The daughter of a chef at a fine-dining restaurant, Léa Cantalloube became passionate about cooking in her childhood. From 2014 to 2017, she worked at Le Cinq, the three-Michelin-starred restaurant at the Four Seasons Hotel Georges V in Paris. She then relocated to Hong Kong and became a pastry chef at VEA. The 26-year-old chef has recently been appointed as the head of the kitchen at the trendy Le Bistro Winebeast in Wan Chai. Here, she shares the secrets of her signature dish. 

Where did you get the inspiration for this recipe?

I had several sources of inspiration. First, the idea to roll the sole fillets came from my dad. In his restaurant, he cooked the sole fillets in herb butter and served them rolled. Sole is a fish that I particularly like. I'm also particularly fond of autumn, because it's mushroom season in France and I use mushrooms in most of my recipes during that time. I was also inspired by traditional recipes from French gastronomy: sole meunière, of course, as well as poularde with yellow wine and morels, a recipe from Jura, the region where yellow wine is produced.

How long did it take to create it?

There have been several variations, because it evolves and follows the seasons. The real signature is the rolling technique – it gives more volume to the sole fillet, and the butter melts and sprinkles the flesh of the fish. Last summer, when I began creating the recipe, I cooked the sole with seaweed butter and spinach to offer a dish full of freshness, adapted to the season with a reference to Brittany thanks to the seaweed butter. It took me three weeks to transition with the seasons, create this autumn recipe, and find the garnish I liked.

Can the sole be replaced with any other flatfish?

No – this recipe can only be done with sole, because it's the only flatfish that has very fine fillets. If you take another flatfish like plaice, dab or turbot, the fillets will be very difficult to roll. You really need sole, and for a generous portion and elegant aspect on the plate, each one should be at least 600 to 800 grams. I use sole from Brittany, because the seawater there is colder than here. I tried to use sole I bought in local Hong Kong markets, but the flesh is less firm due to the warmer seawater. I prefer the texture of French sole. For this recipe, the quality of the butter is also very important; I use a French semi-salted butter by Bordier.

What's the best compliment you've received about this dish?

Customers are unanimous in saying that it's a gourmet dish; they obviously would like to have a little more! They also say they feel I put all my heart into my cooking and that I'm cooking with love – and that's the greatest compliment to me.

Dover sole with yellow wine sauce and morels (serves 4)

For the fish

2 Dover sole (600-800g each)

100g Bordier semi-salted butter (or any high-quality butter)

Fillet the fish, then spread the butter on the fillet and roll it. Hold the shape with a skewer. Then, roast the fish in the butter until it gets a nice colouration. Finish in the oven (1 to 2 minutes at 200 degrees Celsius) and give it some time to cool down before plating.

For the yellow wine sauce

250g yellow wine

250g liquid cream

100g Bordier semi-salted butter

2 eggs

Salt and pepper (to taste)

Pour the yellow wine and the liquid cream in a pot, then reduce the quantity by half (250g). Put the hot liquid in a blender and add the room-temperature butter. Mix until smooth. When the mixture is still warm, add the eggs and mix well again. (The temperature is important, as it's helping to cook the eggs within the mixture and will give it a smoother texture.) Add salt and pepper to taste. Put the mixture into the cooking siphon gun, then add three gas capsules.

For the morels

50g dry morels

250g liquid cream

2 shallots

25g butter

400g seasonal mushrooms (I like to use French girolle mushrooms or shiitake)

Use dry morels, as they're easier to procure. Soak them in water until softened. Then, in a pan, add the butter, chopped shallots and morels. Sear them, then deglaze with the yellow wine and add in the cream. Let it gently cook for a while (around 30 minutes). À la minute, sauté the seasonal mushrooms in the butter in a pan.

For the candied lemons

5 lemons (for zest)

200g lemon juice (from the lemons)

80g sugar

Take the zest of 5 lemons and julienne them, then blanch them twice. Take the juice from the lemons and combine with the sugar to make a syrup.

Plating

Use a plate with a little depth for the sauce. Start by pouring the sauce. Add 2 tablespoons of morels in the middle of the plate; this will be the base for the fish. Put the fish on top of it. Place some sautéed mushrooms around the dish. Decorate with candied lemon and any nice leafy greens (such as spinach).