Caesar Salad with Crispy Fried Trout

Crispy-fried, panko-and-sesame-crusted fish with creamy dressing and crunchy salad greens. Could it get any better? Well actually, yeah it could. We need beer. Could you organise that?


Thanks to Goulburn River Trout and Seafood Industry Victoria for providing the fresh trout I used in this recipe. 


Caesar Salad with Crispy Fried Trout
adapted from Simply the Best
Serves 4

For the Fish:
4 fillets of skinless, boneless fresh rainbow trout
1/2 cup plain flour
1 egg whisked with 2 tablespoons milk
2 cups panko
1/2 cup sesame seeds
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 teaspoons oyster sauce
2 tablespoons ketchup
2 teaspoons sesame oil
Sunflower oil for deep frying

For the Dressing:
1 egg
1 clove garlic, peeled
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
150ml extra virgin olive oil
Juice 1 lime. plus extra lime wedges to serve
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan
Salt and pepper to taste

For the Salad:
1/2 baguette, thinly sliced and lightly grilled
2 baby cos lettuce, roughly chopped
250g punnet cherry tomatoes, halved
4 hard-boiled eggs, quartered

Make the Dressing:
Put all the dressing ingredients except the Parmesan, into a blender and blitz until smooth. Stir in the Parmesan and set aside.

Cook the Fish:
Cut the fish into 2cm thick slices. Put them in a bowl and add the soy sauce, oyster sauce, ketchup and sesame oil. Toss to coat. Set aside.

Put the flour into a bowl and put the egg whisked with the milk into a another bowl. Pour the panko and sesame seeds onto a large baking tray and mix them together. Set aside.

 Dredge the fish in the flour, dip them in the egg mixture and then coat them in panko and sesame mixture.

Heat the oil in a large pan and when it reaches 180C, drop the fish in and cook until golden. Cook the fish in batches and drain them on a wire rack suspended over paper towels. Set aside.

Make the Salad: 
Lay the chopped lettuce in a large serving bowl. Scatter in the halved tomatoes and sliced and grilled baguette. Lay the crispy fried trout on top along with the quartered eggs. Drizzle with some of the dressing. Serve with extra lime wedges and the remaining dressing on the side.