Grilled Trout with Garlic & Herbs

32 min · Easy · Serves 1

370 kcal per serving · 31g protein

Pan-grilled trout is the dish of every Bulgarian mountain tavern — crisp skin, juicy flesh, garlic butter, lemon, done. Using a fillet instead of a whole fish makes it completely beginner-proof: one flip and it's cooked. Serve with boiled potatoes or the grilled vegetable salad.

Ingredients

• 150 g Trout fillet, skin on
• 2 cloves Garlic cloves, lightly crushed
• 10 g Butter
• 1 tbsp Sunflower oil
• 10 g Fresh parsley, chopped
• Lemon × 1
• 1 pinch Salt
• 1 pinch Black pepper

Method

1. Take the fillet out

   

   Take the fillet out of the fridge 10 minutes before cooking and pat it completely dry with kitchen paper, especially the skin — dry skin is what turns crisp instead of steaming.

2. Season both sides with salt

   

   Season both sides with salt and black pepper.

3. Heat the sunflower oil

   

   Heat the sunflower oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat until it shimmers and flows like water.

4. Lay the fillet in skin-side

   

   Lay the fillet in skin-side down, away from you, and press it flat with a spatula for the first 10 seconds so the edges don't curl.

5. Watch the Colour

   

   Cook without moving it for 3–4 minutes. Watch the side of the fillet: the flesh turns from translucent pink to opaque, and it's time for the next step when that opaque colour has climbed about two-thirds of the way up.

6. Baste and Flip

   

   Add the butter and crushed garlic to the pan. Tilt the pan towards you and spoon the foaming garlic butter over the fish for 30 seconds, then flip the fillet and cook the flesh side for 1–2 minutes more.

7. Lemon and Parsley

   

   Slide the fillet onto a plate, let it rest for 1 minute, then squeeze over the lemon and shower with chopped parsley. Lemon goes on after cooking, not before — it keeps the flesh tender.