Trout With Chive Butter

Trout With Chive Butter
Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times
Total Time
10 minutes
Rating
5(453)
Comments
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You can make this speedy dish casual and after-work-friendly or fancy enough for company. It all depends on how you garnish it. Using trout or salmon roe turns it into something quite deluxe, with the small pearls of caviar popping in your mouth. But a sprinkling of saline capers is nearly as delicious, at a fraction of the cost. No matter which you choose, the fish itself a snap to prepare. The butterflied whole trout broils up in under five minutes. After that it's smeared with a garlicky compound butter, which melts into a fragrant, savory sauce. Serve this dish with boiled new potatoes, crusty bread or rice to catch all the buttery juices.

Featured in: Fish That’s Fast, Easy and Sometimes Even Fancy

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings
  • 4whole trout, butterflied
  • Fine sea salt, to taste
  • 1garlic clove, finely grated or minced
  • ½teaspoon fresh lemon or lime juice, more to taste
  • teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 4tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed and softened
  • 1tablespoon minced chives, more for serving
  • Trout roe, salmon roe or capers, for serving, optional
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

762 calories; 40 grams fat; 14 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 13 grams monounsaturated fat; 8 grams polyunsaturated fat; 1 gram carbohydrates; 0 grams dietary fiber; 0 grams sugars; 94 grams protein; 1125 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat the broiler. Place trout, skin side down, on a rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt.

  2. Step 2

    In a mini food processor, or using a mortar and pestle or a bowl and a fork, stir together garlic, lemon juice, pepper and a pinch of salt. Add softened butter and chives and mash or process until well mixed.

  3. Step 3

    Broil trout until just opaque, 2 to 5 minutes depending upon your broiler.

  4. Step 4

    Drop spoonfuls of butter on top of the fish; it will melt immediately. Top with more chives and with roe or capers, and a little more lemon juice if you like.

Ratings

5 out of 5
453 user ratings
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Comments

I've been cooking trout for 40+ years, & this is a classic take well worth serving any day of the week. For a more decadent variation, I mix 1/2 teaspoon of minced black truffles in olive oil into the butter sauce. I also love it sprinkled with bread crumbs crisped in butter with a dash of Tony Chachere's. I use lemons in most variations, but I love using limes when going a bit Cajun.

Thanks, Melissa!

This is a great dish, so simple yet bursting with flavor! I enjoy cooking, do not consider myself an expert at all, but have no hesitation in recommending the recipe. I tried with whole fish and with a trout filet...both were excellent. It is easy to overdo the black pepper as trout can be overcome, so had to be careful of my tendency to use too much. But the garlicky butter is so good, and capers work perfectly if you don't wish to invest too much. Broiled 4 min @ farther rack setting.

I made this - as I mentioned earlier I would. Since Barbara asked about the crisp skin, I chose to put the sheet pan in the oven while the broiler was heating, then dribble some olive oil on before putting the trout down. It worked beautifully. I cooked it 5 minutes because it was a little thick and we like it better cooked through. Delicious chive butter. I probably could have salted it a bit more. I ran a parallel recipe with lentils and vinaigrette and both were delicious.

Can I skip the capers and roe if I have neither?

Super simple but so flavorful. Weeknight dinner that feels elegant!

I really struggle with cooking such that sometimes i feel bad for the husband and kids. This recipe allowed for a great nite w my teen boy—- was so nice and easy! Didn’t have chives so used scallions instead. Thank u!

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