Hot Smoked Trout

A couple of weeks ago I went to a fish smoking workshop at House of Sverre, so I thought I'd have a go at hot smoking some trout myself. It was really easy and the flavour was lovely and delicate. My oven has a pizza setting which just heats the bottom of the oven so I used that but a conventional oven should work.

Hot Smoked Salmon
(Serves 1)

1 trout
1l water
handful salt

Fill a bowl with the water and add the salt, swish around until the salt is dissolved. Add the trout and leave to brine for 3-4 hours.

Preheat the oven to 240C.

Take out of the brine and pat dry. Wrap the trout in foil and scrunch to make a parcel. poke holes in the foil. In a separate larger piece of foil put the wood chips, put the foil wrapped trout on top and scrunch up into a parcel over the trout.

Place the foil parcel on the bottom of the oven and cook for 15-20 mins.

Trout, Avocado and Spinach Souffle

I made this nifty little soufflé after going to Vegfest using up ingredients I had in the fridge anyway. This is another good recipe for using up leftover fish, yoghurt and cottage cheese and really simple to make.

Trout, Avocado and Spinach Souffle (from Belleau Kitchen)
(Serves 2)

2 large free-range eggs 
100ml cottage cheese 
100ml Greek Yoghurt 
2 fillets of trout or salmon, pre-cooked or raw 
1 avocado, peeled and chopped 
50g strong cheddar, grated 
large handful of spinach 
butter 
salt and pepper 

Pre-heat the oven to 180C and grease an oven-proof dish.

In a small pan add a splash of water, the spinach and a knob of butter, season well with pepper and salt, place the lid on and let it steam on a low heat until the butter melts and the spinach is soft, set aside. 

In a large bowl beat the eggs, then add the cottage cheese and yoghurt and salt and pepper and stir, add the cheddar, avocado, fish and spinach and stir it all together trying to leave the fish in large flakes.

Pour into the oven-proof dish and bake for 20 mins or until it has risen and is golden on top. 

Bengali Spiced Trout Parcels

I loved this recipe. I made the trout and then ate it as a sandwich in a wrap with some lettuce and mango chutney and it was so good. Massively flavourful and not too bad for you either. You could equally use salmon and serve it with rice.

Bengali Spiced Trout Parcels (adapted from Skinny Meals in Heels by Jennifer Joyce)
(Serves 4)

4 trout fillets
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp ground cumin
3 sm piece of ginger, grated
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
small handful coriander, chopped
2 green chillis, seeds removed and chopped
2 tbsp wholegrain mustard
200g low fat Greek Yoghurt

Preheat the oven to 200C. Rub the trout with the tumeric and cumin and season with salt and pepper. Place the ginger, garlic, coriander and nearly all of the chilli in a bowl. Add the mustard, half of the yoghurt and some salt and pulse to combine.

Prepare four doubled sheets of foil. Spread the paste on both sides of the fish. Place a piece on one half of a sheet of foil, then bring the other half over and fold in the sides to make a parcel and seal. Repeat with remaining fish.

Cook the parcel for 8-10 mins. If the fish is thick you might need a few more mins.

Baked Chinese Trout

This was dinner on Tuesday evening and it was really tasty. I served the trout over 40g rice noodles (4) and stir fry veg (0). I had forgotten how much I love rice noodles, there is just something so yummy about them, note to self, make more rice noodles in future. 

Baked Chinese Trout (adapted from WW Nice N Spicy)
(Serves 1)
(5 WW ProPoints per serving)

1/2 tsp sesame oil
2 tsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp Chinese five spice powder
120g trout fillet

Preheat the oven to 200C. Lay a piece of foil out with a smaller piece of greaseproof paper on top. Lay the trout on top and sprinkle over the five spice powder.

Scrunch up the sides of the foil to create a packet but leave the top open. Pour in the sesame oil and the soy sauce and scrunch up the top of the parcel.  Put the parcel onto a baking tray and bake in the oven for 10 mins until the trout is cooked through.

New Potato and Grilled Trout Salad with Dijon and Parsley Dressing

This was a really tasty salad, full of flavour. The original recipe called for salmon but I used trout and it worked perfectly.

New Potato and Grilled Trout Salad with Dijon and Parsley Dressing
(adapted from Woman and Home)
(Serves 4)

400g new potatoes, large ones halved

3 trout fillets

1 tbsp grainy mustard

40g capers, drained and rinsed

100g cornichons, sliced

6 spring onions, sliced

2 tbsp Dijon mustard

2 tbsp white wine vinegar

large pinch sugar

4 tbsp olive oil

Put the potatoes in a large pan of boiling water and cook for 15 to 20 mins until tender. Drain and allow to cool for a few minutes. Heat the grill to high, spread the mustard over the trout fillets and grill for 8 to 10 mins until just cooked through.

