Culinaria: Tasty trout

The season of river trout is coming to a close next month so when I encounter this fish at my local fishmongers in August, I always snap them up. If I could fish myself I would, but I am an appalling fisherman. I would struggle to catch any fish even if the circumstances were in my favour, such as a goldfish in a bowl. They always seem to get away.

I am thankful then for the countless fishermen who go out to our rivers and lakes and spend the necessary effort to land these wonderful fish.

I prefer to buy river trout whole as they cook beautifully in one piece. Season with a little oil and sea salt and place a lemon slice, one unpeeled garlic, and fresh dill in the cavity. Baking for 15-20 minutes in an oven at 180 degrees/gas 4 should do it.

As I have said before, I always undercook fish. I know, you may feel like you’re going against a thousand years of traditional overcooking, but believe me, not only does it taste better, it also is extremely safe. The Japanese enjoy raw fish. I do not see why the Irish cannot enjoy it also.

You could try little slices of river trout with a lovely vinegar, maybe plum or pear. You’ll want a vinegar with a lower acidity than normal as you don’t want to overpower or pickle the fish completely. Though pickling would not be an altogether bad thing either.

If you want to lightly pickle your river trout, take four fillets and lay them skin side down in a shallow dish. Make sure you remove any little bones. Lay a little dill and fresh seaweed over them.

Bring 250ml of white wine vinegar and 175g of sugar to the boil. Remove from the heat and allow to cool. When cool, pour over the fish and let the fish macerate overnight. The following day, remove the fish from the vinegar solution. Rest it on a piece of kitchen towel briefly and then place on a plate. Serve with some nice brown bread and some farmhouse butter.