For the ultimate fish fry, try this easy, flavor-packed trout recipe! Trout fillet coated in Mediterranean spices and quickly seared in extra virgin olive oil. Ready in just over 15 minutes!
Serve it with Greek tzatziki, salad, and a side of baked sweet potato fries. Lots more ideas + step-by-step instructions and important tips below.
Looking for one of the fastest cooking proteins for easy dinners? Trout fillet may be your answer.
If you’ve been here a while, you probably know fish is a staple Mediterranean diet protein.
My family does fish regularly, and we try to change things up here and there. Some of our go-to’s are salmon burgers, baked halibut and veggies, lemon garlic baked salmon, grilled swordfish, and everyone’s favorite, Greek baked cod!
And when it’s fish fry night, I’ll often use rainbow trout. Trout is a delicate and mild-tasting fish that most people enjoy. And because trout fillets are thin, you can season them and throw them in a skillet to cook in a little extra virgin olive oil.
Rainbow Trout
If you’re not familiar with rainbow trout, it is considered a member of the salmon family. It’s silver with some black spots; its flesh can be white, pink, or orange.
Trout flesh is tender, flaky and soft. What does it taste like? Rainbow trout has a delicate, mild, and slightly nutty flavor.
Many people wonder if trout tastes like salmon, but it all depends on the kind of trout you buy. Some rainbow trout can have a white flesh while others are more pink or orange. The color variation depends on the trout’s diet and if the fish is wild or farm raised.
With that being said, rainbow trout is milder, less fishy, and less fatty than salmon. And you’ll find that trout meat is more delicate and softer than salmon (salmon is quite hardy and less flaky.) Trout fillet is quite thin, which makes it a great candidate for pan searing like in this recipe or in something like fish piccata.
What I love about this trout recipe
This pan fried trout recipe is delicious and as easy as 1, 2, 3.
1. First, the thin fish fillets take on a couple of spices–coriander, paprika, and a dash of organic garlic powder, if you like.
2. Then we give the trout a light coating of flour, this is a bit of an optional step, but I find it helps protect the delicate fish, while also developing nice crispy texture (you can use gluten free flour if you like).
3. A quick pan sear in extra virgin olive oil (about 3 minutes or so on each side) and this fish fry dinner is ready!
If you want to keep things simple, add a dollop of tangy tzatziki or a drizzle of tahini and a large salad and you’re good to go. (My kids always want rice with their fish, though).
Ingredients
Rainbow trout fillets – this recipe uses a trout fillet or butterflied trout fillet. This cut makes it easier to work with and it cooks faster. If you can only find whole trout at your fish monger’s, just ask them to fillet or butterfly the fish for you.
Spices – to flavor this mild fish, we have a simple spice mixture of coriander, sweet paprika, and a little garlic powder (you can use garlic paste, if you prefer, but the powder works better for searing).
TIP: You can change up the spices to your liking. For example, if you’re looking for a little smoky kick, use smoked paprika. Or give your fish a bit of a Greek twist with some dry oregano! One of my favorite spice mixtures is Ras El Hanout, which works great on fish! (You can find our all-natural and organic spices here).
Flour – a small amount of flour is used to lightly coat the fillets. This protects the fish so it won’t stick to the pan, but also allows the fish to develop a golden brown crust. You can use gluten free flour if you like.
Extra virgin olive oil – For shallow frying, I use Private Reserve Greek extra virgin olive oil (you can find our olive oils here). To be sure the oil olive oil is just at the right temperature for cooking before you add the fish, watch the bottom of the pan while it is heating. Once you see wave-like ripples, the oil has reached its desired temperature.
Lime juice– the cooked fillets are finished with a generous squeeze of fresh lime juice to add the perfect tang and acidity! I highly recommend you don’t skip this step.
How to Cook Trout Fillet: Step-by-Step
Step 1: Dry and season the fish
Pat the rainbow trout fillets dry with a paper towel. Season with salt and pepper to taste and sprinkle the spice mixture (coriander, paprika, and garlic powder) on both sides.
Step 2: Dredge in flour
Coat the seasoned fillets in the flour and be sure to shake off the excess so the excess flour doesn’t burn in the pan.
Step 3: Sear in Olive Oil
Heat about 3 to 4 tablespoons of a quality extra virgin olive oil (I used Private Reserve Greek EVOO) over medium -high heat. Put the fish skin side down and sear for 3 minutes. Gently flip with a spatula and cook for an additional 3 minutes.
