Pan-fried trout with orange saffron sauce and wilted spinach

It is not very well known but trout and orange go extremely well together.  In this dish, the combination of the tangy orange sauce and the fried trout is stunning.  It is further enhanced by the spinach which also has orange flavours.  The overall combination has a Mediterranean feel.

Preparation Time: 25 Mins

Cooking Time: 15 Mins

Total Time: 40 Mins

Ingredients

For 4 servings…

4 fillets            Trout        

                      Pepper  - white        

                      Salt          

2 tbs               Butter       

For the orange saffron sauce

10 cl               Wine  - white          

10 cl               Orange juice           

1 pinch            Saffron     

1 pinch            Sugar       

1                    Shallot  - chopped finely         

½                   Lemon  - juice of      

                      Salt          

2 tbs               Butter       

For the spinach

230 gms          Spinach     

2 tbs               Butter       

1 clove            Garlic  - chopped finely          

1                    Orange  - zest of, grated        

                      Pepper  - white        

                      Salt          

Method

To prepare the orange saffron sauce…

Bring the white wine, orange juice, saffron, sugar and shallot to a boil.  Simmer until the alcohol in the wine has evaporated then remove from the heat and purée in a blender.  Return the sauce to the pot and simmer.  Add lemon juice, salt to taste.  Reduce until it reaches a consistency so that it coats the back of a spoon.  Just before serving, stir in the butter.

To prepare the spinach…

Cook the spinach in butter with the garlic over a medium heat in a saucepan - stirring as it wilts.  Add the orange zest, salt and pepper.  Lower heat and cook for 2 minutes.  Remove from heat.

To cook the trout...

Pat the fish dry with paper towels and salt and pepper both sides.  Heat the butter in a sauté pan (large enough to not crowd the fish) over medium-high heat.  Set fillets skin-side down in the hot butter and let them cook for a few minutes until skin is browned and crispy - while basting the meat side of the fish with the hot butter.  Flip over the fillets and continue cooking until done.  The total cooking time will be about 10 minutes.  Remove from the pan and place on a paper towel to absorb

the grease.

To finish the dish…

Pour some of the sauce on each plate, top with the spinach and a trout fillet.  Serve.

Wine recommendations

Conventional

     Côtes du Rhône blanc

Interesting

     Côte Chalonnaise blanc

     Riesling

Special

     Châteauneuf-du-Pape blanc