Chef Tom – Rainbow Trout, Rainbow Girls, Cilantro-Lime Rice and the Shook Twins

This is one of those recipes that could be switched up very easily. It will work with whatever fish is freshest and available. If you don’t have trout fillets, you could use cod or tilapia or even salmon. Pretty much any firm fish will do, skin on or off, depending on what you like. The sauce would even work with a piece of chicken, or a pork tenderloin.

You can pan-fry for a crispy skin, or broil, or even roast. If you have a sous vide at home, cook your fish and finish with the sauce. You could lean more towards Thailand and VietNam by splitting the difference between soy sauce and fish sauce. Add a couple of shakes of good curry powder. Change the toppings to sliced green onions, cilantro leaves, thin slices of colored bell pepper, or throw on some toasted almonds or peanuts. Tons of possibility.

And any of these methods would work fine with the Cilantro-Lime Rice.

Pan-Fried Trout on Cilantro-Lime Rice

Pan-Fried Trout Filets with Sesame-Ginger Sauce

Serves 4

Ingredients:
1 teaspoon chopped fresh ginger

3 Tablespoons lite (low sodium) soy sauce

1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

1 Tablespoon rice wine vinegar

1 teaspoon honey

2 Tablespoons olive oil

4 6 oz. trout fillets

Freshly cracked black pepper to taste

2 Tablespoons chopped red chili

¼ cup chopped parsley

1 teaspoon sesame seeds

Directions:
Combine the ginger, sesame oil, soy sauce, rice vinegar and honey in a bowl, and set aside.

Heat the olive oil in a large non-skillet over medium-high heat. Season the trout with a little salt and some pepper.

Place the fish in the skillet flesh-side down and cook 3-4 minutes. Carefully flip fish over and cook 3 minutes more.

Transfer fish to 2 dinner plates, spoon over sauce mixture, sprinkle with parsley, sesame seeds and red chili. Serve with Cilantro-Lime Rice.

Cilantro-Lime Rice

Serves 4

Ingredients:
1 cup long-grain white rice

Coarse salt

1/2 cup fresh cilantro

2 Tablespoons fresh lime juice

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 garlic clove

Directions:
In a medium saucepan, bring 1 1/2 cups water to a boil. Add rice and 1/4 teaspoon salt; cover, and reduce to a simmer. Cook until water is absorbed and rice is just tender, 16 to 18 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a blender, combine cilantro, lime juice, oil, garlic, and 2 tablespoons water; blend until smooth. Stir into cooked rice, and fluff with a fork.

On That Note

A few posts ago I put up a tasty trio called Rainbow Girls. I paid a recent visit to their website to see what tour info I could find and found out they’ll be in my neighborhood soon, as second billing behind The Shook Twins. I loved the name Shook Twins, so I had to look them up. Identical twin sisters Katelyn Shook [vocals, guitar] and Laurie Shook [banjo, vocals] are a modern day bluegrass and folk pop band with high-sweet vocals and quirky tunes.

We love quirky.

Rainbow Girls

How I first fell in love with these gals:

Down Home Girl

Shook Twins

Here are three tunes from their pretty wide collection of great music.

From their website:
Everybody in your life will write his or her own chapter in your story. Take a step back, and you’ll see the influence of your loved ones, mentors, and friends in your decisions. Shook Twins refer to these folks in the title of their fourth album, Some Good Lives. Throughout fourteen tracks, the duo—identical twin sisters Katelyn Shook [vocals, guitar] and Laurie Shook [banjo, vocals]—pay homage to everyone from a late grandpa and godfather to Bernie Sanders.

“We realized there was a theme,” Katelyn reveals. “Even though our minds are mostly on the women of today and wanting the monarchy to rise up, we have several men in our lives who have been such positive forces. We wanted to thank them and honor the good guys who showed us the beauty in this crazy world we live in. So, it’s an album for Some Good Lives that have crossed paths with ours—and to them, we are grateful.”

Overlap

What We Do

Stay Wild

A deeper listen

=CTH=

Chef Tom is currently Resident Chef for a small tech firm in San Francisco. He also teaches cooking classes, caters small parties and leads overseas culinary tours. His specialty for the last twelve years has been cooking for people with food allergies and sensitivities. His motto is “Food should give you pleasure, not pressure.”

Check him out at www.hippkitchen.com