Pan-Fried Knucklehead Trout

Ingredients

• ¼ cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 4 (4-ounce) rainbow trout fillets, skin on, rinsed and dried well
• 1.5 tablespoons olive oil
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 lemon, halved
• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 250°F with a rack in the middle of the oven.
2. In a wide, shallow dish such as a pie plate, whisk together the flour, paprika, ½ teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper.
3. Sprinkle the trout fillets lightly with salt and pepper and let rest until they appear moist and glistening, about 5 minutes.
4. In a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil and 1 tablespoon of the butter, swirling to combine, until melted and hot. Dredge the fillets in the flour mixture, coat thoroughly, and tap off the excess. Carefully place each fillet, flesh-side down, in the skillet. Cook until the edges are opaque and bottoms are golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Carefully turn the fillets over with a spatula and continue to cook until the second side is golden brown and opaque, 2 to 3 minutes more (if the skillet begins to smoke, adjust the heat to medium). Carefully transfer the fillets to an ovenproof serving platter and keep warm in the oven.
5. Juice one of the lemon halves and cut the other half into four wedges.
6. Cut the remaining 4 tablespoons butter into four pieces and melt in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Add the shallot, stirring constantly until the butter is golden brown and fragrant with a nutty aroma, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat, add the lemon juice, ½ teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste and swirl the pan to combine. Taste and adjust with salt and pepper, if necessary. Pour the browned butter over the fish, sprinkle with the parsley, and serve at once with the lemon wedges.