Whether you picked up some fresh trout from the store or you brought home your own catch, this simple pan fried trout is one of the tastiest ways to enjoy your fresh fish dinner that you can imagine. It’s made with basic staple ingredients so that the delicate, mild trout flavor can really come through and shine! If you love fresh fish for dinner, be sure to also try our Grilled Whole Fish and Oven Baked Rainbow Trout next!
The best Cooked Trout Recipe
So even though this is probably the most basic trout recipe you will ever find, pan fried trout is near and dear to my heart and truthfully my favorite way to eat rainbow trout. It takes all of about 8-10 minutes to cook pan fried trout. The hardest part is cleaning the fish, which some stores will do for you if you aren’t catching the trout yourself on the banks of a river or a lake. Also, my fisherman husband tells me that I need to specify that this method of preparing trout works for any kind of trout, not just rainbow trout. Brown trout, brook trout, cutthroat trout all work just as well as rainbow trout for pan frying. Rainbow trout are almost always cooked and served with the skin on for added flavor. Since it is a lean, white, flaky fish, with mild flesh that doesn’t have the richness or oils of other fish like salmon, so it tastes less fishy than most fish. It’s a great choice for this kind of pan fry in a little butter since the thin trout fillets cook quickly. I have done a post on how to grill whole fish, and here is how I make oven baked rainbow trout. But this pan seared trout method is one of my favorites for the slightly crisp coating and how very simple it is.
Cooked Trout ingredients
Trout – You can use fresh-caught trout or whole trout you get from the store. All-purpose flour Salt & pepper Olive oil & butter Lemon wedges
How to Cook Trout
How to clean trout
To clean a trout, hold the fish belly up and use a very sharp thin, flexible knife like a filet knife to slice the trout’s belly from the throat down to the exit hole (you know what I’m talking about, it’s just a little bit before the tail), being careful not to slice too deeply so as not to puncture the intestines. Spread open the fish and pull out the guts and discard. Rinse the fish under a faucet, using the tip of the knife to scrape out any black stuff that remains behind (usually along the fish’s spine at the bottom of the cavity). After cleaning out the insides, cut off the head (just before the pectoral fin). Rinse the trout thoroughly, inside and out. If you plan on eating the skin, you’ll probably want to descale the fish by scraping from tail to the gills with your knife (but if you don’t plan to eat the skin, there is no need to descale the fish, although personally, I like to have my fish scaled before cooking). Then to butterfly the trout, start at the tail and slide the knife between the flesh of the fish and the bones that make up the fish’s ribs. Cut toward the backbone, separating the meat from the bones as you go, then flip the fish over and repeat on the other side. Use kitchen shears to cut through the base of the ribs along the backbone and then lift out the backbone and rib cage. With the spine removed, then trout is butterflied and will flatten easily into beautiful fillets that are easy to pan fry! If you want more detail or step-by-step photos, I found this article on how to butterfly a fish helpful.
Rainbow Trout Recipe tips
How to store Fried Trout
Keep any leftover fried trout in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 2 days. Reheat in the air fryer, oven, or microwave before serving.
What to serve with this Trout Recipe
Garlic Brown Butter Mashed Potatoes Salt Crusted Baked Potatoes Green Beans with Bacon & Pine Nuts Brussels Sprouts with Apples & Bacon Honey Steamed Broccoli
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