I wish I had known earlier how easy it is to make beurre blanc. I mean, I’ve been making bearnaise and hollandaise sauce for years and that’s difficult in comparison.

To me, beurre blanc seemed like such a chef-y thing to do, I never gave it a go. Until recently. It was really easy to make and such a lovely companion with fish, potatoes and peas. And to make the dish a little extra I added some salmon roe. Despite it containing a lot of butter it actually feels really light, so don’t let that put you off.

Oven-baked cod loin , serves 2

ca 300 g cod loin

butter for frying 

salt and pepper

Melt a knob of butter in an oven-proof frying pan (no plastic) on medium heat. Cut the fish in half and pat dry with kitchen towel. Season well. Fry the fish until it’s browned a little, approx 3 minutes on each side. Place the frying pan in a 200C oven for approx 5 minutes. The fish should be slightly raw (opaque) in the middle and soft. Let it rest for a few minutes. 

Beurre blanc, serves 2

1 shallots, chopped 

100 ml white wine

100 g salted butter, cut into cubes

1/4 lemon, the juice only 

black pepper

1 bunch chives, finely chopped

To serve:

2 tbsp salmon roe

Put the onion and wine in a small saucepan. Bring to the boil and boil until the liquid has reduced to half. Remove from the heat and add the butter cubes and whisk until you have a silky sauce. Add some lemon juice and black pepper. Pour the sauce through a sieve and add the chives.

Can be made in advance (but put the chives in just before serving) and reheated before serving.

Serve with the baked cod, boiled new potatoes, cooked peas and and a heaped spoon of salmon roe.