Abalone à la Meunière Over Potatoes + Albariño

Last week I purchased some extra abalone when I picked up my CSF (community-supported fishery) share. And though I tried to come up with a new way to preparing the abalone, my boys clambored for "the good way" of cooking it. I did switch it up by putting it on top of some roasted potatoes akin to a fish'n'chips kinda thing. But, really, why fix what's not broken, right? They like their abalone meunière-style, so that's what I made.

Meunière is French for "miller's wife" and refers to both a method of preparation and a sauce; it's primarily used for fish. To cook something à la meunière means to cook it by first dredging it in flour. Before I get to my recipe, I want to share the wine with which I paired the dinner.

¡Salud!

Friends from Spain gave me this bottle of Albariño when I had asked about the varietal. Albariño is a native Spanish grape grown mainly in Rías Baixas. As it's a region renowned for oysters, mussels, clams, and other ocean delicacies, I thought it would pair nicely with the abalone. It did!

Abalone à la Meunière Over Potatoes

Ingredients serves 4

Abalone

• 6 to 8 small abalone (Ours were vacuum-packed, pre-shucked and pre-tenderized. Thank you, Real Good Fish!)
• 1 C flour
• 1 egg beaten
• 6 T butter
• splash of olive oil
• organic lemon, sliced for serving

Potatoes

• 3 C baby potatoes, washed, dried, and cut into bite-sized pieces
• olive oil
• freshly ground salt
• freshly ground pepper

Procedure

Potatoes

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Place bite-sized pieces of potato in a large mixing bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and toss to coat. Turn the potatoes onto a parchment-lined piece of paper. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for 40 minutes. The potatoes will be browned and crisped on the outside, soft on the inside. While the potatoes roast, cook the abalone.

Abalone
Place the flour and beaten egg in bowls. Coat each abalone in flour, shaking off excess. Dip in egg. Dredge in more flour.

Melt butter in a splash of olive oil in a large, flat-bottom pan over medium-high heat. When the butter begins to foam, place the abalone in the pan. After 2 minutes, turn the abalone and cook for another 2 minutes. Remove from heat.

To Serve
Place 3/4 C potatoes on an individual serving plate or place all of them on a platter. Arrange abalone on top of the potatoes and alternate with slices of lemon. Serve immediately.