Whole Pan-Fried Flounder
The most delicious — and reasonably light — dinner for the whole family! Whole pan-fried flounder comes out incredibly juicy and appetizing! Since this fish has so few bones, you can serve it to kids without worry. It needs just a handful of ingredients and works for a lean-day table.
Cooking method
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Step 1:
How do you pan-fry a whole flounder? Gather all your ingredients. If your fish is frozen, take it out of the freezer and let it thaw completely at room temperature. I used fresh fish, so the cooking time doesn't include thawing. To thaw it faster, submerge the flounder in cool water and leave it until thawed.
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Step 2:
How do you clean flounder for frying? Gut the flounder and remove the gills. You can cut off the head and fins if you like — I didn't, and fried the fish as is. Rinse the flounder under cold running water and pat it thoroughly dry with paper towels. We'll be marinating the fish, so the excess moisture needs to go.
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Step 3:
Make shallow slashes on both sides of the fish. Rub the flounder with a little salt, sprinkle on a mix of ground peppers, and add any favorite seasonings. I used dried herbes de Provence — rosemary, thyme, basil, marjoram, parsley, and oregano — all of which pair beautifully with sea fish. Squeeze lemon juice over the top.
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Step 4:
Flip the fish over and do the same on the other side. Let it sit like this for 15 to 20 minutes — plenty of time for the delicate flesh to take on the marinade.
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Step 5:
Pour vegetable oil into a heavy-bottomed skillet (you can use less than the recipe calls for). Heat it up and add the flounder, dark side down first. Set the heat to medium and leave the fish for 10 to 12 minutes, watching that nothing burns.
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Step 6:
Now use a spatula to flip the flounder over and cook it about the same amount of time (around 10 minutes). Note that the frying time depends on the power and type of your stove and on the quality and thickness of your pan.
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Step 7:
Squeeze more lemon juice over the finished fish and add pepper if you like. You can serve the flounder whole with fresh vegetables or lettuce leaves.
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Step 8:
For easier serving, divide the finished fish into portions and serve it before it cools!
- Flounder is a large fish, so if you're frying it whole, use a big skillet, at least 11 inches (28 cm) across. The fish didn't fit in my pan, so I trimmed off the tails. There's a second way to fry it whole, too: after marinating, dredge the flounder in flour before frying. I prefer fried fish without the flour, so that's usually how I make it. It's a wonderful, delicious fish — definitely give it a try! Enjoy!
- If you use a ready-made spice blend, be sure to read the label. These blends often already contain salt, so keep that in mind or you risk over-salting the dish.
- Since everyone's tolerance for salty, sweet, bitter, spicy, sour, and pungent flavors is different, always add spices and seasonings to your own taste. If you're using a seasoning for the first time, keep in mind that some are especially easy to overdo — chili pepper, for one.
- Use an oil with a high smoke point for frying. Any oil is only good up to a certain temperature — its smoke point — beyond which it starts to burn and forms harmful compounds. Unrefined oils, with rare exceptions, have a low smoke point; they're full of unfiltered particles that scorch quickly. Refined oils stand up to heat better and have a higher smoke point. If you're cooking in the oven, in a skillet, or on the grill, use an oil with a high smoke point. The most common ones are refined sunflower, olive, and grapeseed oils.
- Here's an easy way to tell whether the oil is hot enough: dip a wooden spatula into it. If bubbles gather around it, you're ready to start frying.
Caloric content of the products possible in the composition of the dish
- Lemon - 16 kcal/100g
- Lemon zest - 47 kcal/100g
- Hot smoked flounder - 192 kcal/100g
- Boiled flounder - 103 kcal/100g
- Fresh flounder - 83 kcal/100g
- Ground black pepper - 255 kcal/100g
- Vegetable oil - 873 kcal/100g
- Salt - 0 kcal/100g
- Spices dry - 240 kcal/100g
- Ground red pepper - 318 kcal/100g
