Wednesday we left the house around 10:00 to go to the market in Huy, the nearest city. It was another gray day when we left, though later it would clear up off and on. We drove down the hill and through the brick house lined streets till we parked in the parking lot of a little mall. Our group of 4 split into 2 groups, and Jan and I crossed the bridge over the Meuse to the street market. I had been really looking forward to this market, especially to the food stands. I was going to buy fish for dinner, as well as whatever vegetables caught the eye for a side dish. I was itching to look at fresh meats and sausages, pates and cheeses, fillets of fishes, breads and fruits and vegetables and spices. We had been craving this trip to the market, even as we enjoyed the fabulous meals prepared for us. We wanted to see for ourselves, touch, smell, make choices between this or that, to shop.
However, the first part of the street market that we explored was all trinkets, sunglasses, socks, tight European shorts, cheap dresses, purses and candies. We both got some sunglasses, which I had been needing. Mine were dark aviators with pink edges, Jan’s were more rectangular with rounded edges and lots of reflection, but not too much. Very suave. We explored some more, and when we got hungry we bought a campagne garnie—a long country sausage in a baguette bun with grilled onions and mustard. We had seen several stands for them, and when I saw someone eating the greasy sandwich my mouth began to water. So we bought one and split it, the bread densely white and slightly sweet with a slightly crispy outside, and the sausage meaty and mildly flavorful, the grease of the sweet onions seeping into both, all spiked with the bite of the mustard. Mmm.
After we left that street, we found the part of the market that we had been hoping to go to. We found our friends there, buying tomatoes at one stand, and crevettes grises (tiny grey shrimp) for tomorrow’s dinner, which we ate last night. It was an excellent meal, the shrimp mixed with homemade mayonnaise, chopped hardboiled eggs and parsley and put in the scooped out tomatoes. So creamy and delicious. Anyway, back to the market, Jan and I gleefully alighted upon the long counter selling cheese. We wanted a bit of everything, pointing out little round hevres, heart shaped Neufchatels, bries, camemberts, chevres. We decided upon a tasty looking wheel of brie, getting a slice of it, and I wanted to try the Neufchatel. Jan was excited by a petite chevre bejeweled with candied pieces of papaya, which we have yet to try. The Neufchatel we tried yesterday, it was delicious. Inside the skin it was a creamy yellow and slightly liquid, though it firmed up into a rich white creamy flakey center that had a strong blue flavor. My brother B loved it.
After the cheese stand, we lingering longingly at the meats for a moment before moving on to fish. I didn’t recognize the fillets (besides the salmon of course) or the names, but I had a good look at them and the prices before deciding what to buy. The white fillets of sole cost the most at € 44 per kilo, but there was a pile of fillets next to them called plie that were gleaming which with a nice thin tender looking flake that caught my eye. They were around midrange price, which seemed good to me, as I didn’t know what I was buying, I could still know that cheap fish are cheap for a reason. I asked for 6 fillets, which he wrapped up and gave to me. It ended up being flounder that I had bought, and though the name was familiar I hadn’t eaten it before. When I video IM’d with my dad when we got back to the house I asked him about it. He said it was good, like halibut. I double checked that how I was going to cook it (sautéed in butter) would good for that kind of fish, and he affirmed it. In the kitchen, Denise recommened a coating of flour, and so before I cooked the fillets I coated them with a very thin coating of fluid flour (which is very fine) and sprinkled them with salt. I cooked them in butter on low until they were golden brown, and then served them immediately.
They were fabulous. The meat was incredibly tender and smooth and buttery, truly melting in my mouth. I fell in love with flounder right there. I want to fish for it.
We served the fish with a garden salad and vinaigrette that Denise and Lily had made earlier, and boiled potatoes that Denise had harvested that day from the garden, and which were perfectly cooked. It was a simple meal, but very tasty. We ate everything.
Right now Jan and I are on the train to Amsterdam Maastricht Amsterdam
