Lemon butter sauce takes only 15 minutes to make that has restaurant quality flavors. This rich, deliciously lemony, buttery sauce is perfect with pan fried fish, scallops, lobster, shrimp, veggies, chicken and even stir with pasta.
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Ingredients you’ll need:
Here’s what you’ll need-
For lemon butter sauce:
- 6 tablespoon butter
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice, freshly squeezed
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper, fine ground
- 1 tablespoon hot water
For pan fried fish:
- White fish fillet
- 3 tablespoon flour
- 2 teaspoon paprika
- Salt and pepper to taste
The key to rich buttery sauce is brown butter. Butter and lemon are best together. But to make it incredible brown butter is what you need! Brown butter adds nutty toasty complex flavor to the sauce.
Entire butter is not turned to brown butter. In this recipe, small portion of butter is turned to brown butter, and the rest is stirred with lemon juice. By doing this you get slightly creamy sauce without adding any diary or cream into it.
Always use fresh squeezed lemon juice. Bottle juice might be tempting and easy to use, but don’t! Freshly squeezed lemon juice adds the crispy zing flavor to the sauce.
Use fine ground pepper (or white ground pepper) in lemon butter sauce recipe.
Additional ingredients & substitutions
To keep it pure and simple fresh lemon juice and butter is all you need. The resulting lemon butter sauce is rich with toasty flavors that can be used on any dish to elevate it’s flavors.
If you like you can elevate the flavors of this sauce by adding additional ingredients like:
- Garlic – fresh minced garlic sauted in butter or garlic powder can be used.
- Capers – to make exclusive lemon butter sauce for fish a few capers chopped and added to sauce adds wonderful flavors.
- Dill – fresh dill adds amazing flavors to the sauce.
- White wine – adds luxury restaurant quality flavors to the sauce.
- Cream – to make creamy lemon butter sauce, cream is whisked with the sauce. This creamy sauce can be used on any dish like pan fried chicken.
How to make lemon butter sauce?
It’s easy to make this lemon butter sauce at home which has restaurant quality flavors. When paired with pan fried fish, you have a luxury meal. Insanely delicious!
Cook fish or other seafood on which you want to use the sauce first.
- Use white fish fillet, season with salt pepper and paprika on both sides. Rub the spice mix to coat evenly.
- Coat fish in plain flour on both sides, shake off excess flour.
- Heat vegetable oil or canola oil in a pan. Fry fish in pan for 2 to 3 minutes on each side.
- Remove fish on to a plate and leave aside until use.
Use silver based sauce pan or skillet while browning butter. Light based pan really helps you tell when butter turns brown and it’s ready.
- Take 2 tablespoon of butter and add it to silver based skillet pan. Place it on medium-low heat. Do not increase heat. It’s crucial to heat butter in medium-low heat. Butter needs all your attention.
- Keep swirling the butter every now and then. Butter will first foam up and form bubbles (the water content in butter) and then slowly begin to change color.
- When it turns golden brown, you should be able to smell nutty flavor.
- Remove pan immediately from heat as butter will go from golden brown to burnt in few seconds! Do not burn butter.
- Pour brown butter into a small bowl and leave aside.
- Clean the skillet with kitchen towel.
- Add freshly squeezed lemon juice, salt and fine ground pepper. Whisk and cook on low flame until lemon juice is reduced to half.
- Remove skillet from heat, whisk in 2 tablespoon of butter until fully melted.
- Place the skillet back on low heat and whisk remaining butter little at a time. Don’t rush the process by increasing heat. If heat is too high, the sauce will separate! Low heat is crucial to get smooth sauce.
- Once all butter in added to the sauce, remove the skillet off stove.
- Stir in prepared brown butter. Whisk until combined.
- Viola slightly creamy, nutty, lemony, buttery sauce is ready!
It’s rich! Use it sparingly on pan fried fish, scallops, shrimp, salmon, on veggies, or stir with pasta.
Helpful Tips
- Use silver based sauce pan or skillet while browning butter. Light based pan really helps you tell when butter turns brown and it’s ready.
- Butter needs all your attention. Butter should be heat on low or medium-low flame. Do not get tempted to crank up the heat to medium-high. Butter will go from brown butter to burnt very fast.
- Use freshly squeezed lemon juice for fresh zingy flavor.
- Lemon butter sauce solidifies as it cools down. If it hardens, simply microwave it for 10 seconds only in microwave. It you over reheat the sauce, it can separate.
- Lemon butter sauce is RICH sauce with loads of flavors. Use small amounts of the sauce on the dish.