Toss the potatoes through with the capers, cornichons and spring onions and season. Mix the mustard together with the vinegar and sugar, and add the oil gradually to form a thick vinaigrette. Season well.
When the trout is cooked through, flake into large pieces. Dress the potatoes with the vinaigrette, scatter over the parsley and top with the trout  flakes. Serve warm immediately, or leave to cool and pack into your lunch box.

Soy Roast Trout with Peas and Soba Noodles

This was lovely and fresh tasting. I was surprised actually, I really used to hate trout and found it too sweet but now I love it, it's weird how our tastebuds change as we grow up, although I don't think I'll ever like tea or coffee!

Soy Roast Trout with Peas and Soba Noodles (from Gourmet Traveller)
(Serves 4)

2 tbsp dark soy sauce

1 tsp white sugar

1 tbsp sake

1 tbsp rice vinegar

4 skinless trout fillets

250g soba noodles

150g sugar snap peas

150g snow peas

50g pea shoots

4 spring onions, thinly sliced diagonally

toasted sesame seeds

For the dressing

2 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp mirin

1 tbsp rice vinegar

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tbsp finely grated ginger

Preheat the oven to 200C.

Combine the soy sauce, sugar, sake and rice vinegar in a small saucepan and simmer until reduced to a glaze (5-6 mins). Place the trout, skin-side down, on a baking sheet, brush thickly with glaze and bake until just pink (4-5 mins), then break into chunks and set aside.

Meanwhile, cook the soba noodles according to packet instructions, adding the peas for the last 1-2 mins, rinse under cold water and set aside.

Combine all the ingredients and whisk to combine, set aside

Divide the pea shooots among 4 bowls, put the noodles  on top, then add the spring onion and trout pieces. Drizzle over the dressing, toss to combine and serve scattered with sesame seeds.

Oily Fish - Trout Burgers

I have been told that I have an insufficiency in vitamin D, I suspect that this is not uncommon at this time of year especially with there having been so little sun around up till now. One of the ways that she suggested I try and get my levels of vitamin D up is to eat oily fish twice a week, so I'm having a go and this is probably why my meal plans look a little fish heavy at the moment as I adjust.

We all know that oily fish contains Omega 3 which is good for our brains and hearts but I didn't realise it also contained vitamin D. Oily fish includes; salmon, trout, mackerel, sardines, herrings, fresh tuna and pilchards. We get most of out vitamin D from the sun but living in London and working indoors all day, means that I don't see the sun all that often! It's also found in eggs and fortified spreads.

These trout burgers were a delicious way to start adding more oily fish to my diet, they are more fishcake than burger really, so could be eaten with salad rather than in a roll but they didn't feel to heavy in the roll either.

Trout Burgers (adapted from Fish is the Dish)
(Serves 4)

175g skinned trout fillet
75ml milk
75ml hot fish stock
2 spring onions, finely sliced
175g cooked and peeled potatoes
1 tsp tartare sauce
1 egg, beaten
25g fresh white breadcrumbs
2 tbsp semolina or polenta
salt and pepper
vegetable oil for shallow frying

4 tbsp mayonnaise
1/2 red pepper, dice finely
20g frozen sweetcorn

Put the trout in a microwave safe dish with the milk, stock and spring onions. Heat on high for 5 mins until the fish is cooked and opaque. Lift the fish out of the dish and set it aside. Strain the stock through a sieve into a bowl, setting aside the spring onions.

Mash the potatoes roughly and stir in the tartare sauce, egg and breadcrumbs. Flake the trout and add the spring onions. Fold into the potato mixture and season with salt and pepper.

Divide the potato mixture into four and shape into burgers. Coat them in the semolina and pat them into shape. Arrange on a plate and put them in the fridge for an hour to firm them up.

Mix the mayonnaise with the sweetcorn and diced red pepper.

Heat the oil in a frying pan and fry the burgers for about 10 minutes, turning once.

To serve, split open some buns and spread a little of the mayonnaise over each half. Fill with a few salad leaves, a couple of tomato slices and the fish burger. Serve.

Jamie's 15 Minute Meals: Linguine with Smoked Trout, Asparagus and Peas

This is the second recipe I've tried from this cookbook and it was less successful than the first. I didn't make the salad as I didn't have the right ingredients, and the pasta was ok, not wonderful just ok. I also found myself having to be in several different places at once, whereas I like a more measured approach to cooking. This one was probably more like 15-20 mins though which is closer to the 15 minute mark!

Linguine with Smoked Trout, Asparagus and Peas (adapted from Jamies 15 Minute Meals)
(Serves 4)

1 tbsp oil
1 small bunch spring onions, roughly chopped
300g asparagus (small bunch), trimmed and chopped leaving the stalks whole
300g frozen peas
1 bunch fresh mint, roughly chopped
1 tbsp plain flour
500ml milk
300g dried linguine
250g hot-smoked trout
juice 1/2 lemon
Parmesan

Bring a pan of water to the boil and cook the pasta according to packet instructions.

Heat a saucepan and the oil. Add the spring onions, asparagus and peas and cook for a couple of minutes, add the mint. Then sift in the flour, pour in the milk and bring to the boil, simmer for 10 mins.

