Smoked Trout Salad with Citrus Vinaigrette

This simple salad is favorite in our house. Why? Well, for one tinned smoked trout keeps practically indefinitely and is absolutely packed with flavor. In fact, it has become a pantry staple. The sweet, tart, bright and earthy citrus and tangy spicy mustard dressing compliments the smoky, salty fish in a wonderful way. These flavors are given the occasional wonderfully surprising pop from the odd fresh herb snippet in the salad mix. If you don’t have a supermarket nearby that offers an herb salad mix I’ve included a note below with suggestions on how to construct it. It really makes a difference in this recipe and is fairly simple, especially for those of us with herb gardens. I usually serve this salad with a homemade lentil soup, such as my lentil, bacon and Italian parsley soup (the recipe for which will be the subject of my next post)

Smoked Trout Salad with Citrus Vinaigrette

For the salad:
1 ounce sliced almonds
(1) 8 ounce bag herb salad mix*
5 ounces smoked tinned trout in oil, drained & oil set aside (see dressing ingredients)

For the dressing:
Zest & Juice of 1 orange
1 Tablespoon oil from smoked trout
1/2 teaspoon thyme leaves
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon thyme leaves
1/2 Tablespoon mirin or sherry
1 shallot, roughly chopped
2 Tablespoons dijon or stone ground mustard
Salt, to taste
Pepper, generously, to taste

1. Blend all dressing ingredients until smooth.
2. In the bottom of your large salad bowl flake trout finely.
3. Lay salad over fish, drizzle on dressing and toss to combine.
4. Sprinkle almond slices over the salad and serve.

*Alternatively (if you can’t find herb salad mix) 8 ounces of baby greens or spring mix and 3 - 4 very small sprigs each of Italian Parsley, Cilantro & Dill will do nicely