Trout with lemon mayonnaise

There is a farm very close to Jarnac, the home of Courvoisier, where trout live in crystal clear waters. You go there, ask for the size of fish you wish to indulge in, they catch it, and serve it. There’s nothing fresher than this and we use this chance to eat the freshest trout possible, served with lemon mayonnaise and lemon cucumber salad with a glass of white wine for one of us and a cocktail for the other. 

4 trout (approx. 1,6 kg)
fennel and thyme

mayonnaise:
1 egg yolk or 2 quail eggs
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
smoked paprika and Cajun pepper to taste
sea salt to taste
freshly ground black pepper to taste
half clove of garlic, grated
50 ml grape seed oil
1 tbsp lemon juice and zest of half of an organic lemon


Put the egg yolk, mustard, salt, pepper, and garlic in a bowl and whisk. Whisking continuously, add the oil in a slow stream. After a while, stop adding oil but continue whisking and check the consistency. Add more oil until you have reached the desired mayo consistency (it should be thick). In the end, add lemon juice and incorporate. Mayonnaise can also be prepared in a blender. In that case, add all the ingredients, except the oil, to the blender and process. Add the oil slowly while processing at the slowest speed until thickened.

Heat the oven to 100° and prepare the pan.

While the oven is heating up, mix all salad ingredients together, except oil, and leave to infuse.

Rub the cavity of the fish with a bit of salt and fill it with herbs. Place on a pan, pour over the olive oil, and bake for 20 minutes.

When the fish is almost ready, add oil to the salad and mix.

Serve the fish, salad, and mayonnaise, and don’t forget the freshly baked bread.