Hay‑roasted Itchen brown trout
Hay‑roasted Itchen brown trout
Beat 7 on the River Itchen, Hampshire: a clear run over chalk, bright gravel, and a two‑pound brown trout lifted from watercress shadows. Chalk‑stream trout carry river in their flesh. They take hay like smoke takes a shoulder of lamb.
Catch and prep
Pick a trout about 1–3 lb, firm and clean. Scale and gut. Leave head and tail if wanted; the skin holds the roast. Score the flanks. Pat dry and salt inside the cavity. Slip in a slice of lemon and a few thyme sprigs. Remove pin bones or run a fillet knife along the backbone and leave whole for roasting.
Hay roasting method
Soak a handful of meadow hay briefly, squeeze out excess. Lay a bed of hay in an oiled cast-iron skillet or a shallow tray. Set the trout on the hay and cover with more hay. Build low embers riverside or use a camp stove for steady heat. Roast 12–18 minutes; skin chars, flesh flakes when ready. For a cookhouse, preheat oven to 220°C and roast in a hay-lined tray for 10–15 minutes.
Nettle butter and watercress
Blanch a good handful of stinging nettles, drain and chop. Cream 100 g unsalted butter until soft, fold in nettles, zest of half a lemon, a pinch of salt and chopped parsley. Toss local watercress with cider vinegar and rapeseed oil. Serve the trout hot, spoon nettle butter to melt into the flesh. New potatoes or thick slices of sourdough make sensible companions. Eat on a bank, boots still muddy, tea in a thermos at hand.
Recommended: portable camping stove