One of my most favorite breakfast meals is lox, or smoked salmon, on a bagel with cream cheese + allll the fixin’s (red onion, tomato, capers, etc). The creamy and salty combo just gets me every single time. And over the last few months working as a private chef here locally, I’ve been making a smoked trout salad on repeat. Needless to say: I’m very into smoked fish.
When it comes to buying smoked salmon, I can usually find a wild Alaskan variety pretty easily. With trout, however, the options are slim and the transparency on origin, process, and overall treatment is vague at best. Even if the ingredients read minimal or acceptable, the packaging still leaves me wondering how the fish were raised/processed.
So it couldn’t have been better timing when my friends at Headwater Food Hub reached out about a new product they’re carrying: cold-smoked New York Steelhead Trout. Twist my arm, ya know?? Hudson Valley Fisheries responsibly raises trout using a state of the art Recirculating Aquaculture System (RAS). What does this mean? No antibiotics, hormones, pesticides or vaccines. Not wild, not farmed, but a controlled, completely sustainable process. This system filters and reuses 99% of it’s water and is completely regenerative– all of their fish waste is converted into nutrient-dense farm fertilizer. I mean does it get any cooler than that??
Steelhead trout looks very similar to salmon, but is much more sustainable as salmon is incredibly over-fished. From a nutrition perspective, it’s loaded with protein + omega-3 fatty acids– making it the perfect healthy fat to consume. Oh, and I should probably mention that it’s straight up delicious.
Located in Hudson, NY and smoked in Brooklyn, NY– Hudson Valley Fisheries is the real deal. Their website ties it all up perfectly: “We are here to provide a traceable and nutritious U.S. grown seafood alternative for future generations.“
So now that you know a little bit about this star ingredient, scroll down for a simple + refreshing smoked trout salad with all the summer veggies from Headwater! You can bet I’ll be putting this trout on everything from now on (cream cheese + toast, folded into scrambled eggs, in tacos, etc). Enjoy– and if you’re local, place an order with Headwater Food Hub ASAP!
INGREDIENTS:
for salad:
smoked trout
mixed greens
frisée
shaved raw fennel (or celery)
cucumbers
snap peas
avocado
radish
red onions, pickled
for lemon dill yogurt dressing:
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 whole lemon, juiced
1 garlic clove
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tbsp chopped fresh dill
generous pinch of sea salt (more to taste)
RECIPE:
I’m not giving exact measurements because it depends on how hungry you are or how many you’re needing to feed! The dressing will make enough for about 4 servings.
Prepare all veggies by slicing cucumbers, snap peas, fennel (or celery– I’m just not a fan), avocado, and radishes. You can use any kind of greens here.
For the pickled onions, slice red onion thinly and place into a bowl or jar. Cover about 3/4 of the way with apple cider vinegar and then the other 1/4 with water. Add a generous pinch of sea salt and mix/shake just lightly. Let sit out for at least 20 minutes for a quick pickle, or a couple hours if you have the time. Then store in a jar in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. It’s nice to make a batch so you have them on hand!
For the dressing, add all ingredients to a food processor or blender. Taste to adjust salt/lemon if more is needed. Add a little water if you’d like it thinner. The type of yogurt will affect the consistency so that part is your preference. I used a new sheep’s milk (from Blue Pepper Farm, through Headwater Food Hub), but you can use any plain variety! For dairy-free, cocojune is my favorite brand (Wegman’s does have it).
Toss all ingredients (besides trout) with dressing and then top with trout + more dill or tops of fennel, if you want. Best eaten right away, but dressing will last for a couple weeks in the fridge.