Smoked Trout, Redux

June 3rd, 2008 Posted in Cooking ideas, Dishes

I grew up eating trout for breakfast and for dinner, and love it pretty much unconditionally, no matter how it’s prepared. Possible all-time favorite breakfast: trout (pan-fried in cast iron), poached eggs, good crusty bread, and plenty of coffee. The feeling of total satiation it gives is unmatched.

Smoked trout used to be hard to find, but it’s now widely available (thank god). It’s been promoted in the breakaway kitchen to basic fridge staple, always there, along side the eggs, butter, cheese, et cetera. There’s nothing like a quick hit of pure smoky protein when you’re lazy but hungry, and it’s fabulous just tossed into a salad. I get mine from the good folks at Monterey Fish.

And then you can get slightly fancier, as I did the other day with the appetizer shown above. I simply combined smoked trout (chopping it fairly finely with a knife), greek yogurt, meyer lemon juice and zest, good olive oil, some chives, and a good dusting of sumac, which gave it not only the hit of tang I was looking for, but also a lovely bronze color. Spooned on to good crackers. This was a fun appetizer to make, and to eat. With a glass of supercold rose champagne, it really lit up the neurons responsible for that “Oh, yes!” feeling.

  1. 6 Responses to “Smoked Trout, Redux”

  2. By Karena on Jun 3, 2008

    LOVE LOVE LOVE smoked trout (and just about any smoked fish) with eggs. Have you ever tried making smoked trout croquettas like the Spanish do with ham? It’s an easy way to stretch out a little bit of smoked fish for 2 people. BTW, where do you get your smoked trout? It looks like it got deleted off your post. :)

  3. By Eric on Jun 4, 2008

    Never tried the Spanish version of croquettas; don’t they have to be deep-fried though? I have this weird aversion to deep-frying anything, though I might not if I had a proper fryer. Please describe the dish!

    I get my smoked trout where I get ALL my fish, Monterey Fish, Pier 33. Without a doubt the best place in the bay area (to my knowledge).

  4. By Karena on Jun 4, 2008

    To make croquetas de jamón, you first make a bechamel, then you stir in about half a cup of chopped ham, pour the mixture into a pie plate and chill for a few hours to let it set. Form into balls, roll in panko, and fry until golden brown. I’ve substituted bits of smoked salmon/trout/sablefish in place of the ham as a way of using up smoked fish. I don’t own a deep fryer–I just use my Le Creuset pot and some rice bran oil.

    Monterey Fish is a great source. When I lived in North Berkeley I would shop at their store on Hopkins.

  5. By Melissa Slattery on Jun 20, 2008

    My husband and I fell in love with smoked trout hash served at a diner just off I-95 in Stamford, CT. They took it off the menu three years ago and we’ve been hankering for it ever since.
    Yes, we have made our own variations but the memory of their version of smoked trout hash, with potatoes and corn, topped with poached eggs and good whole grain toast is just unsurpassable.
    We’ll keep trying.

  6. By Eric on Jun 20, 2008

    Please do keep trying Melissa, that sounds heavenly. I’ll give a shot too. Can we make a pact to both try to report back on our efforts soonish? It’s the corn and the topping with poached eggs that has me so intrigued. NEED more smoked trout!

  7. By Eric on Jun 20, 2008

    Karena, say some more about rice bran oil. What’s it like? How best to use it?

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