Trout Recipe with Garlic Lemon Butter Herb Sauce - simple and delicious way to cook fish, especially if you're in a hurry! The whole recipe takes only 30 minutes. Italian herb seasoning, chopped fresh parsley and garlic give great flavor to the fish! Healthy, low-carb dinner rich in lean protein and omega-3 fatty acids.
Trout fillets are usually pretty thin which makes them perfect for cooking on stove top in a skillet. One of the best trout recipes I've tried is simply cooking the trout in the skillet in olive oil, and then adding garlic, lemon juice, white wine, fresh parsley and butter. That's it! Simple and delicious.
What makes this trout recipe work:
- The ingredient list for this trout recipe is short and simple.
- The trout itself is such a delicate fish with a great flavor, it doesn't need too many ingredients or special technique to enhance it. So, just cook it in a large skillet on stove top with olive oil and butter, garlic, butter, lemon juice, white wine, fresh parsley.
- The cooking times are short since trout fillets are usually pretty thin. This trout recipe takes only 30 minutes from start to finish.
I have also made this recipe using the type of fish I've never cooked with before - Arctic Char. Arctic Char looks very similar to trout, and it's closely related to both salmon and trout. Therefore, this recipe will also work with salmon and arctic char. Very easy and versatile!
Other trout recipes
- Another simple way to cook trout is simply to enhance it with capers, garlic, lemon and butter. I combined just those ingredients to make this easy and delicious Trout with Caper-Garlic Lemon Butter Sauce. And yes, I used steelhead trout for this recipe but you can use a regular trout.
- I made this recipe with salmon - but it is easily adaptable for trout: Garlic Parmesan Crusted Salmon and Asparagus
Trout with Garlic Lemon Butter Herb Sauce
Ingredients
- 1.5 pounds trout or salmon, or arctic char - 2 large fish fillets with skin on the bottom
- 2 tablespoons olive oil more, if needed
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning (dried thyme, oregano, parsley, combined together)
- ¼ teaspoon salt to taste
- 4 garlic cloves diced
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice freshly squeezed
- 2 tablespoons white wine
- 2 tablespoons butter softened
- 2 tablespoons parsley chopped
Instructions
- Season the top of fish fillets with Italian herb seasoning and salt (generously). Fish fillets will have skins on the bottom - no need to season the skins.
- In a large skillet (large enough to fit 2 fish fillets), heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil on medium heat until heated but not smoking. To the hot skillet with olive oil, add fish fillets skin side up - flesh side down. Cook the flesh side of the fish for about 3-5 minutes on medium heat, making sure the oil does not smoke, until lightly browned.
- Flip the fillets over to the other side, skin side down (add more oil, if needed). Cook for another 2-4 minutes on medium heat (to prevent oil from burning).
- Remove the skillet from heat, close with the lid, and let the fish sit for 5-10 minutes, covered, in the skillet, until flaky and cooked through completely.
- After the fish is cooked through, off heat, using spatula, carefully remove fillets to the plate, separating the fish from the skin. Carefully remove or scrape the fish skin off the bottom of the pan, making sure to leave all the cooking oils in the pan.
- Add diced garlic, lemon juice, and white wine to the same pan with oil. Cook on medium-low heat for about 1 minute, until garlic softens a bit. Remove from heat. Add 1 tablespoon of chopped parsley, and 2 tablespoons of butter, off heat, to the sauce, stirring, until the butter melts and forms a creamy mixture.
- Add fish to the pan, spoon sauce over the fish, top the fish and sauce with the remaining 1 tablespoon of parsley, and serve.
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer:
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
What have I been cooking in my kitchen?
1 Year Ago: Seared Scallops with Creamy Lemon-Caper Sauce
2 Years Ago: Cilantro Lime Potato Salad
crissi
A delicious recipe. Eating my trout while typing this. Next time adding the wine. Thanks!
Julia
Wine would be a great addition!!
LINDA
GREAT RECIPE, EASY AND QUICK. LOVED IT!
Julia
Glad you loved it, Linda! ❤️
Dia
This was such a simple recipe and the trout turned out amazing! I will definitely make this again very soon!
Julia
Thanks, Dia, for trying this recipe and sharing your 5-star review - it means a lot to me. 🙂
stephen roberts
I had some Sea trout in the freezer
I searched Easy Trout recipient in Google and found yours. That was easy, I had all the ingredients in had it with Salad . It was lovely thank you!!
Julia
Aww, thank you, Stephen, for such a wonderful review! I am glad my recipe did not disappoint! 🙂
sylviawhite
am I amble to cook Trout on the BBQ and for how long
Julia
Hi Sylvia, I've never cooked it on BBQ, so I am of no help here, unfortunately.
Sherry
This is an amazing recipe...I will definitely use again!
Julia
Thank you, Sherry, for taking the time to share your review!! 🙂
Sandy
Wonderful!!!!
Julia
Thank you, Sandy! 🙂
Sandino
I liked this recipe very much. Fairly easy and very tasty!
Julia
Thank you, Sandino, I am glad you loved it! 🙂
Kathleen Monaco
This is the best recipe for rainbow trout. I made this last night, so easy and so good. I recently found your blog and love your recipes. Thank you!
Julia
Thank you, Kathleen, you are so sweet! 🙂
Joan
Made this recipe tonight and it was delicious and quick and easy as well. Thanks
Julia
Thank you for your review, Joan! Glad you loved it! 🙂
Ciara
Can I make this without the white wine? Or will it taste funky ?
Julia
Ciara, you can skip the white wine altogether. Or, you can use 2 tablespoons of olive oil or butter instead!
Claudia Mc
How can I reduce the cholesterol in this recipe?
Mandy
This is a fabulous recipe! I had some thin trout filets so I reduced the fry time alot. The sauce is devine!!!
Julia
Wow, thank you, Mandy, for such a wonderful review! 🙂
Tara
Omitted the wine simply because I forgot to add it! It turned out perfectly fine.
Julia
Thank you, Tara, for this feedback!
Lu
By far the simplest and absolutely tastiest fish recipe ever!
Julia
Lu, thank you for this rave review - I really appreciate it! 🙂
Gina
I made this with salmon and used dried parsley and basil instead of the Italian seasoning, since I didn’t want the oregano. So easy to make and delicious.
Julia
Gina, I am so happy you loved this! 🙂 Thank you for such a positive review! ❤️
Karen
WOW!!!!! This recipe is a favourite in our home!!! The flavours are amazing!!! It's a simple recipe, easy to make, staple ingredients and it's really delicious!!! We have served it for family and friends and everyone agrees! It melts in your mouth! Enjoy!!!
Julia
Karen, thank you for your rave review - it means so much to me! ❤️❤️
Lisa
Question: Can I successfully cook this in a cast iron skillet? This is an important meal, so I want it to be just right. I am afraid that the skillet might impart some blackness to it all.
Thanks for a prompt reply!
Lisa
Julia
Lisa, I am very sorry for the late response, but yes, you can cook this in a cast iron skillet. The kind of cast iron I like to use (Staub brand) will definitely not add any blackness to the sauce. The traditional cast iron skillet (properly seasoned, etc) should work just fine, too.