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Pasta Chicken

Trout (or Salmon) with Garlic Butter Lemon Caper Sauce

Published: Sep 29, 2015 | 35 Comments

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Steelhead Trout with Garlic Butter Lemon Caper Sauce – healthy, low-carb, KETO friendly dinner rich in lean protein and omega-3 fatty acids. And did I say it was gluten free?!

Steelhead Trout with Garlic Butter Lemon Caper Sauce in a skillet on stove top

In this easy recipe, the steelhead trout is cooked on stove top in a large skillet, and the lemon caper sauce is then made in the same skillet. The whole recipe takes 30 minutes from start to finish. Easy to make and the cleanup is minimal (only one skillet to clean).

What is steelhead trout?

Steelhead trout is a type of coastal rainbow trout. Steelhead trout is a sea-run fish that returns to fresh water to spawn (deposit eggs into water) after living in the ocean for about 2 years. It’s a species of salmonid, which means steelhead trout is related to salmon, char, and freshwater whitefish.

Steelhead Trout fish fillets

As I was cooking this beautiful steehead trout, I couldn’t help thinking that this recipe would work great with salmon as well!  Steelhead trout is an incredibly easy fish to cook.  And it’s very closely related to salmon.   It’s a pretty fatty fish, it doesn’t stick to the pan and cooks fast and easy thanks to its rich fat content!  I highly recommend that you try steelhead trout – it’s tasty, easy to handle, and very healthy (at least, according to this website).

What makes trout KETO friendly

  • Steelhead trout is a fatty fish with a high fat content which makes it a perfect fish for KETO friendly diet. Steelhead trout is rich in lean protein and omega-3 fatty acids.
  • Caper-Garlic Lemon Butter Sauce is a great choice for KETO recipe. Butter is low-carb, high fat.  Garlic, capers, and lemon have low-carb content.
  • This recipe is completely gluten free.  It has no gluten, no grains.

Steelhead Trout with Garlic Butter Lemon Caper Sauce in a skillet

How to cook steelhead trout

    1. First, season the fish.  Season the tops of trout fillets with Italian herb seasoning and salt (generously). Fish fillets will have skins on the bottom.
    2. Next, cook the trout on stove-top.  In a large skillet, heat olive oil on medium heat. Adding 1 tablespoon of olive oil is enough as fish will release lots of its own oil (steelhead trout is a fatty kind of fish).
    3. Add trout fillets, skin side up, non-skin side down. Cook for about 1.5 minutes on medium heat, making sure the oil does not smoke.
    4. Turn the fillets over, skin side down. Cook for another 1.5 minutes on medium-low heat.
    5. Then, allow the trout to sit in the skillet.  Remove the skillet from heat, close the pan with the lid, and let the steelhead trout sit for 5-10 minutes until flaky and cooked through completely.
    6. Finally, separate trout flesh from the skin.  After the fish is cooked through, using spatula, carefully remove trout fillets to the plate, separating the fillet from the skin (skin will remain on the bottom of the pan).
    7. Carefully scrape the fish skin off the bottom of the pan, making sure to leave the fish oil in the pan.  You will make garlic butter lemon caper sauce in the same pan as described in the next section.

How to make Lemon Caper Sauce

Lemon caper sauce with garlic and butter is what makes this steelhead trout so tasty!  Add capers, diced garlic, and lemon juice to the skillet. Cook on medium-low heat for about 1 minute, until garlic softens a bit. Remove from heat. Add 2 tablespoons of butter, off heat, to the caper sauce, stirring, until butter melts and forms a creamy mixture.

Garlic Butter Lemon Caper Sauce in a skillet

If you enjoyed this steelhead trout recipe, you will surely like this easy trout recipe with garlic lemon butter herb sauce.   Or, if you want an oven-baked trout, you can try this garlic parmesan crusted salmon and asparagus and use steelhead trout instead of salmon, since both fish are so similar.

5 from 9 votes
Print
Trout (or Salmon) with Garlic Butter Lemon Caper Sauce
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
20 mins
Total Time
30 mins
 

Steelhead Trout (or Salmon) with Garlic Butter Lemon Caper Sauce - cooked on stove-top in a large skillet.  Healthy, low-carb, KETO friendly dinner rich in lean protein and omega-3 fatty acids. And did I say it was gluten free?!  Steelhead trout is a fatty fish with a high fat content.  

Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American, Mediterranean
Servings: 3 servings
Calories: 458 kcal
Author: Julia
Ingredients
Steelhead Trout Ingredients:
  • 1.5 lb steelhead trout (3 fish fillets) or use salmon
  • 1 tablespoon Italian herb seasoning (dried thyme, oregano, parsley, combined)
  • salt to taste
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
Lemon Caper Sauce Ingredients:
  • 2 tablespoons capers , drained
  • 4 garlic cloves , diced
  • 3 tablespoons lemon juice , freshly squeezed
  • 2 tablespoons butter , softened
Instructions
How to cook trout
  1. Season the tops of fish fillets with Italian herb seasoning and salt (generously). Fish fillets will have skins on the bottom.
  2. In a large skillet, heat olive oil on medium heat until heated but not smoking. 1 tablespoon of olive oil is enough as fish will release lots of its own oil (steelhead trout is a fatty kind of fish). Add steelhead trout fillets, skin side up, non-skin side down. Cook for about 1.5 minutes on medium heat, making sure the oil does not smoke.  

  3. Turn the fillets over, skin side down. Cook for another 1.5 minutes on medium-low heat (keeping oil from burning). 

  4. Remove from heat, close the pan with the lid, and let the trout sit for 5-10 minutes until flaky and cooked through completely.

