WHEN you get hold of a truly fresh ingredient sourced right from its natural origins, it’s hard not to get excited.

Here at The Side Door, we have just had a delivery of some beautiful brown line-caught trout from Loch Neagh, a huge freshwater lake in Northern Ireland. This is unusual, because brown trout are farmed on a very small scale and prove slippery to get hold of but as we have seen (and tasted!) they are more than worth the trouble.

Indigenous to the UK, brown trout belongs to the salmon family. It has some healthier credentials than its pinker brother though, with just a third of the fat of salmon and lower in calories (just 135 per 100g (4oz)). It also has high levels of A and B vitamins, selenium, calcium, and the essential Omega-3 so if you’re health conscious, start serving trout for a virtuous change from salmon.

With our hands on such a fresh ingredient, we had to use it on our menu, and Sean has worked his magic here to bring it to your dinner table too. Don’t forget that other varieties of trout work well with the recipes below, so please don’t give up if brown trout proves elusive.

For Grilled Trout with Warm Walnut Dressing for four people take: four 170g (6oz) unskinned trout fillets, two tbsps walnut oil, salt and freshly ground black pepper. For the dressing – 55g (2oz) roughly chopped walnut pieces, three tbsps walnut oil, three tbsps grapeseed oil, two tbsps red wine vinegar, two pickled walnuts, one tbsp chopped chives and salt and black pepper.

Pre-heat the grill to its highest setting and bone the trout fillets if necessary but do not skin them. Brush the skin with a little walnut oil and season.

Place the fillets skin side uppermost on a baking sheet and grill for three-four minutes on the skin side only, until the skin is crisp and the flesh underneath is cooked.

Meanwhile, make the dressing by frying the walnuts gently in the walnut oil until they begin to colour. Remove from the heat. Add the grapeseed oil, vinegar, pickled walnuts if used (almonds are a good alternative) and chives and season to taste with salt and pepper. Mix thoroughly to form an emulsion.

Serve with some fresh salad leaves, placing the fillet on top, and spoon over a little dressing.

Trout with Hot Mustard Sauce works really well. To serve four you need: eight 100g (3.5oz) skinned trout fillets and one tbsp light brown sugar, two tbsps light soy sauce, one tbsp lemon juice, two tbsps dry white wine, freshly ground black pepper for the marinade. For the sauce: 290ml (10 fl.oz) double cream, four tsp Worcestershire sauce, three tbsps hot grainy mustard, one tbsp Dijon mustard, cayenne pepper, one tbsp chopped basil and salt.

Preheat the oven to 180C (350F/Gas mark ). Pin bone the trout fillets if necessary then lay on a large baking sheet lined with kitchen foil. Mix together the marinade ingredients, spoon over the trout and cover. Leave to stand for ten minutes then bake for 12 to 15 minutes until flesh is opaque and firm.

Meanwhile make the sauce by putting the cream, mustard and Worcestershire sauce into a pan, bring to the boil and simmer for seven minutes until the liquid is reduced and syrupy. Season to taste with cayenne pepper, salt then add the basil.

To serve – lift the cooked trout from the baking sheet and arrange two fillets on each plate then coat with the sauce and garnish with basil leaves.

Finally, here’s another quick idea – Caper Butter Dressing.

Take one tbsp capers, rinsed and finely chopped, one tbsp finely chopped parsley, the juice of one lemon, 85g (3oz) butter (you can use olive oil if you prefer), salt and black pepper.

Put the capers, parsley, lemon juice and butter into a saucepan, heating slowly until the butter melts, then whisk to form an emulsion. Season to taste. Drizzle over cooked trout fillets, skin side uppermost, and, quite simply, enjoy!