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Pan-Fried Whole Trout with Bacon and Red Onions

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Makes 2 servings 1x

Time 45 minutes

Units Scale

Ingredients

  • 4 thick slices bacon
  • 1 large red onion, thinly sliced
  • 2 trout (about 12 ounces each), gutted and scaled
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 cup cornmeal
  • 1/2 cup beer (a strong ale is good) or water
  • Chopped fresh parsley for garnish

Instructions

  1. Line a plate with towels. Put the bacon in a large skillet, preferably cast iron, over medium heat. Cook, turning several times, until it begins to get crisp, about 5 minutes. Transfer to the towels to drain.
  2. Immediately add the onion to the hot bacon fat and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and starting to turn golden, about 5 minutes, then transfer with a slotted spoon from the pan to a bowl. Roughly chop the bacon and add it to the onion.
  3. Rinse and dry the fish and sprinkle them with salt and pepper. Dredge the fish in the cornmeal, patting the sides to make sure it adheres. Put both whole fish in the pan and raise the heat to high. Cook, turning once, until the coating browns on both sides and the interior turns white and opaque, 8 to 12 minutes total. Transfer to a platter.
  4. Turn the heat under the skillet to medium-low and add the beer, scraping up any browned bits that have stuck to the pan. Let the beer bubble and thicken a bit, then return the onion and bacon to the pan. Cook, stirring frequently until the sauce thickens. Taste and adjust the seasoning, adding lots of black pepper. Spoon the bacon, onions, and pan sauce over the fish, garnish with parsley, and serve.

— Recipe from How to Cook Everything: Completely Revised Twentieth Anniversary Edition

Recipe variations

Pan-Fried Trout without Bacon and Onions

Simpler and faster: Omit the bacon, onions, and beer. Skip Steps 1 and 2. Instead, melt 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter or heat 1/4 cup olive oil in the skillet. When the butter foams or the oil is hot, dredge the fish in cornmeal and proceed with Step 3. Skip Step 4; instead, serve the trout right away with Tartar Sauce and lots of lemon wedges.

Pan-Fried Trout Fillets with or without Bacon and Onions

For the main recipe or the first variation: Use 4 boneless trout fillets, skinned or skin-on as you like. In Step 3, cook the fillets in two batches, starting with the skin side down and adding more oil in between if the pan looks dry. They’ll cook in about half the time. Then proceed.