A crisp and crunchy bread-less “breaded” Pan-fried Sole Fillet. Dried onion, Parmesan and spices are all you need for a delicious golden crust. A super versatile quick and easy recipe that can put dinner on the table in no time!
Forget store-bought panko bread crumbs, they often contain a lot of processed ingredients. In an effort to make this fish dish super flavorful but still clean, I came up with this delicious alternative “breading”.
Also, fish is an excellent protein to include in your diet. It is full of omega-3 fatty acids, which are healthy fats. You can check out my fish and seafood recipes for more delicious and healthy meal ideas.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Sole Fillet – any fish fillet works here but sole fish is awesome because it’s so thin and needs only 1 minute per side to cook. The best alternative in my opinion is haddock fillet.
- Dried Onion – they are suuuuper flavorful and “just onions”. Perfectly clean and healthy.
- Parmesan – other hard cheese can work but is higher in fat and will melt. Parmesan is great because it can withstand a lot of heat and doesn’t easily burn.
- Spices – paprika, oregano, sea salt, and pepper are super flavorful and work wonderfully for fish but the sky is the limit. Add any spices you love to your onion parmesan mix.
- Eggs – eggs are necessary to serve as “glue” for the crust. I do not recommend replacing or omitting the eggs.
How to Cook Pan-Fried Sole Fillet
- Take the sole fillets out of the fridge and pat them dry with a paper towel.
- Preheat a large pan over medium heat.
- Get two large flat bowls big enough to fit a fillet into it. Add 2 eggs to the first bowl and whisk until completely liquid and not snotty anymore.
- Add 1/2 cup dried onion, 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, 1 tsp sweet paprika, 1 tsp dried oregano, 1/2 tsp sea salt and 1/2 tsp pepper to the second bowl and mix until well combined.
- Submerge the entire sole fillet in the whisked eggs. Then transfer to the bowl with the crust ingredients and press lightly to ensure it is completely covered.
- Add 1 tsp butter to the hot pan and place 2-3 sole fillets at a time, make sure to not overcrowd them. Pan-fry for only 1 minute on one side, then flip and fry for another minute on the other side.
- Serve immediately and drizzle fresh lemon juice all over.
Choose a carb and a vegetable as side dish. My favorite side dishes for any type of fish are sweet potatoes and green beans. You can also serve it with a delicious salad.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Does Sole Fish Taste Like?
Fresh Sole fish fillet is practically tasteless. It acquires whatever flavors you put on it. It’s the perfect fish to get creative with spices and crusts because in and of itself it doesn’t have a strong flavor.
Does Sole Smell Fishy?
As always, fish has to be very fresh to not smell and taste “fishy”. The older the fish (any fish), the fishier the smell and taste. Go to a fishmonger to get fresh or buy it frozen and defrost overnight in the refrigerator, then once defrosted pat dry with a kitchen towel and immediately cook. Do not let sit in its defrosted juices for hours on end.
What’s The Best Way To Cook Sole Fish Fillet?
Hands down pan frying! This fish fillet is cut so thinly because the whole fish is flat, that baking it dries it out. The best way to keep it moist is to pan fry for only 1 minute per side and serve immediately.
This recipe is inspired by Garden in the Kitchen’s Onion Parmesan Crusted Salmon.
Pan-Fried Sole Fillet
Ingredients
- 1 lbs sole fish fillets
- 1/2 cup dried onion
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp sweet paprika
- 2 eggs
- 1 Tbsp butter
Instructions
- Start the cooking process by cooking your side dishes. The sole fillets will be all cooked within 10 minutes so your side dishes should be almost done before you start adding the fillets to the pan.
- Take the sole fillets out of the fridge, pat them dry with a paper towel, and set aside on the kitchen counter.
- Get two large flat bowls that fit a fillet into it nicely, and add 2 eggs to one and whisk until completely liquid and not snotty anymore.
- Add the dried onion, Parmesan, and spices to the other and whisk until well combined.
- Preheat a large pan over medium heat and once hot, add a teaspoon of butter.
- Submerge a sole fillet in the whisked eggs and then transfer to the other bowl and cover well with the crust ingredients.
- Place 2-3 sole fish fillets at a time in the pan, not overcrowding it, and pan-fry for only 1 minute on one side, flip, and pan-fry another minute on the other side, then immediately serve with your side dishes.