Using a hand blender, puree the asparagus sauce until fairly smooth, turn the heat down to low and flake in the smoked trout. Add the asparagus tips and simmer for a few more minutes. Squeeze in the lemon juice and season.

Drain the pasta reserving a cupful of the pasta water, then toss the pasta with the sauce, loosening with a splash of the cooking water if needed. Grate some Parmesan over the top and then serve.

Glazed Trout with Bulgar and Green Beans

I've spent the last few times in Rome, the food was pretty good but as I think it's a trifle rude to whip out my camera in a restaurant there are no photos. I did get to try ossobucco though, which was melt in the mouth tender. I had a wonderful trip. We went to the Vermeer and the Dutch Golden Ages exhibition as well as a Robert Doisneau exhibition. We also went on a tour of the Vatican and were one of the last handful of people in the Sistine Chapel just as it closed at the end of the day, which was incredible and totally different from my last experience in the middle of summer packed in like sardines.

This was a dinner I had a couple of days before I left for Rome, it was a really simple trout and bulgar wheat dish with delicious crunchy green beans.

Glazed Trout with Bulgar and Green Beans (adapted from Good Food Magazine June 2010)
(Serves 2)

140g bulgar wheat
1tbsp olive oil
2 trout fillets
6 spring onions, slice
juice and zest ½ lemon
1 tbsp clear honey juice
1/2 orange, plus 1 tsp zest
200g green beans, trimmed

Cook the bulghar wheat following pack instructions. Heat the olive oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Add the trout fillets and cook for 2 mins on each side. Stir in the spring onions and cook for 1 min. Add lemon juice, honey, orange juice and zest to the pan and bubble for 1 min more to make a sauce.

Meanwhile, boil the green beans for 4 mins or until tender. Drain. Stir the bulgar wheat with a fork, mixing in the green beans, lemon zest and a little of the sauce. Serve the salmon on a bed of bulgar and beans, with the rest of the sauce spooned over.

Summer Risotto with Trout

I always thought I didn't like trout. Salmon yes, but trout always seemed a bit bland. I'm coming round though, just like I'm coming round to cauliflower as a vegetable too! This lovely risotto includes broad beans from my garden, which seem to have gone a bit mad! The trout broke up a little more than expected but the aniseedy flavour of the fennel complemented the trout and broad beans.

Summer Risotto with Trout (adapted from WeightWatchers Members Favourites)
(Serves 2)
(11 WW ProPoints per serving)

500ml vegetable stock
100g broad beans
1 fennel bulb, sliced
cooking spray
1 onion, diced
2 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 tbsp dill, chopped
125g risotto rice
4 tbsp dry white wine
150g poached trout, flaked into bite size pieces
salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 200C.

Spray a saucepan with cooking spray and warm over a high heat. Add the onion and fennel and cook for 5 mins, stirring often until softened and starting to colour. Mix in the garlic and dill and continue to cook for a further minute.

Reduce the heat to low. Stir in the rice and cook for 1 min. Add the wine and continue stirring until the liquid has been absorbed. Add in the broad beans and the stock and bring to the boil. Put a lid on the pan and transfer to the oven. Cook for 30 mins in the oven until the rice is tender. Fold in the trout and put back into the oven for 1-2 mins. Garnish with more dill and serve.



Asian Trout En Papillote

I had a hankering for papillote. The first time I made anything en papillote was when I did my cookery course at Leiths all those years ago! And every so often I get a craving for fish cooked this way. The fish always comes out delicious and moist and if you put veggies in the parcel they come out lovely and soft and tasty as well. I didn't think I really liked trout, but this changed my mind. A very tasty dish. I served it with plained boiled rice.

Asian Trout En Papillote

(Serves 4)

(4 WW ProPoints Per Serving)

4 trout fillets, pinboned

1 bunch spring onions, finely sliced

1 cm piece of fresh root ginger, peeled and finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, crushed

1 fresh green chilli, deseeded and finely chopped

55g coriander, chopped

1 courgette, sliced lengthways

1 carrot, sliced lengthways

1 small cabbage, sliced

2 tbsp nam pla (fish sauce)

2 tbsp rice wine

1 tbsp soy sauce

Preheat the oven to 200C. Fold a large sheet of greasproof paper in half and cut out 4 semi circles, large enough to hold the fish and veg. Open to form circles.

Mix all the ingredients, except for the fish, nam pla, soy sauce and rice wine. Lay the courgette, carrot and cabbage as a bed for the fish on half of the greaseproof paper. Lay the trout fillets on top of the veg and cover with the spring onion mixture.

Fold the free half of the paper over to make a parcel rather like an apple turnover. Fold the edges of the 2 layers of paper over twice together, twisting and pressing hard to seal, leaving a little bit undone, add the nam pla, rice wine and soy sauce and finish sealing the parcel.

Put the papillotes on a baking sheet, taking care that they do not touch each other. Bake in a preheated oven for 15 mins. Serve immediately with noodles or rice.