Creamy Dill Gravy for Fish

Salmon, cod or smoked haddock all want something sharp and creamy, and this is it. The lemon and the capers go in while the pan still has stock in it rather than after the cream, which is the difference between a smooth sauce and a curdled one. The dill goes in last of all, off the heat, or it turns khaki and tastes of nothing.

Ingredients

Makes about 300ml, enough for four fillets

• 20g (3/4oz) butter
• 1 shallot very finely chopped
• 100ml (3 1/2fl oz) dry white wine
• 200ml (7fl oz) fish stock or the poaching liquid from the fish
• 1 tbsp small capers rinsed
• 2 tsp lemon juice plus the zest of half a lemon
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 150ml (5fl oz) double cream
• 3 tbsp chopped fresh dill chopped at the last minute
• salt and white pepper to taste

Kit

• Small saucepan
• Wooden spoon
• Zester or fine grater

Method

1. Melt the butter in the saucepan over a medium heat and cook the shallot for three or four minutes until soft and completely colourless. Any browning here shows up as brown specks in a pale sauce.

2. Pour in the white wine and boil hard until only a tablespoon or two remains, about three minutes. Fish sauces are usually sharper than meat ones and this reduction is what keeps the acidity in the pan under control.

3. Add the fish stock, the capers, the lemon juice and the mustard. Simmer for five or six minutes until reduced by roughly a third. Every acidic thing in the recipe is now in the pan before the cream, which is the whole point.

4. Taste and season with salt and white pepper. Fish stock is often quite salty and capers add more, so go carefully and remember the cream will soften it further.

5. Turn the heat down as low as it goes and pour in the double cream. Let it barely simmer for three minutes until it thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon and hold a clean line when you drag a finger through.

6. Take the pan off the heat. Chop the dill now, not earlier, and stir it in along with the lemon zest. Chopped dill loses its scent within minutes, so cutting it at the last moment makes a real difference.

7. Spoon it over the fish immediately. If it has to wait, keep the lid on and off the heat, and stir in another spoon of fresh dill just before serving.

Tips worth knowing

• Add lemon before the cream, never after. Acid dropped into a hot cream sauce curdles it in seconds, but the same lemon simmered into stock first is completely safe because the cream arrives into an already balanced pan.
• Double cream tolerates the lemon and wine in this recipe. Single cream or creme fraiche would split, so if you want a lighter sauce, use less double cream rather than a lower fat one.
• Rinse the capers under the tap. Straight from the jar they bring a lot of brine and vinegar, which makes the sauce both salty and more likely to break.
• If you poached the fish, use the poaching liquid instead of stock. It is free, it is already flavoured, and it will make the sauce taste of the fish it is going on.

Keeping and reheating

Best eaten fresh, but it keeps two days in the fridge. The dill fades, so add more when you reheat. Warm it gently and never boil. It does not freeze, as the cream separates and the herbs disappear entirely.

Questions people ask