How to make Rainbow Trout Brandade with Fermented Fennel and Pine Nut Crème Fraîche

Rainbow Trout Brandade with Fermented Fennel and Pine Nut Crème Fraîche

Trout Brandade

Salt Cured Trout

• 1 whole PA trout
• 2 lbs. salt

Rinse the trout, pat dry, and pack in salt on non-reactive tray. Cover with plastic wrap, top with a weight, and refrigerate for 3 days.

Trout Brandade

• 1 salt cured trout, bones removed,rinsed of salt and patted dry
• 2 PA russet potatoes
• 1 oz. olive oil
• 1 Tbsp. chopped fresh dill
• 2 Tbsp. prepared horseradish
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Woodchips, as needed for smoking

Smoke or bake the trout until cooked. In this case we will be smoking the trout for a deeper flavor. Peel the potatoes and boil until soft. Pass through a ricer and cool. Flake the trout into the potatoes and add the remaining ingredients. Mix thoroughly and store.



Trout Brandade and Potato Roulade

• 1 large PA white potato, sliced 1
• ⁄8-inch
• thin longwise
• Brandade mix from above
• 2 oz. butter

Shingle 5 potato slices in a line. Pipe or pack the brandade down the middle, then roll like a crêpe. Brown in butter in a sauté pan on all sides until the inside is hot and the outside is crisp . Alternatively, large batches can be baked in an oven at 400˚F basted with butter for 10 minutes. Rest on paper towels to remove the grease and serve.

Fermented Fennel

• 6 bulbs fennel, julienne
• 1 knuckle ginger, minced
• Zest of 1 lemon
• ½ tsp. fennel seed
• 12 oz. salt

Combine all the ingredients. Rub the salt in vigorously. Place in a glass jar. Pack down until the juices rise just above the ingredients; add water if necessary. Cover the jar with cheese cloth and rest up to two weeks. Rinse before using if too salty.

Pine Nut Crème Fraiche

• 1 cup toasted pine nuts
• ½ cup buttermilk
• 2 cups heavy cream

Combine all the ingredients and purée. Rest in a glass jar covered with cheese cloth for 48 hours. Refrigerate until needed.
Garnish the dish with sliced black radish and trout roe if available.

Pennsylvania Dutch Grated Potato Pancakes

• 2 cups grated PA potatoes
• 1 small onion, chopped finely
• 4 Tbsp. flour
• 2 eggs, beaten slightly
• ½ tsp. sugar
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 2 Tbsp. finely chopped parsley
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. pepper
• 1 Tbsp. Crisco, more as needed
• Optional garnishes: sour cream,applesauce, black caviar

Add the potatoes, onions, eggs, flour, sugar, baking powder, parsley, salt and pepper, and mix well. In an iron skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of Crisco until hot. Put 1 heaping tablespoon of the mixture in a skillet (enough to do a 3-inch round thin pancake). Do as many as will fit in the pan. Cook the pancakes until the edges are crispy and the center bubbles. Flip and  cook until crisp and brown on the outher side. Repeat, adding Crisco if needed, until all the batter is used. Serve on a platter, topping some with the sour cream, some with applesauce, and the remaining with the caviar.