Important: How to cook fish in extra virgin olive oil?
To be sure the oil olive oil is just at the right temperature for cooking before you add the fish, watch the bottom of the pan while it is heating. Once you see wave-like ripples, the oil has reached its desired temperature. If you’re still not sure, throw a pinch of flour in the pan and wait for it to bubble a little (don’t wait until the oil is bubbling too much or smoking).
Step 4: Drain excess oil & finish
Place the cooked fish on a baking sheet lined with paper towels to soap up any excess oil. Finish with a splash of lime juice. Serve immediately!
Can you eat trout skin?
I use trout fillets with skin on all the time! So yes, you can eat the skin. In fact, when you cook trout correctly, the skin is crispy and dripping with flavor, just like crispy pan seared salmon skin.
What to serve along
For a tasty trout dinner, you can serve with a side of tangy tzatziki sauce and quick arugula salad, tossed with citrus and extra virgin olive oil.
But here are some great options to serve along:
– Salads: Shirazi salad, chickpea salad, or Mediterranean couscous salad
– Sides: crispy brussels sprouts, loaded baked potato, roasted cauliflower
Leftovers
Fish leftovers can be a bit tricky to reheat, which is why I suggest eating any leftovers you have either cold or at room temperature. Reheating a delicate fish like rainbow trout can be very easy to overcook and dry out.
Try adding the cold fish to a salad or eat the room temperature fish with your favorite warm side like rice, couscous, etc. Heck even use in some fish tacos if you’re feeling creative!
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Mediterranean Pan Seared Trout Recipe with Tzatziki
- Total Time: 16 minutes
- Yield: serves 4
Description
One of the easiest and best trout recipes I’ve tried! Trout fillets, seasoned with a couple of warm spices, and quickly seared in extra virgin olive oil. Serve it with a dollop of Greek tzatziki and a big salad for an easy dinner.
More ideas in the notes, and be sure to see the step-by-step photos and tips in the post.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp sweet paprika
- 1 tsp all-natural garlic powder (or 1 to 2 tsp garlic paste)
- 1 1/2 lb trout fillet (or butterflied trout fillet as in the pictures)
- Salt and Pepper
- All-purpose flour for coating (no more than 1/2 cup)
- Extra virgin olive oil (I used Private Reserve Greek EVOO)
- Lime wedges, for serving
Instructions
- Mix the coriander, paprika, and garlic powder in a small mixing bowl.
- Pat the trout fillet dry. Sprinkle with salt and black pepper on both sides, then season with the spices on both sides.
- Coat the seasoned fish with the flour, shake off any excess flour (you only want a very thin layer).
- In a large cast iron skillet, heat about 3 to 4 tbsp olive oil over medium-high heat until shimmering but not smoking (see note). Sear the trout fillets for 3 minutes on each side (start with skin-side down, and use a spatula to very carefully flip the fish fillets over).
- Remove the fish from the pan and place it on a tray lined with paper towel to absorb any excess oil.
- Transfer to serving platter and finish with a squeeze of fresh lime juice.
Notes
- Cook’s Tip for searing: to be sure the oil olive oil is just at the right temperature for cooking before you add the fish, watch the bottom of the pan while it is heating. Once you see wave-like ripples, the oil has reached its desired temperature. If you’re still not sure, throw a pinch of flour in the pan and wait for it to bubble a little (don’t wait until the oil is bubbling too much or smoking).
- Cook’s Tip: you can use frozen fish fillets but they must be properly thawed in the fridge before using. If trout is not available to you, a thin fish fillet such as sole fillet will work in this recipe.
- What to Serve Along? Salads: Shirazi salad, chickpea salad, or Mediterranean couscous salad. Sides: crispy brussels sprouts, loaded baked potato, or roasted cauliflower
- Visit our online shop to browse Mediterranean ingredients including spices and olive oil used in this recipe.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 6 mins
- Category: Fish and Seafood
- Method: Seared
- Cuisine: Mediterranean
- This post first appeared on The Mediterranean Dish in 2017 and has been recently updated with new information for readers’ benefit.
Wow, this was really good. I followed the recipe exactly, except I seared the skin side a little longer since I wanted it to get very crispy. It was delicious. Will make again, thanks so much for sharing!
So glad you enjoyed it, Eve!
