Smoked trout dip with crispy fish skin recipe

I used to make a version of taramasalata (the Greek fish-roe dip) with the flesh of salmon I smoked at home, and called it salmonata. But a few years back, as the controversy over intense salmon farming increased, I converted to smoking large trout. Since ‘troutalata’ doesn’t sound quite right, let’s just call it a (delicious) smoked trout dip. I grill the fish skin to serve as crisps for dunking along with my Turkish balloon flatbreads, but you can of course use any bread or dipping ingredients you like.

Timings

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 6 minutes

Serves

4

Ingredients 

• 20g white bread, crusts removed
• 200g smoked trout (ideally from the belly of the fish), skin removed and reserved
• Juice of ¼ medium lemon
• A pinch of cayenne pepper, plus extra to serve
• Flatbreads, to serve

Method

1. Soak the bread in some water for a couple of minutes then squeeze out the water with your hands and place the bread in a food processor with the smoked salmon flesh. 
2. Blend to a purée then gradually add 100-150ml water (judge the texture as you go; you might not need it all), continuing to blend until well combined and smooth.
3. Add the lemon juice, cayenne pepper and some seasoning, and more water if necessary to lighten the mix. Don’t be afraid to add more water as the consistency should be smooth and shiny.
4. Lay the trout skin on a baking tray or ovenproof frying pan and grill it for a few minutes on each side until crisp. Set on kitchen paper and leave to cool.
5. Serve the trout dip, sprinkled with a little more cayenne, with the crisp skin and flatbreads for dunking.