Zingy Rainbow Trout

Zingy Rainbow Trout with Fennel & Toasted Walnuts 

I was sitting thinking what I could make for dinner, looked in the fridge and freezer but nothing jumped out and screamed 'cook me'. I guess I was in one of those moods today where i just wanted something different, something new and exciting.
 So I took a spin into the butchers looking for some inspiration but again they had nothing that appealed to my notion. So I then walked down the street a little bit to the local fish monger and when I went in everything looked a blur except for the most beautifully fresh looking Rainbow Trout fillets that caught my eye right away, that was it... that was my inspiration for dinner. Sometimes it just takes a blind trip to the shops for you to come up with something that you would otherwise never think off. Then as the nice chap was pin boning the fillets for me, Fennel jumped into my head along with ginger and nuts (not to be confused with Ginger nuts... although... eh.... no!!) I have a fresh supply of fennel growing in my garden and this was gonna be the first harvest of it. So I went home and this is what i concocted... the walnuts give a great crunchy texture in this dish which just brings it altogether for me.

Serves 2:

2 Large Trout fillets (rainbow or brown)

A knob of butter

Fresh thyme

1 fat clove of garlic

2 medium bulbs of fennel

A handful of chopped walnuts

The zest and juice from 1 orange

Juice of half a lemon

A thumb sized piece of root ginger (grated)

2 tablespoons of honey

1 tablespoon of soy sauce

Black pepper

Sea salt

When buying fish be sure that it looks fresh, wet looking and shiny , it shouldn't smell 'fishy'

Method

1. In a small mixing bowl combine the orange juice and zest with the lemon juice, soy sauce, grated ginger, honey and a few twists of black pepper. Also in a pestle and mortar bash up the garlic with some sea salt to make a paste, add the leaves of the thyme and a knob of softened butter and mix well together.
2. Slice the fennel bulb into thin slices, brush them both sides with a little olive oil and put them into a medium to hot pan, add the chopped walnuts and gently fry off the fennel turning occasionally while also toasting the walnuts for about ten mins.
3. Very lightly season the trout fillets. Place another pan onto a high heat and empty in the garlic butter mix and spread over the whole surface, add in the fillets skin side down. Immediately spoon over the mix from the mixing bowl to create a sticky sauce. Fry the fillets for about 3 mins skin side down then turn over for a further 2 mins or until cooked right through (do not over cook though).
4. Serve with the fennel and nuts and pour over the remaining sauce. Serve with rice or a nice summer salad.