I love the flavor of trout, so I like to keep it simple. The Trout Grenobloise mentioned is stellar. I also like to film the top side of the fillet with a little dijon mustard (VERY thin) then coat them (pat it on) a mixture of panko, mustard (powder) chopped fresh dill or chervil. Drizzle with olive oil and broil for a couple of minutes (that's all the time it takes to cook fillets). The topping gets brown and crispy. You could add a clove of garlic VERY finely chopped to that topping mixture if you like.
For skin-on filets, i like to dredge the non-skin side in a coating of ground pecans, flour, s and p. Fry in butter flesh side down, flip and finish, just til opaque in center. Serve with fresh lemon juice.
Mix up a lemon vinaigrette. Slice some long flat shards of carrots and zucchini.
lightly salt the trout and dust with Wondra flour (or a mix of flour and corn meal). Fry skin side down until the top is tanslucent then flip to crust up the top and remove. Add the veggie threads and the vinaigrette..pour that over the plated trout. Serve with lemon wedges and horseradish/mayo dressing (on the side).
I agree, I used to by steelhead a lot when it semed to run quite a bit less than salmon. I guess it has gotten trendy now though as it seems comprably now in price.
I'd recommend a quick trip to the smoker, if you have a smoker (stove top or outdoor), I'd brine the fillets briefly - 1 cup warm water mixed with 2 tablespoons kosher salt, a sprig of thyme, maybe a fresh bay leaf, a tablespoon of sugar and then a cup of crushed ice to bring down the temp. quickly. Brine the fillets in the cooled brine for 1/2 hour (refrigerated), pat dry, oil the skin and place them skin side down directly on the smoker rack over soaked alder or apple wood chips @275 for about an hour. Now, with these you can serve them as is - they'll be absolutely delicious, or you can shred the fillets to make a smoked steel head brandade, or mix with mashed potato and roll in panko for smoked trout croquettes.
I've had that on a bed of pasta..with a horse radish mayo dressing, capers and sundried tomatoes.
But with a fresh whole trout, I'd keep it intact and smokey and maybe crisp up the skin in very hot oil and serve with lentils on the side and horseradish dressing.
If you want exotic, try ground (fresh) lemongrass mixed with salt and fresh or dried chiles (red pepper flakes work in pinch). Lightly coat the fillets with the mixture and pan fry or bake. It's my mother's go-to prep.
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http://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1015115-miso-glazed-fish
Trout Grenobloise (lemon butter, capers, croutons)
lightly salt the trout and dust with Wondra flour (or a mix of flour and corn meal). Fry skin side down until the top is tanslucent then flip to crust up the top and remove. Add the veggie threads and the vinaigrette..pour that over the plated trout. Serve with lemon wedges and horseradish/mayo dressing (on the side).
But with a fresh whole trout, I'd keep it intact and smokey and maybe crisp up the skin in very hot oil and serve with lentils on the side and horseradish dressing.
For any trout, I don't try to get complicated with its prep. Salt and pan fry, then serve with a squeeze of lemon.
Hmm sounds good but anything more exotic ?