Baked Trout With Lemon and Dill

If you’re a fan of baked fish, this recipe for baked trout with lemon and dill is a must try! Using lots of dill and bright, zesty lemon, the fish turns out so succulent and delicious. And when you bake a whole fish, the presentation is so lovely!

This baked trout recipe is easy to make using simple ingredients. And because there are so few ingredients involved, the star of the recipe (the trout) really shines.

Not only is this baked trout recipe tasty, it’s quite special. My mother actually caught the trout herself while ice fishing in Labrador. She gave them to me, and I knew right away that I had to use them while they were so fresh. What a treat!

Once baked, the flesh of the trout is so flaky, delicate and not overly pungent in flavour. So, as you might imagine, it pairs wonderfully with lemon and dill. For this recipe, I like to use both dried dill and fresh dill for lots of yummy, herbaceous flavour as well as a nice presentation.

Fan of whole fish recipes? Check out this recipe for pan fried smelt!

Ingredients

• Trout: I used two trout, totaling about 1 pound (half pound each trout).
• Olive oil: Used to brush over the outside of the fish before baking.
• Seasoning: Which includes salt, black pepper, dried dill and onion powder.
• Fresh herbs: Fresh dill is used in addition to the dried dill. It gives the fish more dill flavour, a pop of colour, and adds to the presentation.
• Lemon: Two lemons are used for lots of bright, fresh flavour (it pairs so well with the dill and fish itself). Lemon slices are used for stuffing and topping the fish. Lemon wedges are used to serve with the fish for squeezing over top.

How To Make Baked Trout With Lemon and Dill

Here is an overview of how to make whole baked trout (full details are in the recipe card below):

1. Once your trout have been gutted, give them a good rinse inside and out with fresh, cold water. Pat them dry of excess moisture with paper towels.
2. Rub the outside of the trout with olive oil. Season the interior of each trout with salt, black pepper, dried dill and onion powder, then stuff with fresh dill sprigs and lemon slices. Top the trout with more lemon slices and bake until they’re cooked through.

When Is Fish Cooked?

In Canada, the recommended minimal internal cooking temperature for fish is 158 degrees Fahrenheit.

Once done, aside from reaching the recommended internal cooking temperature, the fish should be opaque and flake easily when prodded with a fork.

Tips for Buying Fresh Fish

Want to know some things to look for when buying fresh fish (especially whole fish)? Here are some helpful tips:

• Get to know your fish monger: Once you find a fish market you like, you’ll get to know when their fresh fish arrives. Talk to the fish monger there, make them your foodie buddy and ask them what’s fresh that day and what they recommend. They can also likely give you cooking tips for fish you may be unfamiliar with. You get the picture. Not only can your local fish monger provide tons of information (such as what a certain fish tastes like and where they came from), they can usually do some of the prep work for your fish if you like.
• Look for visual freshness cues on the fish:
  • Eyes: This is something I look for right away. When selecting fish, especially whole fish, look at the eyes. They should be clear. If they’re cloudy and quite dull, it’s probably not the freshest fish.
  • Gills: The gills should be moist and have a nice, red colour. They shouldn’t be slimy.
  • Skin: The fish skin should be firm with a metallic shine. There should be no odd discoloration or damaged skin. You want a nice, even colour. Basically, the fish should look like it just came out of the water, ya know? If you gently press a finger into the skin, it should bounce back (not leave an indentation). The skin should also not be slimy.
• Smell: Obviously fish smells like, well, fish. I mean, it’s natural that they have their own smell of the water from which they came. However, the smell should be pleasant and definitely not stinky or pungent.

What To Serve With Baked Trout

Baked trout is such a treat and doesn’t need much served with it. It makes a nice light meal. Keeping it quite simple, I love pairing the trout with a slice of buttered bread (sometimes drizzled with fancy molasses).

If you want to make things more substantial, serve the fish with a side dish, such as mashed potatoes, couscous, rice, garden salad, creamy Greek pasta salad, roasted vegetables or homemade fries.

Tips for Making This Recipe

• Fresh is best: Aside from making sure your trout is fresh, for optimal freshness and taste, buy your trout the day you plan on cooking it. If needed, refer to the tips above for buying fresh fish.
• Make the most of your fishmonger: Every person I’ve encountered working at a fish shop are glad enough to provide help and information. And if you’re squeamish about gutting the trout yourself (or just want to save a little time), ask your fishmonger to do it for you.
• Size: Try to use trout that are approximately the same size so they will cook in the same amount of time.
• Make more if needed: This baked trout recipe yields two servings, one fish per person. You can easily double the recipe if you want to feed more people. If needed, use a larger sheet pan (or more than one) to fit the extra trout.
• Leftovers: Sometimes I like to cook an extra trout for use later. After cooking (and the fish is cool enough to handle), you can pick the meat from the bones, then properly store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days. I like to make trout crostini by serving the cool cooked trout on toasted baguette with cream cheese and a sprinkling of dried dill and freshly cracked black pepper. Talk about yummy!

As you can tell from the trout bones below, we loved this baked trout recipe!

More Easy Seafood Recipes

• Baked Arctic Char
• Baked Cod With Newfoundland Dressing
• Pan Fried Cod

If you try this recipe for baked trout with lemon and dill, be sure to leave a comment below!