March 11, 2009

Baked Stuffed Trout

When we lived in California, my gardener was busy at the grill four or five times a week all year long. We moved to Montana last summer and this continued... I usually made the side dishes and my gardener would grill the meat (chicken, fish, burgers, steak) pretty much every night.

I had no reason to think that might change. December? Ha! Snow? Ha! Wind? Ha! My gardener could handle it... just fire up the grill and put those burgers on! If it gets chilly, just come back into the house to wait for them!

Then December came. Then it snowed. Then the temperature dipped to somewhere below zero and the cold wind blew in from the north. One day my gardener said "Why don't you cook those fish inside tonight?"

Who knew that it'd get that cold??

As a result we've been learning to cook and eat fish other ways than by grilling them. I've been looking for recipes for trout since we've been enjoying these and decided to stuff and bake a couple trout last night.
I cut up one celery rib, one jalapeno and a couple slices of onion into a fine dice.
Remember this bread? When it started to get a little dry, I sliced and toasted it then put it in the freezer.
I put some of the bread in a baggie and crushed it so I had fine crumbs. I sauteed the vegetables in a little olive oil and added some garlic powder and dried parsley. When the vegetables were soft, I tossed in the bread crumbs, adding just a little more olive oil until all the ingredients came together.I sprinkled the inside of the trout with freshly ground black pepper.
Then stuffed the trout with the vegetable mixture.
I was going to secure the fish with toothpicks, but I had a heck of a time getting the toothpick through the very tough skin, so decided to tie them up. I sprinkled a little oil over them, drizzled a little grapefruit juice and threw in a few grapefruit sections just for fun.
These baked at 450F for 35 minutes and were done perfectly.

These were good sized fish... 13-14" head to tail. I didn't finish all of mine so I made my gardener a fish and potato burrito to take to work with him this morning.


I wish I could share one of these beautiful cold-water trout with each one of you! The meat is so pink it looks like salmon and the flavor is out of this world!
Do you know what this is? It's Stainleess Steel Soap, good for removing fish, garlic and onion odors from your hands! Of course, it's not "soap" at all, just a piece of stainless steel. It works and I don't care why! If you want to know why, you can read all the chemistry blah-blah-blah here.

24 comments:

  1. Oh, this looks really good!! I love to eat trout, and salmon, among others, but I'm really weird about fish skins!! Love the metal soap, I have 3 in the shape of tulips because my grandmother keeps giving them to us! LOL!! Great post, love the blah-blah-blah too!

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  2. I like science, but I zoned out by the last paragraph on wiki... I want one though!

    Nice transition to indoor fish. Beautiful work on the stuffing. I don't know why I'm always so hesitant to stuff meats.

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  3. Karen, you fought an absolutely brilliant battle! And your indoor fish looks delicious. I'm in Oregon, where it rarely gets really cold but my neighbors will tell you I'm the crazy lady who barbecues with an umbrella in her left hand.

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  4. We use the barbecue sometimes during the winter too! Nothing compares to grilling. This fish looks really delicious, love the stuffing!!And I like what you did with the leftovers, I bet your gardener enjoyed that.

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  5. Your trout looks great! I like that you added grapefruit to it.

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  6. Beautiful fish! I love your preparation and the stuffing with grapefruit added sounds excellent!

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  7. I love trout anyway it's fixed! The stuffing sounds perfect for this yummy fish.

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  8. This looks so good, very healthy and colorful! That stainless soap is really interesting.

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  9. Karen I can not even begin to tell you how much I enjoy reading your blog. From the tips and tricks to your out of this world looking yet very simple to prepare recipes just elate me in a way I can not explain! Thank you so much for always sharing your amazing talent with all of us :)

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  10. I really need to try more fish. My tastes have changed in the last couple years and I haven't given most of them a shot since I was a kid.

    I grill all winter long, don't care how cold it gets. Well, when I have a yard and a grill I do. I remember once standing calf deep in snow grilling burgers at midnight when I was about 18. One of my neighbors came by while walking his dog, stopped, stared, then just kept walking. Heh. Good times.

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  11. Gorgeous! I never find fish that look this good but I will keep in mind that cooking method if I ever get my hands on some. We beer battered some rock cod last night which was good, but I'm sure this is 100 times better. BTW: I've been LOVING Artisan Bread in 5. Thanks again!

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  12. Egg Beaters are pasturized, so there is no threat of salmonella! Glad you're liking AB5!

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  13. This reminded me of "Ma", my grandmother Sullivan. She cooked the best trout! Hers was pan-broiled and wonderful. Thanks for the memory!

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  14. What a wonderful-looking meal! The stuffing is so simple and straightforeard and the presentation is marvelous. Hmmm . . . where is my kitchen string?

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  15. Karen- This sounds excellent. I love your teaching photos. I learned a lot. Thank you!!

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  16. Karen, you illustrated the process so beautifully. There were no questions left in my mind as to how to proceed. Good job my friend. We don't do a lot of fish, but now I know how just by following you wonderful instructions. Thank you. I read about the stainlss steel "soap". So it really works huh? I'll have to get one.

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  17. The trout looks great. We have been trying to eat more seafood here to at least two times per week. I love it, the kids not so much! I rub my hands on my stainless steel sink and that seems to help but your soap looks more interesting!

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  18. Trout is one of my favourite fish, I love the way you've prepared it.

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  19. I really like the sound of a stuffed trout!

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  20. I will have to try stuffing our fish next time. It looks wonderful!

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  21. Karen, This sounds absolutely fabulous. I don't cook much as I don't have a gardener, but may have to try it just the same.
    Thanks for sharing and for showing such detailed pics along the way.
    Peace, Judi

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  22. Karen,
    This is over the top delicious.
    My kind of meal.
    I love to stuff anything, especially fish.
    Beautiful!

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  23. Lovely fish. Looks delicious. And that "soap" ... too funny. I knew about the trick but have never seen the soap before.

    Beautiful blog.

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  24. How fresh this fish looks! Stuffed fish is delicious!

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