Baked Trout (or Salmon) with Honey-Thyme Glaze Recipe

It took awhile to rebound from my first cooking mishap when my husband and I were dating. Having run through my recipe repertoire, which consisted of anything stir-fried, pita bread pizzas and spaghetti with tomato sauce, I decided to pull out the big guns. Yep, it was time to roast a chicken. Of course, I had never actually roasted a chicken before, but figured that turning on the oven, throwing a chicken in a roasting pan and cooking until golden brown couldn’t be too hard. Right? Or not. A couple of hours later, there I stood with a beautifully golden brown bird…that was raw inside.

Having had high hopes for my foray towards culinary greatness, I was crushed by the chicken’s unwillingness to be cooked to succulent perfection. I stood there with that chicken on a platter, tears streaming down my face. My husband snapped a picture and the chicken took an unceremonious dive into the garbage can. At that point, I decided it was best to take a step back and tackle some cooking basics. Cooking magazines started to pile up in every nook and cranny of our apartment…Bon Appetit, Cooking Light, Gourmet (R.I.P.), Food & Wine. You name it, I read it. Gradually my recipe box got fuller, meaning that it finally had more than one recipe under each category. Appetizers – check, Cookies – check, Poultry – check…

One of our favorites under the Seafood category was this recipe I found in an old issue of Cooking Light Magazine. The original recipe calls for salmon, but it works just as well with Steelhead Trout since the taste and texture of the two fish are so similar. As an aside, Steelhead Trout is listed as one of the Best Choices on the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch List. Quickly whisk together a mixture of honey (I also like to use agave nectar), shallots, cayenne pepper, fresh thyme and a little salt. Brush this mixture on the fillets and broil for about 10 minutes. That’s it. Let me tell you, it turned out a heck of a lot better than that darn chicken. However, I am happy to say that roasted chickens no longer own me. I can roast a bird with the best of them.

The recipe:
These are all the ingredients you are going to need for this recipe. It just doesn’t get any easier.

Preheat the broiler.

In a small bowl, combine honey (or agave nectar), minced shallots, fresh thyme leaves, kosher salt and cayenne pepper. Whisk to combine.

Place the trout fillets in a glass baking dish coated with cooking spray. Divide the honey mixture evenly between the four fillets and brush to coat the tops.

Place the baking dish under the broiler until the trout is just cooked through, 10 to 12 minutes. Take care not to overcook or the fish will become dry and very dense.

Serve.

Other trout and salmon recipes:
Cookin’ Canuck’s Salmon in Foil with Tarragon, Chives & Vermouth
Cookin’ Canuck’s Seared Salmon with Baby Bok Choy & Miso Sauce
Hunter Angler Gardener Cook’s Steamed Steelhead with Mushrooms
Steamy Kitchen’s Pan Seared Trout with Pecan Browned Butter
Kalyn’s Kitchen’s Roasted Wild Salmon & Asparagus with Double-Lemon Oil

Tagged as: baked, easy, glaze, healthy, honey, salmon, thyme, trout