Crispy-skin garlic-thyme pan-seared speckled trout

Speckled trout fillets are thin and delicate, and the skin helps hold them together in the pan. Score it, dry it and press the fillet down for the first few seconds, and it comes out crisp while the flesh stays tender.

A butter baste with garlic and thyme finishes it in about a minute. This one moves fast, so have the plates ready.

About 15 min. Serves 4.

Ingredients

• 4 skin-on, scaled speckled trout fillets (about 1¼ to 1½ lb in all), patted completely dry
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• ½ tsp freshly cracked black pepper
• ½ tsp garlic powder
• 2 tbsp avocado oil or clarified butter
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 3 cloves garlic, lightly smashed
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice, plus lemon wedges to serve

Method

1. Score the skin of each fillet lightly in two or three places so the thin fillets stay flat in the pan. Pat both sides completely dry and season with the salt, pepper and garlic powder.
2. Heat the oil in a 12-inch nonstick or well-seasoned cast iron skillet over medium-high until it shimmers.
3. Lay the fillets in skin side down, away from you, and press gently with a flexible fish spatula for 10 seconds so the whole skin touches the pan.
4. Cook without moving them for 3½ to 4 minutes, until the skin is golden and crisp and the flesh has turned opaque about 80 percent of the way up.
5. Turn carefully, add the butter, garlic and thyme and baste the foaming butter over the fish for 60 to 90 seconds, until just cooked through. Finish with the lemon juice and serve right away.

Notes

• Cook fish to 145°F in the thickest part, which is the FDA’s temperature for fish. Check with a thermometer.
• Speckled trout fillets are soft. Keep them cold from the water to the pan and handle them gently.
• Speckled trout have size and bag limits. Check TPWD’s current rules before you keep fish.
• TPWD lists consumption advisories for some Texas waters. If you caught the fish, check the advisories for that water before you cook it.

Sources: FDA: Selecting and Serving Fresh and Frozen Seafood Safely (content current as of Mar. 5, 2024), TPWD: Fish Consumption Bans and Advisories.

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