Grilled Trout with Barley and Roast Vegetables

A delightfully flavorsome dish that’s also extremely healthy for you. Our Grilled Trout with Barley and Roast Vegetables recipe is a simple one to make, and the flavors are amazing. A perfectly cooked piece of Grilled Trout with crispy skin is placed over a bed of Barley that’s loaded with tasty Roast Vegetables. Finishing off the dish is a bright and vibrant Yoghurt Sauce flavored with Dill, Lemon, and Garlic. The flavors come together perfectly in this healthy and fun meal

How to make perfect Grilled Trout with Barley and Roast Vegetables

This dish has four components. That may sound like a lot, but it’s really not. For the best result I would suggest starting this recipe a few hours out from eating. This way you can have all the components ready. The only element that needs to be cooked right before serving is the Trout, the rest can be made in advance

The four elements needed to cook our Grilled Trout with Barley dish is the Trout (obviously!), Roasting the Vegetables, cooking the Barley, and finally making an amazing Dill Yoghurt sauce to serve

Begin by grilling the Vegetables

An easy first step in this dish is grilling the Vegetables. This has got to be one of the easiest methods for cooking Veggies, and it tastes the best. Roughly chop the Vegetables up and scatter them over a large sheet pan. You may even need two sheet pans depending on what Vegetables you’re using

We use a combination of Onions, Carrot, Celery, and Bell Pepper. Keep the Bell Pepper whole as it requires the skin and core to be peeled and removed once it’s cooked. Season the Vegetables generously with Olive Oil and Salt before roasting in the oven at 400F for about 35 – 40 minutes, turning halfway through

Once cooked, remove the Vegetables from the Oven and set them aside to cool, then chop into small pieces. For the Bell Pepper, allow it to cool then peel and discard the skin and core, then chop up and pair with the remaining Veggies

You can cook the Barley in advance, or cook while the Veggies are roasting

It’s up to you, but to save time you can get started on the Barley once the Vegetables are in the Oven. It’s very easy to make too, simply add it to a saucepan along with Chicken or Vegetable Broth (you can also just use water). Bring to a boil, then simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes until the Barley is cooked and tender

You can replace the Barley with Farro if you like. They have similar flavor and textural components and cooking them requires the same method. Once the Barley / Farro is cooked, season it generously with Salt and taste before mixing in the chopped Vegetables

You can then simply leave the Barley in the saucepan while you finish preparing the dish. Just re-heat it over a medium heat while stirring for a few minutes just before serving and it’ll be perfect

A surefire way to guarantee crispy Trout skin every time

This technique is one we adopted for Salmon, but it works just as well with Trout and many other types of fish. The key to getting crispy fish skin is removing moisture from the skin before it’s cooked. In the case of Trout, there is a layer of fishy ‘gunk’ (that’s the best way I can describe it) that coats the outer skin

The gunk can be easily removed by simply scraping it off with a butter knife. You don’t want to scrape the skin too aggressively to damage it but simply scrape along the surface a bunch of times lightly. You will notice some grey gunk will begin to appear on the knife. Simply remove it and repeat it until the knife runs clean

I then like to Salt the skin generously and leave it out at room temperature for 30 minutes or so. The Salt will draw out more moisture from the skin which you can then easily pat away with a paper towel. Ensure the skin is dry before you begin cooking the Trout

Cooking the Trout

Add a touch of Neutral Oil to a frying pan set over medium heat. Once hot, place the Trout skin-side down onto the Oil. Press down on the flesh side of the Trout to ensure all of the skin maintains good contact with the pan. Season the flesh with Salt at this point

Then, simply fry it up for about 5 – 6 minutes until crispy and golden-brown. Flip the Trout over and fry it for a few more minutes on the flesh side and it’s cooked. I like to have my Trout slightly under, so it’ll be beautiful and pink and slightly opaque in the center

A Dill Yoghurt Sauce pairs perfectly over our Grilled with Barley and Roast Vegetables

This is a classic pairing with fish, and this dish is no exception. The vibrant flavors of Dill pair wonderfully with an easy Yoghurt Sauce mixed with Lemon Juice, Lemon Zest, and finely diced Garlic. Simply mix all these ingredients together in a bowl and then set aside

You can prepare the Yoghurt Sauce in advance and refrigerate it until ready to serve. It’s a super-versatile sauce as well, so any leftovers you have can be used in a variety of dishes. Even try spreading it over some crusty bread, it tastes great!

