Fireplace Trout Recipes

FIREPLACE TROUT

Steps:

• In a frying or sauté pan, heat 1/4 cup olive oil until just warm. Add the sliced garlic and 1/8 teaspoon salt. Stir once or twice, and remove from the heat the instant it begins to color.
• Lightly season the fish with salt on both sides.
• Heat a very large cast-iron pan on top of a fireplace grate with only coals underneath it. Once your hand feels warm over the pan, add 2 tablespoons olive oil and one sprig of thyme. Then add two fillets, flesh side down. Cook for 3 minutes, and using a metal spatula, turn each fillet onto the skin side and cook, 2-3 minutes, until flesh is just firm. (The fish will continue cooking even when removed from the pan, so removing it a touch undercooked is wise.)
• Keeping the two finished trout close to the fire, repeat with the next two. When all are cooked, place, either side up, on a large platter or directly onto plates. Warm the garlic in oil in the fire for a few seconds, then spoon evenly over all the fish.

PAN-FRIED TROUT

Steps:

• In a wide flat dish, combine the bread crumbs, garlic, parsley, oregano, red pepper flakes, zest of 1 lemon and salt, to taste.
• In a small bowl, mix together the mustard and the juice of 1 lemon. Brush both sides of the trout with mustard mixture. Coat the fish on both sides with the seasoned bread crumbs and press firmly to adhere the crumbs to the fish.
• Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F.
• Coat a large skillet with about 1/4 to 1/2-inch of olive oil and bring to a medium-high heat. Add the fish to the pan, skin side down, and cook the fish 2/3's of the way, about 6 to 7 minutes. Carefully turn the fish over and cook the other side until the fish is brown and crispy, about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove the fish from the pan and drain on paper towels. You will probably need to work in batches to do 4 fish. After the first batch is done and dried on paper towels reserve it on a rack in a warm oven.
• When all the fish has been fried, remove the oil and any brown bits from the pan. Add the butter and remaining lemon juice and swirl to combine as the butter melts. Season with salt, to taste, and reduce by about half. Transfer the fish to a serving platter, drizzle with the butter lemon sauce and serve.
• What a fishtale!

FISH IN FOIL

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Rinse fish, and pat dry.
• Rub fillets with olive oil, and season with garlic salt and black pepper. Place each fillet on a large sheet of aluminum foil. Top with jalapeno slices, and squeeze the juice from the ends of the lemons over the fish. Arrange lemon slices on top of fillets. Carefully seal all edges of the foil to form enclosed packets. Place packets on baking sheet.
• Bake in preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes, depending on the size of fish. Fish is done when it flakes easily with a fork.

WHOLE FISH COOKED ON A WOOD PLANK

Steps:

• PLANK: Have the local lumber company cut a piece of oak, pecan, or cedar 8 inches wide and 20 inches long. Be sure to measure your hearth height and width before cutting the plank. Oil the plank thoroughly with olive oil, rubbing well into the pores of the wood.
• Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F. Place in preheated oven for 30 minutes (with a cookie sheet on the bottom rack to catch anything that may drip).
• Remove and allow to cool. Build a roaring fire in your fireplace (or fire pit) using 4 to 5 pieces of firewood in order to achieve a large coal bed. Remember that you cook on reflective heat in a fireplace, not the fire itself, so coals are important. Once a coal bed has been established, keep 1 log burning on the back of the fireplace to sustain the coals.
• PREP FISH: Completely scale the fish, leaving the head and tail intact. Remove the gills and rinse the inside cavity. Using a sharp paring knife, cut 3 slits on each side of the fish to the bone.
• Rub the fish with olive oil and season inside and out with salt, pepper, and hot sauce. Place chopped herbs in a small mixing bowl and blend thoroughly. Rub herb mixture in each of the 6 slits and on the outside of the fish. Fill the belly cavity with whole mixed herbs.
• Using heavy butcher's twine, tie the fish to the board in a criss-cross fashion and tie a knot underneath the board to secure it. The twine will guarantee that the fish stays in place and flat against the board during the baking process.
• Using a fireplace shovel, remove the hot coals from the right or left side of the fireplace approximately 1 foot from the edge. Place the fish head-side up against the side of the fireplace Or lean it almost vertical on a rock inside the fire-pit. Be careful that the plank does not get near an open flame, as the board will ignite.
• Turn the fish every 30 minutes, first head up and then tail up. The fish will need to cook about 1 hour, depending on heat. Test the flesh for doneness with a kitchen fork. The underside of the fish will cook at the same rate since the plank is picking up the heat of the hearth. Remove from fire and serve on the plank for a unique presentation.
• CONVENTIONAL OVEN METHOD: Preheat oven to 275 degrees F. Cure the plank as described above and then follow seasoning instructions for fish. Place the fish lengthwise on the hot plank and place a cookie sheet on the lower rack underneath to catch any drippings that may run off during cooking. Bake on the center rack of the oven for approximately 20 minutes, or until fish is flaky. There is no need to turn the fish during the cooking process. Remove and serve on the plank for a unique presentation.