  5. After the fish is cooked through, using spatula, carefully remove trout fillets to the plate, separating the fillet from the skin (skin will remain on the bottom of the pan). Carefully scrape the fish skin off the bottom of the pan, making sure to leave the fish oil in the pan.

How to make lemon caper sauce
  1. Add capers, diced garlic, and lemon juice to the same pan with oil. Cook on medium-low heat for about 1 minute, until garlic softens a bit. Remove from heat. Add 2 tablespoons of butter, off heat, to the caper sauce, stirring, until butter melts and forms a creamy mixture.
  2. Add fish back to the pan, spoon sauce over the fish and serve.
Nutrition Facts
Trout (or Salmon) with Garlic Butter Lemon Caper Sauce
Amount Per Serving
Calories 458 Calories from Fat 243
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 27g 42%
Saturated Fat 8g 40%
Cholesterol 151mg 50%
Sodium 333mg 14%
Potassium 871mg 25%
Total Carbohydrates 3g 1%
Protein 47g 94%
Vitamin A 7.8%
Vitamin C 9.9%
Calcium 13.1%
Iron 23.2%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
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Filed Under: Capers, Dinner, Gluten Free, Healthy, Recipe, Seafood, Seafood recipes Published: Sep 29, 2015 35 Comments

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Ramelle N McClelland

    Nov 22, 2019 at 12:06 pm

    Delicious!I served it with rice and broccoli

    Reply
  2. David Turner

    Sep 19, 2019 at 9:34 pm

    Just found this as I’m moving to a pescatarian diet. It’s amazing! Flavorful! A quick simple recipe with grilled asparagus and quinoa!

    Reply
    • Julia

      Sep 28, 2019 at 1:46 pm

      So happy you found this recipe useful! Serving the trout with grilled asparagus and quinoa sounds delicious!

      Reply
  3. Tammy Wilson

    Sep 10, 2019 at 9:31 pm

    Absolutely Delicious!! Thank you for sharing your recipe. Will definitely make again.

    Reply
    • Julia

      Sep 28, 2019 at 2:29 pm

      So glad you enjoyed it! 🙂

      Reply
  4. Phyllis Tipton

    Sep 07, 2019 at 6:09 pm

    Oh my I cannot Rave about this enough!!!! It is hands down my favorite dish! I use riced cauliflower instead of rice to put the trout and sauce on and I am in Heaven!!! I cant thank you enough!!!

    Reply
    • Julia

      Sep 28, 2019 at 2:55 pm

      I am so happy to read enthusiastic comments like this one! 🙂 So glad you enjoyed this recipe and thank you for your comment!

      Reply
  5. Kathy

    Jul 05, 2019 at 7:42 am

    Love this recipe! I have now made it twice and it came out great both times. I reduced the amount of fish to two since it is just the two of us eating and cut back on the other ingredients to match just using two pieces of fish. A real winner with a side of veggies of your choice or a salad.

    Reply
    • Julia

      Jul 22, 2019 at 2:36 pm

      Thank you, Kathy! So glad you made this recipe and enjoyed it!

      Reply
  6. Mohini Venkatesulu

    Jan 27, 2019 at 12:24 pm

    After scraping skin of fish from pan, do you put the skin on top & eat?
    Am going to try this recipe.

    Reply
    • Julia

      Jan 31, 2019 at 8:09 pm

      Just discard the fish skin. Enjoy the recipe!

      Reply
    • Daphene H Morris

      Mar 26, 2019 at 10:18 am

      I am OBSESSED with this fish! I found a beautiful piece, at Walmart of all places, and googled recipes until I found a pan frying one. This was incredible! I didn’t have capers, so I used olive juice. It was outstanding. I felt like I was eating high end restaurant food at home! Thank you for these clear directions!

      As for the skin, my daughter and I found that it added a lot of flavor, so we kept ours.

      I am so excited to try out more of your recipes!

      Reply
      • Julia

        Jun 03, 2019 at 6:29 pm

        Your comment made my day! I am so glad you tried this recipe and enjoyed it! Thank you so much for taking the time to write such a sweet and thoughtful comment. I really appreciate it!

        Reply
  7. Cat

    Jan 24, 2019 at 6:49 pm

    I agree…this recipe is amazing. Comes together beautifully. Thx so much.

    Reply
    • Julia

      Jan 31, 2019 at 8:27 pm

      You’re very welcome! Thank you for your kind comment!

      Reply
  8. qaz

    Jan 07, 2019 at 6:57 pm

    This is a fabulous recipe because the sauce has the feel of a creamy sauce without any creamy ingredients. It says I am omega rich and healthy while plying this delicious creamy buttery texture in your mouth. You don’t think it’s so much butter as perhaps an olive oil and butter and caper mixture. With penne pasta and Salmon this recipe delivered the best salmon I’ve had in the lower 48. (As a rule I won’t eat salmon anywhere but Alaska.) The fish comes out incredibly good. Add some broccoli and large pieces of carrots… Out of this world! Even the reheated leftovers are out of this world!

    Reply
    • Julia

      Jan 11, 2019 at 4:38 pm

      So glad you liked this recipe! :). Penne pasta and broccoli served along with the fish sound so good!

      Reply
  9. Barb cummings

    Dec 27, 2018 at 3:29 pm

    Whole family loves this recipe. So simple and so delicious…will be the only way to cook from now on!

    Reply
    • Julia

      Jan 11, 2019 at 5:28 pm

      Thank you, Barb! So happy to hear you loved this recipe! 🙂

      Reply
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