Stovetop smokers are wonderful. You can use them either on the stovetop or outside using burners. They are very easy to use: simply add a few tablespoons of smoking dust and the food item you wish to smoke, close the smoker, heat it for 15-20 minutes, and out comes a beautifully smoked fish or whatever you put in. Especially fatty fish are great this way.

I prepared smoked trout as a quick dinner before we left on the boat trip, and I’m sharing the recipe with you now before writing some more about the food I’m cooking on the boat trip.

Ingredients

For 2 servings

2 rainbow trout, gutted

2 Tbsp smoke dust

salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves

lemon wedges

Preparation

Put the smoke dust on the bottom of the smoker. If you like you can add the thyme stems for additional flavor.

Mix the olive oil with the thyme, salt, and freshly ground black pepper, and rub the trout with this mixture on the outside as well as in the abdominal cavity. Arrange the trout in the smoker.

Close the smoker, fire it up, and smoke for 20 minutes.

Check whether the trout is cooked where it’s thickest with an instant read thermometer (which should read 50C/122F or above) or by inserting a fork and then holding the fork right under your lip to check whether it’s warm (if it’s cold, the fish is undercooked). Smoke the trout a bit longer if needed.

Serve the trout with lemon wedges.