Glorious summer vegetables
INGREDIENTS for the salad
Drizzle olive oil
2 trout fillets
200g mangetout (or green beans)
1 bunch watercress or mix salad leaves like rocket or cos lettuce
Handful of cherry tomatoes
2 spring onions
1 avocado (optional)
INGREDIENTS for the dressing
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon honey
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt, or to taste
3 to 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Method
Heat a little olive oil in a frying pan and fry the trout fillets on a low heat for 2-3 minutes on each side until just cooked/opaque, but don’t let colour or overcook, and set aside
Bring a pan of water to the boil, add the mangetout for 1 minute, then drain and refresh in cold water, drain again and set aside
Remove any browning skin, remove the roots and slice the spring onion
Slice the cherry tomatoes
Half the avocado, remove the stone, slice the flesh then scoop out of the skin
Combine ingredients for your dressing in a glass jar, screw on the lid and shake vigorously
Flake the trout into a large bowl, add the mangetout, spring onion, tomatoes and watercress and pour over the dressing. Mix gently to combine and arrange on plates.
Mangetout or ‘eat everything’ as the French name means, are a flat-podded variety of pea. They can be eaten raw, lightly steamed, briefly boiled or stir-fried and are lovely and crisp and sweet. Just don’t overcook them they’ll go a sludgy green. By blanching them (refreshing in cold water as soon as they are cooked) they’ll keep the vibrant green colour. They are full of fibre, rich in vitamin C and other nutrients – lovely little pods of goodness and in season, here in the UK, until around September.
