Pan-Seared Skate Wing with Caper Butter Sauce is as easy as it is delicious, with one caveat. The skate wing must be fresh and firm. When I made this dish most recently I purchased the skate wing from the Fish Market, which is usually a reliable source for fresh seafood of all sorts. However, when I asked for skate wing, they only had two sad, little pieces left, so I settled for what they had. Big mistake. It’s fairly delicate anyway, but I had a difficult time handling it – it would just tear. And even though I gave it a good sear, there was no saving it. It was mush. Ron couldn’t even eat it.
My timing this go-around was much better. The selection of fresh skate wing at the Fish Market was ample – there was no settling! I bought two lovely pieces of skate wing, followed this recipe, and believe me – there were no left-overs. I recommend serving it with Smashed Baby Potatoes – the fish and the potatoes can share the caper butter sauce. Add a crunchy green salad and you have a simple, yet refined meal on the table in no time at all.
Pan-Seared Skate Wing with Caper Butter Sauce
Ingredients
- 1/2 red bell pepper
- 3 T capers
- 1/2 shallot
- 1/4 cup milk
- flour (for dredging)
- salt and pepper
- 3 T olive oil
- 2 boneless skate wings (your fishmonger should have already taken care of deboning)
- 3 T butter
- 1 T red wine vinegar
Instructions
- Prep the veg – Chop the red pepper into a small dice. Drain the capers. Mince the shallots.
- Dredge the skate wing – Add the milk to one dish and the flour to another. Season the flour generously with salt and pepper. Dip the fish into the milk and then lightly dredge in the flour. Shake off any excess.
- Preheat the pan and sear the skate wing – Preheat your pan to medium-high and add the oil to the hot pan. Add the skate wing to the pan and sear for 2 minutes per side or just until it releases. You want to cook the skate wing quickly – you're looking for a brown crust and for the fish to be a bit firm. Place the cooked skate wing on your serving platter or individual plates.
- Make the pan sauce – Wipe out any too-browned bits from the skillet, turn down the heat to medium, and add the butter. When the butter is melted, add the red pepper and cook until the butter just starts to turn a light brown. Add the capers and sauté for a minutes or so, then add the shallots and the vinegar. Cook for no longer than a minute more, then take the sauce off the heat and stir.
- Finish – pour the sauce over the skate wing and serve.
When I told our friend Bob about this dish (and my most recent failure), he looked puzzled. “What made you decide to cook skate wing?” I explained that when we lived in Boston our friend Lisa would order it whenever it was on the menu – I hadn’t heard of it before then, but after tasting hers, I tried it at home and my eyes were opened – so easy, yet perfect for a special occasion. Many lifetimes ago Bob used to run a restaurant and he told me that a “cheat” in the industry was to cut coins of skate wing and sub them in for scallops. So, if you like scallops and you’ve never tried skate wing, or if you’ve never made it at home – try it. You’ll like it.