- Drizzle fresh lemon juice over the fillet.
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Lauren says
Disappointing. All the onion pieces burned in under a minute
Lorena Grater says
If your dried onion burned in under one minute your pan was too hot. You have to preheat over “medium” heat (as specified in the recipe). Over medium heat on an electric burner it takes at least 5-8 minutes before the pan is hot but not scorching hot. I’ve observed a lot of people in the kitchen and the biggest mistake I see is that they preheat a pan over high heat to accelerate the heating process, then turn down to medium but that makes the pan too hot. Take the time to preheat over medium, or better yet over medium-low. It takes longer but gives better results.
Judi says
Thank you! The sole was wonderful. I have a photo but was unable to upload it here. The simplicity of prep was great too!
Islay Lamb says
Hmmm…. snotty eggs. I’m done.
Melanie Cantin says
Looks delicious!
I don’t have parmesan, can i use a strong cheddar cheese instead?
Lorena Grater says
Always worth a try. I have never tested it so I don’t know if it will work.
Lisa E says
Very flavorful alternative to the sole meuniere that everyone makes. I left out the butter altogether and it was excellent. The coating did not stick to the fish as well as I had hoped but it didn’t matter. I just put the cooked coating on top of the fish and no one cared. I served this with lemon garlic Moroccan couscous and green beans almondine with shallots and white wine. Absolutely delicious!
Nancy says
This sounds good. Did you use minced onion or French’s Fried Onions?
Denise says
Would it work to use chicken instead of fish? I was thinking to probably slice the breast thinly as you do in your ’10 minute baked chicken recipe’ and follow the recipe otherwise. Cheaper than fish for a family dinner. Love your recipes Lorena ❤
Lorena Grater says
Yes! Absolutely. If you cut it super thin it’ll work perfectly.
Rhonda Neuendorf says
Could you cook this in the air fryer and if so what temp and how long?
Lorena Grater says
I’m sure an air-fryer will work. Unfortunately, I cannot give instructions on how to. I don’t have an air-fryer.
James Dias says
I don’t think I will make sole any other way but this here! Thank you for sharing this super easy and delicious recipe., it has become an instant classic with our kids and always a bonus when they ask for it specifically ❤️
Rachel says
Nice flavor, and love the fact that no bread crumb is needed. One side of my first two pieces almost burn before the one minute is up. I had the heat at medium high. Not sure why that happened? Maybe because my fish is cold from the fridge?? I adjusted to low but each side took longer than one minute to cook through. We did serve with lemon wedges and enjoyed the flavor! Thank you!!
Melissa says
Sounds great and was looking forward to trying it… but not sure I can, as I can’t get past the fact that your recipe instructions use the word “snotty”. Maybe try to avoid that word in future when hoping to entice people to try your recipes? Gross.
Pam says
Oh please, go sit down somewhere with that nonsense!
Jami Butler says
I got a kick out of the word, snotty eggs I also agree I would’ve use the same exact word people should not get so offensive
Kinga says
We love your recipes !!!
Great way to cook…& explore…
…keep my family happy and healthy!
I fallow this idea:
…”delicious healthy recipes made with clean ingredients….”
Steph says
This recipe is so salty to me. Must be the cheese. The fish was just ok. It never crisped up for me.
Lorena Grater says
Did you preheat the pan properly? Was it really really hot? And was the fish completely defrosted (if it was frozen before)? If cold fish hits a cold pan it won’t get crispy and cook nicely. Did you salt the fish? Do you usually find Parmesan too salty?
Rosanna Mieles says
Where do you get dried onion?
Lorena Grater says
At Costco.
nicole says
how did you prepare the sweet potatoes pictured in the photo with the pan-fried-sole fillet?
Lorena Grater says
I show it in the video :) Peel, cut into rounds, oil each piece with two drops of avocado oil using your hands to cover it all, season with sea salt, then place 25 mins in 400F oven, flip, then roast another 15 mins.
FN says
This looks like just what I was looking for! But what do you mean by “dried onion”? Where can I find it in the store? Is it onion granules? Is it in the spice section? Many thanks! Can’t wait to try this!
Lorena Grater says
Yes, you find it in the spice section and it’s simply pieces of dried onion.
Marcy youker says
love, love it, so tender and tasty, like the idea of been healthy, thank you for sharing