• 4 fillets of skin on trout
• 2 each poblano peppers (small dice)
• 2 each red bell peppers (small dice)
• 2 heads fennel (small dice)
• 1 bunch rainbow chard (torn into small pieces)
• 6 each radish (sliced thin)
• 1 bunch of scallion (sliced thin)
• 1 bunch of flat leaf parsley (chopped)
• new red skin potatoes (boiled for 20 minutes until tender throughout)
• Fresh lemon juice
• Salt
• Extra virgin olive oil
Spicy Broth
• 4 qt fresh fish stock
• 2 bulb fennel (medium dice)
• 2 yellow onions (medium dice)
• 2 poblano peppers (medium dice)
• 2 red bell peppers (medium dice)
• 2 heads garlic
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 bunch thyme
• 1 tablespoon black peppercorns
• 2 cups White wine
• 6 each fresh peeled tomatoes
Collect cheese cloth and butcher’s twine.
To prepare broth:
Open the cheese cloth and fill with peppercorns, split garlic heads, bay leaves and thyme.
Wrap and tie up with butchers twine. With a paring knife, make a small X in the base of each tomato and core out the top. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and prepare a bath of ice water.
Place the cored tomatoes in the boiling water for 15-30 seconds or until the skins start to loosen. Pull the tomatoes out of the boiling water and place immediately into ice water. Once
cooled completely, take the tomatoes out of the ice water and peel the skins off of them. Open them and with your fingers, remove the seeds. Set the peeled and seeded tomatoes aside.
Heat a large pot over medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons vegetable oil. Add onion, fennel, and peppers to pan and sweat until soft but no browning. Add the crushed tomatoes and increase heat to medium high. Continue to crush the tomatoes and stir until the moisture is released and begins to reduce. Stir constantly until tomatoes, onions, fennel and peppers resemble a thick paste. Make sure not to scorch. At this point add the white wine and stir. Reduce the wine until almost no liquid remains. Add the fish stock and the sachet of herbs and garlic. Once the broth gets to a simmer reduce heat to medium low and reduce by half. Season with salt and lemon juice to taste. Set aside.
Toss radish, scallion, parsley, lemon, olive oil and salt in a bowl. Set aside.
To prepare and assemble:
Heat a large sauté pan on medium heat. Add one tablespoon vegetable oil. Add new potatoes, fennel and peppers to the pan. Stir and toss pan to sauté until the fennel and peppers are soft.
Add the spice broth to the pan along with the Swiss chard. Bring everything to a boil until potatoes are cooked through. Season to taste with salt and lemon juice. Set aside.
Season the fillets of fish with salt and pepper on both sides. Heat a large cast iron pan to medium high heat. Add enough vegetable oil to cover the bottom of the pan. Once oil begins to ripple and almost smoke add the fish skin side down to the pan. The fish will bow up as the moisture from the skin hits the hot pan. Press slightly on the fillets until they begin to relax. This will help you achieve crispy skin and even cooking. Remain on high heat for one minute. At that
time reduce heat to medium and slightly rotate fish to achieve even cooking. Sear the fish for 3-4 minutes or until the skin is crispy all over. Turn the fish over in the pan for one minute then remove to a tray to rest. Using serving bowls, place the potatoes, fennel, swiss chard and peppers. Place each fish fillet on top of the vegetables. Fill the bowls with the broth. Place the radish salad on the fish. Drizzle olive oil on each fillet and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice. Enjoy!
