Rush-Hour Gourmet

Mild, firm-fleshed fish fillets are great if you know how to cook them. They're a disaster if you don't.

Shaking thin fillets with a boxed coating and baking them can leave them dry. Frying yields unsatisfactory results, too. Fillets poached in a tomato-wine sauce are good but their texture is lacking, maybe from the acid in the tomatoes. A cream sauce is a no-no if you're watching calories.

What does work well are fillets poached in a wine sauce. The fillets cook in minutes. They're full of flavor, and the poaching produces a texture that's perfect.

Garlic and freshly ground black pepper gave this dish just the right kick. Start to finish, dinner was on the table in less than a half hour.

Wine-Poached Sole

1 pound sole fillets (or

substitute cod, pollock, orange roughy or flounder

For the sauce:

1 tablespoon olive oil

3 shallots, minced

1 clove garlic, minced

1 cup white wine

1/4 teaspoon dried dill

1/8 teaspoon each black pepper and salt

2 tablespoons parsley, chopped

1. Heat oil in saute pan. Add shallots and garlic. Saute for one minute. Add wine, dill and salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer.

2. Add sole. Baste sole with liquid. Poach two to three minutes or until fish flakes when tested with a fork. It is not necessary to turn the fish.

3. Remove fish to serving plate. Turn heat to high. Reduce liquid by half. Spoon liquid over fillets.

- Seafood Twice a Week

(National Seafood Educators, 1995)

Per serving: 179 calories; 21 grams protein; 3 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram sugar; 3 grams fat; 36 milligrams cholesterol; 109 milligrams sodium; trace dietary fiber.