Get out your fly rods and woolly buggers: It’s trout season. If you can’t picture yourself maneuvering a swift-flowing Catskills stream in hip waders, there’s always the Union Square Greenmarket, where Dave Harris of Max Creek Hatchery sells brook and rainbow trout every Wednesday. Chefs like Colin Alevras of the Tasting Room and Sara Jenkins (who just took over the kitchen at Bread Tribeca) swear by his farm-raised fish, always caught the night before Harris comes to town. Some old-timers say that brookies make the best eating. Try one of each pan-roasted with brown butter, lemon, and capers in this recipe from Jenkins and decide for yourself.
SARA JENKINS’SPAN-ROASTED TROUT
2 trout, about a pound apiece, gutted, with heads on
Salt and pepper
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup parsley leaves, chopped
2 tablespoons salt-cured capers, rinsed
Juice of one lemon
Preheat oven to 350. (1) Season the trout well with salt and pepper. Heat an oval fish pan large enough to fit two trout, or a large sauté pan over high heat. Add the olive oil and (2) place the trout head to tail in the pan. Cook until the skin is crisp and brown, about five minutes on each side. Transfer the trout to a roasting dish and place in the oven for approximately eight to ten minutes. Meanwhile, drain the olive oil out of the fish pan and add the butter; heat gently until it starts to foam, (3) then add the parsley and capers and cook briefly, swirling them in the butter. Squeeze in the lemon juice, pour the mixture over the trout, and serve.