Serve lemon butter sauce on:
This bright, yellow lemon sauce makes an excellent sauce for seafood.
Use it sparingly on
- pan fried fish,
- drizzle over scallops,
- with shrimps,
- great addition to lobsters.
This sauce elevates the flavor and taste of green vegetables like:
- Broccoli,
- Asparagus,
- Beans,
- Brussels sprouts,
- Artichokes.
Don’t just stop there.
Drizzle on ravioli pasta or pan grilled chicken.
FAQS
While you can simplify the recipe by browning all butter and adding lemon juice to it, I suggest give the actual recipe a try. You’ll love how the sauce has slight creamy texture and looks bright yellow lemon instead of all brown sauce.
By browning small portion of butter, you are enhancing the flavor of sauce. And by slowly stirring in butter, you add slight creamy element to it. Together it gives you insanely delicious sauce. Trust me and follow the recipe!
No don’t! While it may be tempting to use bottled juice, freshly squeezed lemon juice is what adds fresh zingy flavor to the sauce. Bottled juice is too zingy and will alter the taste and balance of the sauce.
Your heat was too high while making the sauce. Always cook butter on medium-low heat. Don’t rush the process by increasing heat. If heat is too high, the sauce will separate! Low heat is crucial to get smooth sauce.
It’s best to cook fish or sea food or chicken or pasta first and then make your sauce. That way you can use the sauce on the dish immediately when it’s ready. If you delay to use the sauce once it’s ready, it will solidify.
Don’t worry if sauce solidifies. You can reheat in microwave for 10 seconds. Please do not over heat sauce as too much heat may separate the sauce.
You can make lemon butter sauce 30 minutes ahead of time as it will stay warm and can be used. If there are leftovers you can store in airtight containers refrigerated for about 2 days.
Before serving, reheat sauce in microwave for 10 seconds only. Do not over heat.
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📋Best Lemon Butter Sauce
Ingredients
For lemon butter sauce:
- 6 tablespoon butter
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice freshly squeezed
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper fine ground
- 1 tablespoon hot water
For pan fried fish:
- 1 White fish fillet
- 3 tablespoon flour
- 2 teaspoon paprika
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook fish or other seafood on which you want to use the sauce first. Use white fish fillet, season with salt pepper and paprika on both sides. Rub the spice mix to coat evenly.
- Coat fish in plain flour on both sides, shake off excess flour.
- Heat vegetable oil or canola oil in a pan. Fry fish in pan for 2 to 3 minutes on each side.
- Remove fish on to a plate and leave aside until use.
- Use silver based sauce pan or skillet while browning butter.
- Take 3 tablespoon of butter and add it to silver based skillet pan. Place it on medium-low heat. Do not increase heat. It’s crucial to heat butter in medium-low heat. Butter needs all your attention.
- Keep swirling the butter every now and then. Butter will first foam up and form bubbles (the water content in butter) and then slowly begin to change color.
- When it turns golden brown, you should be able to smell nutty flavor.
- Remove pan immediately from heat as butter will go from golden brown to burnt in few seconds! Do not burn butter.
- Pour brown butter into a small bowl and leave aside.
- Clean the skillet with kitchen towel.
- Add freshly squeezed lemon juice, salt and fine ground pepper. Whisk and cook on low flame until lemon juice is reduced to half.
- Remove skillet from heat, whisk in 2 tablespoon of butter until fully melted.
- Place the skillet back on low heat and whisk remaining butter little at a time. Don’t rush the process by increasing heat. If heat is too high, the sauce will separate! Low heat is crucial to get smooth sauce.
- Once all butter in added to the sauce, remove the skillet off stove.
- Stir in prepared brown butter. Whisk until combined.
- Viola slightly creamy, nutty, lemony, buttery sauce is ready!
- It’s rich! Use it sparingly on pan fried fish, scallops, shrimp, salmon, on veggies, or stir with pasta.
Video
Notes
- Use silver based sauce pan or skillet while browning butter. Light based pan really helps you tell when butter turns brown and it’s ready.
- Butter needs all your attention. Butter should be heat on low or medium-low flame. Do not get tempted to crank up the heat to medium-high. Butter will go from brown butter to burnt very fast.
- Use freshly squeezed lemon juice for fresh zingy flavor.
- Lemon butter sauce solidifies as it cools down. If it hardens, simply microwave it for 10 seconds only in microwave. It you over reheat the sauce, it can separate.
- Lemon butter sauce is RICH sauce with loads of flavors. Use small amounts of the sauce on the dish.
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