Рецепт Sauteed Trout with Lime Chili Butter
Sauteed Trout Photo Courtesy of Food and Wine Magazine
Brook Trout I
try to serve fish once a week. Its
health benefits are well known and even its fat content is healthy—it comes in
the form of Omega-3 fatty acids which not only protect your heart, they also
raise your good cholesterol level. And
almost nothing is as easy to cook in as little time as a piece of
fish. I don’t know if you’ve noticed but
salmon and tuna prices are hitting the roof—especially if you’re like me and
prefer wild-caught fish. So you can
imagine how pleased I was to discover that Trout is amazingly affordable. I bought a whole fish for $9.20, which the
fishmonger filleted and skinned for me to give me the two beautiful filets I
needed. I had to break my rule against
farmed fish but I learned something about trout fish farming in the process.
A Trout Farm Raceway. Constantly
moving water is essential for
the health and growth of the fish.Considering
that the Brook Trout is the state fish for eight states—Michigan, New
Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Virginia and West
Virginia—there must be a pretty steady supply in the East. It turns out that
Idaho, whose state fish is the Cutthroat Trout, is responsible for 70 percent
of trout farmed in the US. Trout Farming is the oldest form of commercial fish
production in the world. It goes back
400 years in Europe and 150 years here.
The good news is that the website www.seafoodchoices.com
gives generally high marks to these farmed fish raised in fresh water ponds or
raceways. There is concern, particularly
in Idaho, over potential pollution in local waterways. Fortunately, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is
charged with monitoring trout farming operations and states like Idaho have
taken on this task on a state level. So
I think its safe to give farmed brook trout a pass.
On
an ounce for ounce basis, Trout packs quite the nutritional punch: One 3 ounce
filet contains all of 19 grams of protein, 89 percent of the recommended daily
allowance of vitamin B-12, 15 percent of vitamin B6 and 25 percent of
Niacin. And then there’s the matter of
how delicious Trout tastes. In this recipe, a
piece of Trout is dipped in egg, then in some soft, fresh breadcrumbs and
cooked in all of about 3 or 4 minutes.
Because the flavor of Trout is so mild, it almost calls for a
counterpoint. In this case, that takes
the form of a salty, semi-spicy Lemon-Chile Butter. The salty portion comes
from Anchovy paste, the spice from a fresh red cherry pepper. Add some minced shallot and some finely
grated lemon zest and you’ve got a perfect counter balance to the delicacy of
the fish. I did change up the original
recipe which I found in Food and Wine, starting with its name.
In
their “Annual Cookbook 2013” (American Express Publishing 2013), the dish is
called Trout Schnitzel. And although I
have deep affection for a good Schnitzel, I wouldn’t call this one. The breadcrumbs used are made from Challah
bread. Lately, virtually every recipe
for Schnitzel has called for Panko. What
separates this Japanese breadcrumb from the ones made with Challah is this: Panko is made from bread without crusts. The bread is coarsely ground into airy, large
flakes that give Schnitzel a light, crunchy coating. Panko flakes tend to stay crispier longer
than standard breadcrumbs because they don’t absorb as much grease. So I call this dish, not Trout Schnitzel but
Sauteed Trout. The other change that I made to the original recipe was that
instead of using anchovy filets in the Lemon-Chile Butter, I opted for anchovy
paste. This simplifies making the butter
without sacrificing any of the taste. I
cut this recipe in half which eliminates having to cook the fish in shifts and
having to use the oven at all. All in all, this is a perfect weeknight
dinner. Here’s the recipe:
Recipe for Sauteed Trout with Lemon-Chile Butter adapted
from Food and Wine: Serves 4. Takes a maximum of 35 minutes.
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
- 6 anchovy fillets, minced
- 1 fresh red chile, minced
- 1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
- 3 cups soft, fresh, coarsely ground brioche
- bread crumbs
- 4 large skinless trout fillets (8 ounces
- each)
- Vegetable oil, for frying
- Lemon wedges, for serving
- Preheat the oven
- to 325°. In a bowl, blend the butter, anchovies, chile, shallot and
- lemon zest and season with salt and pepper.
- In a large,
- shallow bowl, beat the eggs. Put the bread crumbs in another
- large shallow bowl. Season the trout with salt and pepper and dip each fillet in the egg,
- letting the excess drip off. Dredge the trout in the bread crumbs,
- pressing to help them adhere.
- Set a plate lined
- with paper towels and a baking sheet with a rack near the stove. In a large nonstick skillet, heat 1/4 inch
- of oil until
- shimmering. Add 2 of the trout fillets and cook over moderately
- high heat, turning once, until browned and crisp, 1-1/2 to 2 minutes per side; reduce the heat
- to moderate if the fillets
- brown too quickly. Drain the trout on the paper towels, transfer the fillets to the rack and keep warm in
- the oven. Using a
- slotted spoon, discard any dark crumbs in the skillet and add more oil if needed to
fry the remaining 2 trout fillets.
Serve the trout with
the lemon-chile butter and lemon wedges.