and Greek forms (seemingly the same in German, as noted above).  

Brandy Alexander, A Favorite of Mine

This cocktail is well known from a variety of sources, but the 1962 movie, "The Days of Wine and Roses," starring Jack Lemon and Lee Remick, gave it a real boost. Back in the mid 1980s, I would go to John Q's Steakhouse, near Public Square here in Cleveland, and the bartender, Jim, fixed my Brandy Alexanders with ice cream. I haven't seen him for many years, but I hope he is well.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 ounces brandy
1 1/2 ounces dark Creme de Cacao
3 ounces cream or vanilla ice cream (better)

nutmeg

If using cream, shake with ice and strain into a chilled glass, sprinkle nutmeg on top. For ice cream, blend ingredients, pour into a chilled glass and dust with nutmeg.

WORD HISTORY:
Brandy-This is a shortened form of the original "brandywine," which was borrowed from Dutch "brandewijn," literally, "burned or distilled wine,"  as it was distilled from wine into a stronger alcoholic drink (other fruit juices or grains with an alcohol content were also used). The shortened form "brandy" is from Dutch "branden," a cousin of English "burn," which goes back to Indo European "bhrenu," from the root "bhreu," which had the notion, "well up, boil up." This gave its Old Germanic offspring "brennanan," meaning "to burn," from the notion of "fire welling up." In English the "r" and vowel sounds were transposed, called,"metathesis," which also took place in other Germanic dialects and languages, including Dutch, which once had "bernen," but then went to the "r" before the vowel circa 1300 (perhaps by influence from German?).  

German has both "Branntwein" and "Weinbrand," with the latter meaning more specifically, "cognac," made from grapes, also at times spelled, "Kognac," in German, but German also borrowed the English word "Brandy," now a pretty common form. Swiss German dialect also uses, "Gebrannte Wasser," meaning "burned water," which puts it in the same category as English slang, "firewater" ( German slang also has "Feuerwasser," ="firewater")