Pine Needle Trout

Cooking whole fish makes for an impressive meal, and it’s easier than you might think. Your local fishmonger can dress the trout for you (meaning the viscera, fins, and scales are removed), saving you some of the messy work of preparing the fish for the pan. If pine boughs aren’t within reach, feel free to substitute a mixture of other evergreen herbs as the base of this dish.

This recipe originally appeared on alive.com as “Pine Needle Trout.”

Pine Needle Trout

Votes: 0
Rating: 0
You:

Rate this recipe!

Servings

2

Print Recipe

Ingredients

• 1/2 lb baby potatoes
• 1 whole rainbow trout gutted and scaled
• kosher salt to taste
• black pepper to taste
• 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 2 Tbsp avocado oil
• 2 handfuls freshly harvested pine needles
• 3/4 cup dry white wine
• 1/2 cup low-sodium vegetable broth or water
• 2 garlic cloves finely chopped
• 1 large bunch kale stalks removed and leaves torn into large pieces

Ingredients 1/2 lb baby potatoes 1 whole rainbow trout gutted and scaled kosher salt to taste black pepper to taste 2 Tbsp unsalted butter 2 Tbsp avocado oil 2 handfuls freshly harvested pine needles 3/4 cup dry white wine 1/2 cup low-sodium vegetable broth or water 2 garlic cloves finely chopped 1 large bunch kale stalks removed and leaves torn into large pieces

Servings 2 Print Recipe

Instructions

1. Boil or steam potatoes until just tender, with some resistance when pierced with sharp paring knife, approximately 8 to 10 minutes. Drain and set aside.
2. Season trout with salt and pepper to taste; set aside.
3. In large cast iron skillet, warm together butter and avocado oil over high heat. Add pine needles, tossing to coat in fats. Spread pine into single layer over bottom of skillet. Lay seasoned trout overtop pine needles. Let cook until skin is golden brown, approximately 2 minutes per side.
4. Add potatoes, wine, and vegetable broth to skillet. Cover with lid or large metal bowl; reduce heat to medium and steam for 3 to 4 minutes. Add garlic and kale to skillet. Cover again and continue to cook until kale is wilted and fish is cooked through, tender and flaking easily, approximately another 2 to 4 minutes.
5. To serve, divide potatoes and kale between 2 serving plates. Fillet fish and divide between serving plates.
6. Into separate bowl, strain skillet sauce through fine mesh before discarding pine needles. Drizzle sauce over fish and serve.