Pan-Fried Brook Trout

If you’ve got fresh brook trout, the last thing you want to do is bury it under heavy seasoning. A light flour dusting, a hot skillet with butter and oil, and about three minutes per side. That’s all it takes to get crispy, golden skin with moist, flaky flesh underneath.

The butter-and-oil combination for frying is a smart choice. Oil raises the smoke point so the butter can brown without burning, while the butter adds that rich, nutty flavor you can’t get from oil alone.

The separate lemon-chive butter sauce poured over at the end is what ties it together. Bright, herby, and warm, it pools around the fish and makes every bite taste like streamside cooking at its best.

Pro Tips

• Pat the trout completely dry before flouring. Wet skin steams instead of crisps, and the flour turns gummy.
• Don’t move the fish once it’s in the pan. Let it sit undisturbed until the bottom is golden and releases easily, then flip once.
• Use medium-high heat. Too hot and the flour burns before the fish cooks through. Too low and you get pale, soggy skin.
• Make the lemon-chive sauce while the trout fries so everything arrives at the table hot.

Variations

• Brown the butter in the sauce until it smells nutty and turns amber for a classic beurre noisette finish.
• Add capers to the lemon butter for a briny, punchy sauce in the style of trout meuniere.
• Swap chives for fresh dill or tarragon, both of which pair naturally with freshwater fish.