The French recipe for Blue Trout is widely known in many European countries, especially in France. It will appear as a main fish dish on many European restaurant menus; throughout Europe we see little variation for preparing this dish. The blue colour of the trout is due to poaching its moist skin which is easily destroyed when scrubbing it too hard. Our recipe derives from Alsace in the Eastern part of France where we frequently spent our holidays.

Feeds two – Preparation time, ca 30 mins.

Ingredients:

• One large or two medium sized trout, preferably rainbow trout.
• 2 liters of water
• 50 ml. dry white wine
• 2 carrots, sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 big wedge of celeriac, thinly sliced
• 1 leek, sliced into rounds
• 2 bay leaves
• Some pepper corns crushed
• 1 tbsp salt
• 1/8 liter of vinegar
• 20 gr butter
• A bunch of flat parsley
• 1 lemon for serving

You need a big pot (casserole or stock pot) with a lid which holds your trout easily.

Pour in the water, the wine, the salt, the pepper, the garlic, the sliced carrots, the celeriac, leek and the bay leaves, bring to the boil and let it simmer for ca 15 minutes. This will make a good stock.

While cooking the stock, put the trout on a flat dish, bring the vinegar to the boil and pour it on the trout to turn it blue. Then put the trout into the prepared bouillon and cook it softly for about 15 minutes. Towards the end of the cooking time, melt the butter. Place the trout on a warm platter, pour the melted butter over the trout and serve.

Serve with lemon and parsley, boiled potatoes and green salad.

Bon appetit!

Rolf & Brigitte