Plating

For quite a simple dish, our Grilled Trout with Barley ends up looking beautiful on the plate. The vibrant pops of color from the Trout and those wonderful Roast Vegetables makes for a tasty looking dish. To plate, add a few generous spoonful’s of the Barley mixture to a plate or bowl then top with a piece of Trout

Finish the dish by spooning over some of those wonderful Dill Yoghurt Sauce straight over the Trout. You can serve the dish with a few Lemon Wedges if you like and sprinkle the dish with some Flaky Sea Salt. Serve the Trout with some additional Yoghurt Sauce in a separate bowl and it’s ready!

Grilled Trout with Barley and Roast Vegetables Recipe

Ingredients

Roast Vegetable Ingredients

• 1 Bell Pepper
• 1 Yellow Onion, peeled and quartered
• 3 Celery Stalks, cut into large chunks
• 2 Carrots, peeled and cut into large chunks
• 2 tbsp. Olive Oil
• 1 tsp. of Salt
  
  

Barley Ingredients

• 1 cup of Pearl Barley (you can also use Farro)
• 3 cups of Chicken or Vegetable Broth (recipes here)
• ½ tsp. of Salt
  
  

Yoghurt Sauce Ingredients

• 3 tbsp. Greek Yoghurt
• Juice of ½ a Lemon
• Zest of ½ a Lemon
• 1 Garlic Cloves, finely diced
• 1 tsp. Dill, roughly chopped
• Pinch of Salt
  
  

Grilled Trout Ingredients

• 2 Trout Filets, skin on
• 1 tsp. Neutral Frying Oil
• Salt
  
  

Instructions

1. Remove the Trout from the refrigerator and place it on a flat surface. Carefully scrape the skin with a butter knife to remove the gunk until the knife runs clean. Season the skin with Salt then set aside for 30 minutes
2. Place the Vegetables on a large sheet pan (you may need 2) and season with Olive Oil and Salt. Roast in the oven at 400F for 35 – 40 minutes until caramelized and charred
3. Remove Vegetables from the Oven and allow to cool. Peel and discard the skin and core of the Bell Pepper, then dice all Vegetables into small pieces
   
   

Cooking the Barley & preparing the Yoghurt Sauce

4. While the Vegetables are roasting, add the Stock to a saucepan and bring to a boil. Add the Barley then drop the heat to a Simmer
5. Simmer for 30 minutes while stirring occasionally until the liquid has all absorbed. Season with Salt and them mix through the Roast Vegetables
6. To make the Yogurt Sauce, simply combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Taste for seasoning then set aside
   
   

Cooking the Trout

7. Add the Oil to a large frying pan over medium heat until hot. Remove any excess moisture from the skin of the Trout with a paper towel then place skin-side down into the pan
8. Press down on the flesh of the Trout to ensure all the skin makes good contact with the pan. Season the flesh with Salt then grill for 5 minutes util the skin is crispy and golden-brown
9. Flip the fish over and cook for a further 2 – 3 minutes then remove from heat
10. Plate the dish by placing a few heaped spoonful’s of the Barley and Vegetables into a bowl. Top with a piece of Fish then spoon over some Yoghurt Sauce
    
    

Recipe Notes

• You can prepare the Barley with Vegetables and Yoghurt Sauce in advance. Simply reheat the Barley on the stovetop before serving
• You can replace the Trout with Salmon if you prefer
  
  

This healthy Grilled Trout with Barley and Roast Vegetables is so packed full of flavors! Each bite brings something new to the table, from the sharpness of that Yoghurt Sauce to the fatty, silkiness of the Fish and richness of the Roast Vegetables

If you are looking for more tasty and healthy meals such as this one, check out some of our other tasty recipes:

• Baked Salmon with Lemon and Leeks
• Greek Meatball Salad
• The Ultimate Poke Bowl
• Beef and Barley Soup with Vegetables
  
  

Happy Cooking!