Fennel Sauce
A classic British-Indian herb sauce featuring fresh fennel fronds blanched to a vibrant green and folded into a velvety butter sauce. Finished with lemon juice, this sauce is traditionally served with boiled fish, particularly mackerel or salmon.
Ingredients
- 1 large bunch Fresh fennel fronds (leaves only) (Sufficient to color the sauce green when chopped)
- 1.5 tablespoons Butter (for roux)
- 1.5 tablespoons All-purpose flour
- 1 cup Water or Fish Stock (Approximately half a pint)
- 1 tablespoon Cold Butter (to finish)
- 1 teaspoon Lemon juice
- 0.25 teaspoon Salt (Adjust to taste)
- 1 pinch White pepper
Instructions
- 1Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Prepare a bowl of ice water. Plunge the fennel fronds into the boiling water for 30 seconds to set the bright green color, then immediately transfer to the ice water to cool.
- 2Drain the fennel well and squeeze out excess moisture with a paper towel. Chop the fronds very finely until they are almost a paste.
- 3In a saucepan, melt the first measure of butter over medium heat. Stir in the flour and cook for 1-2 minutes without letting it brown (a white roux).
- 4Gradually whisk in the water (or fish stock) until smooth. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 5 minutes to thicken and cook out the raw flour taste.
- 5Remove from heat. Stir in the finely chopped fennel, salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Whisk in the final tablespoon of cold butter to give the sauce a glossy finish. Serve immediately.