Smoked Trout With Sunchoke Salad

Making the most of fresh fish and fresh vegetables.

Smoked Trout with Sunchoke Salad Recipe

From James Harris, Executive Chef, Zynodoa

3 whole trout filleted with pin bones removed

1 cup balsamic vinegar reduced by 3⁄4

1⁄2 ounce bourbon

1⁄2 pound sunchokes

1 cup homemade mayonnaise

4 eggs hard boiled and grated on a box grater

1 sprig rosemary finely chopped

2 stalks celery

1⁄2 celery root shaved with vegetable peeler

1 cup picked and cleaned turnip greens

1⁄2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 ounce lemon juice

1 ounce honey

4 sprigs thyme, finely chopped

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

salt & pepper to taste

Mix together reduced balsamic and bourbon. It should have a syrupy consistency. Brush across fillets of fish and smoke at 300 degrees for 7 minutes. Chill thoroughly.

Place sunchokes in a heavy bottomed pot. Cover with cold water and cook on high heat until easily pierced with fork. Remove from water and cool.

To make honey thyme vinaigrette, place mustard, lemon juice, honey and thyme in blender and blend on high speed. Slowly add oil while blender is on. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Chop celery into 1⁄4 inch slices. Mix together with sunchokes, mayonnaise, rosemary and boiled eggs. Season with salt and pepper.

Fry celery root in oil heated to 325 degrees until brown and crispy. Remove excess oil with a paper towel and season with salt and pepper.

To assemble, divide the sunchoke salad among 6 plates. Remove the skins from the smoked trout. Place one fillet on top of each portion of sunchoke salad. In a mixing bowl, dress turnip greens with some of the honey thyme vinaigrette. Drizzle remaining vinaigrette around the 6 plates. Scatter the turnip greens and celery root chips equally around all plates and serve.

Serves 6.

Related story: Pulling Up Roots

James Harris
James Harris is a past contributor to Virginia Living.
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