Katz Trout
in the kitchen with douglas katz

There’s nothing more spectacular than a rainbow of vegetables and a whole roasted fish on the table. Douglas Katz, chef/owner of Fire Food and Drink, recently shared this simple yet colorful whole fish preparation he’s been serving up for years.
To thank Douglas for sharing his time, BurkleHagen has donated $100 to the Greater Cleveland Food Bank—we’d love you to do the same.
Stylist: Claire Vredevoogd
Katz Trout
1 | whole 2 lb trout |
1 | lemon, sliced thin |
5 | sprigs fresh thyme, divided |
5 | sprigs fresh parsley, divided |
2 ears | sweet corn |
1 cup | cherry tomatoes |
1 | medium zucchini, cubed |
8 | cipollini onions, halved |
8 | slices bacon |
2 tbsp | pure maple syrup |
kosher salt | |
fresh ground black pepper | |
olive oil | |
kitchen twine |
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 400°. Arrange bacon onto foil-lined pan. Bake 15-18 minutes until fat begins to render. Remove from oven and brush bacon evenly with maple syrup. Return to oven and bake again until brown. Drain and cool on wire rack.
2. Turn oven up to 450°. Scale, gut and clean trout. Score the skin on each side with three diagonal cuts, 1/4 inch deep. Season fish all over with salt and pepper. Stuff each cavity with a sprig of thyme, parsley and lemon slice. Tie the trout crosswise with two lengths of kitchen twine, spaced 2 inches apart. Rub trout with olive oil and transfer to foil-lined pan.
3. In a medium bowl—toss cherry tomatoes, zucchini and onions with olive oil, salt and pepper. Arrange veggies around trout on pan and bake 15 minutes, turning the trout over halfway through.
4. Bring a pot of water to a boil, season water with salt. Add corn to pot, boil for 3 minutes. Transfer corn onto kitchen towel to dry. Using tongs, carefully char the corn over an open burner and then set aside to cool.
5. Once trout is golden brown, remove pan from oven. Remove twine and transfer fish onto a serving platter, leaving the veggies on the pan. Cut corn off the cobs. Toss corn onto pan and roast all veggies in 450°oven for 5-10 minutes.
6. Remove veggies from oven. Rough chop maple-glazed bacon to mix into roasted veggies. arrange mixture around trout on the platter. Scatter remaining herbs over the dish, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle sea salt to finish.