It came out the way you described it and my husband really liked this dish. He usually doesn’t say anything until I ask but he said he like it from the first bite without being asked! He thought I ordered it. Thank you for sharing the complete detail of the recipe. It’s perfectly delicious.
Awesome! Thanks, Liza!
I’ve just made this recipe with your Tazatziki Sauce, a Greek salad and spanakopita with a nice bottle of Sauvignon Blanc and I can only describe it as a gustatorial orgasm! My wife and I usually discuss the days events over diner but this one was completely silent. We didn’t want to interrupt our enjoyment of the meal. We are very fortunate to be able to get excellent quality trout here in Ontario and your recipe made it shine. You can bet I will be trying out some of your other recipes.
So glad you and your wife enjoyed the recipe, Griff!
Can I use red snapper for this recipe?
A wonderful recipe! My roommate and I followed the cooking instructions exactly since this was our first time cooking trout, and it was as perfect as could be. We had to change up the spices cause we didn’t have any coriander, so we used lemon pepper, garlic powder and dried oregano, which was delicious. Other than that, we did everything straight off the page. And I have to add, with having minimal cooking skills I cannot say thank you enough for the extra instructions. Knowing when the oil was ready, the flour trick, which side to cook first, etc. – having complete, step-by-step instructions of the process was invaluable. Thank you for a recipe I’ll come back to for sure!
Hi, Katlin! So glad you found the instructions helpful and enjoyed the recipe!
Made this pan fried trout and made like recipe only I didn’t have coriander but used smoked Paprika, garlic powder, dill seasoning( which I love) , pepper, salt and some lime juice on the end! Was so good and will make again for sure!
Thanks, Linda!
Wonderful recipe, although the cooking time is too long! I did 3 mins on the skin side and 1 min on the flesh side, which was perfect for the thicker part of the fish but even too much for the thinner part.
A few other tips: 1) use the skin! It’s the tastiest pet especially if you let it get crisp. It’s also very nutrient dense. 2) don’t forget to check for pinboard and take them out before cooking – it’s unpleasant to have one stab you in your gums. 3) if you grind whole coriander, it’s kinda amazing here. Like next level amazing.
Thanks for sharing your tips, Vince!
Loved this ….the only thing was I baked it in foil boat instead of pan searing because I wanted less work and used regular paprika as I didn’t have sweet paprika. Definitely a keeper. I want to eat more of a Mediterranean diet to lose weight so glad I found this site
Thanks for sharing, Alyssa! And welcome to The Mediterranean Dish!! 🙂
Made this last night and subbed a drizzle of garlic oil for the powdered and skipped the flour coating as I BBQed on a hot oiled grill. We had leftover raita which we used instead of tzatziki as an addition and this was a huge hit.
So easy and great flavour! Entire family loved it. Fantastic healthy weeknight dinner.
Thanks for sharing your variation, Tenley! So glad you enjoyed it
This recipe is great!! It’s just the two of us so I cut down the measurements
I didn’t have sweet paprika so I used hot paprika.
This recipe is fast. easy and excellent!!!
So glad you enjoyed it, Peggy!
This was a great meal for hubby and me. The flavors were delightful…a keeper!
Yay! Thanks, Janet!
I had never used coriander before and decided to give it a whirl. Glad I did because this recipe was insanely delicious, and my Mediterranean husband was delighted by both the flavors and the familiar (to him) cooking method. Thank you!
My pleasure, Magen! So glad you guys loved the recipe!
No coriander in my house so I’m substituting w dried cilantro leaves?
The flavor of the dried cilantro is a bit different, but I still think it would work here.
Made this tonight with a couple of nopales side dishes. We are having leftovers as fish tacos.
It was really really good!
Thank you very much for the recipe.
My pleasure, Lory! So glad you enjoyed it!
What a great way to enjoy trout! Adding this to my dinner line up for this week! Looks delish!
The coriander adds such great flavor!
I agree! 🙂
Wow this looks like a delicious and easy meal!!
Thank you! Enjoy!
I don’t think I’ve ever cooked with rainbow trout but I’m always game for anything with Mediterranean flavors! I cannot resist!!
Hope you love it, Jen!
Oh my goodness! I am in heaven! I love it so much!
I am so happy to hear that, Catalina! Thank you so much!
Oh my, this looks and sounds incredibly delicious!! YUM!
Thanks, Katerina! Hope you give it a try!