Baked Trout Recipe

Trout is a great source of Omega 3 and only has about a third of the fat that salmon has. Above all it is quick to cook and really tasty. Pan frying or barbequing can be tricky as the skin can tear quite easily when you try to turn it. The easiest thing to do is chuck it in the oven and bake it wrapped in foil.

I prefer to buy whole trout with heads rather than fillets for a couple of reasons: it’s usually cheaper to buy the whole, they make for great presentation, and the cheeks of the fish are very tender - in Chinese culture the cheeks are saved for the youngest girl in the family as they are supposed to keep her skin as tender.

Trout can be complimented with a wide range of herbs including thyme, rosemary, fennel seeds, coriander, parsley, chives, dill –depending on what you have to hand and what you have in the fridge to go with it.

This recipe is pretty quick to make and the ingredients can be substituted for other things depending on what you have. This dish has great textures: crunchy celery and asparagus, meaty beans, tender fish and crispy ham.

Baked Trout wrapped in Proscuitto, served on a bed of spinach, cannellini beans and asparagus. (serves 2)
Preperation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:
• 2 whole trout
• 4 slices of prosciutto ham
• 1 stick of celery, sliced
• 1 clove of garlic finely sliced
• Handful of chives, finely chopped
• Half a lemon sliced
• Sprinkle of dried thyme
• Half a glass of white wine
• 50g spinach leaves
• Tin of cannellini beans
• 6-8 sticks of asparagus, sliced in half
• 6-8 cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 small shallot or half a red onion, finely diced

1. Preheat the oven to 220 degrees. Wash the trout well inside and out, pat it dry and score the skin slightly on either side to allow for faster cooking and for the flavours to get into the fish. Season lightly with salt and pepper (bear in mind that the prosciutto will be a bit salty as well).

2. Stuff the cavity with the celery, garlic, a few lemon slices and chives, sprinkle generously with dried thyme and wrap the fish in the prosciutto to hold everything together. Lay a large sheet of foil on an oven dish, scatter the remaining lemon slices and place the fish on top. Wrap the foil around it loosely like a parcel and pour in the white wine, keeping enough space for the steam to escape. Place in the oven for 15 minutes. Then turn the setting to grill and open up the foil parcel so that the skin and prosciutto can get crispy.



3. Meanwhile, rinse and drain the cannellini beans under cold water. Blanch or steam the asparagus for 5-7 minutes until they are just cooked but not soft. Submerge in cold water for a few minutes to retain the crunchiness and then drain.



4. Rinse and dry the spinach, scattering across a plate with the asparagus. Mix the shallot in a bowl with the cherry tomatoes and cannellini beans, season with salt and pepper, and drizzle in some olive oil. Scatter this on top of the spinach. Lay the trout on top and drizzle around the remaining juices. Season with salt and fresh black pepper.