Took the kids fishing in Galveston again. Annual tradition, year three. This time Tyler drove — he drove us to Galveston in the Civic, which made me a passenger in my own fishing trip and I handled it with the grace and composure of a man who checked the mirrors seventeen times from the passenger seat.
Lily brought her new fishing rod. She named it "Mr. Whiskers" after the stuffed cat, which is not an appropriate name for a fishing rod but I'm not the naming police. She was determined to catch something real this time — not a hardhead catfish, not a stingray, something she could eat.
She caught a speckled trout. Twenty inches. A legitimate, beautiful speckled trout. She screamed when she saw it come up and Tyler netted it and Emma cheered and I stood there grinning because my twelve-year-old daughter just caught the best fish of the day.
Tyler caught two redfish. Emma caught a flounder, which she handled with more composure than last year but still released it because "it was looking at me, Dad." I caught three specks and a sheepshead. But Lily's trout was the star.
We cleaned the fish at the marina. Lily filleted her own trout — her second time filleting, and she was better. Clean cuts, minimal waste. She handled the knife with the same precision she uses in the kitchen. This girl's hands are good. Maybe better than mine.
Back home: I let Lily decide how to cook her fish. She thought about it for ten minutes — standing in the kitchen, looking at the trout fillet, genuinely deliberating. Then she said, "Vietnamese style. Turmeric and fish sauce. Crispy."
That's my girl.
She pan-fried it herself. Hot oil, turmeric-rubbed fillet, skin side down, three minutes, flip, two minutes. The skin was golden and shattering. The flesh was white and flaky. She served it with rice and nuoc cham and a side of sliced cucumber.
We sat on the porch and ate Lily's fish and nobody said anything for a while because the food was good and the evening was warm and three kids were full and happy and the father who caught them was grateful for every bite.
Lily said, "I caught that." Tyler said, "We know. You've said it nine times." Emma said, "Let her say it nine more."
Nine more. Let her say it.
Lily’s turmeric-rubbed, fish-sauce-kissed speckled trout didn’t need much help — she made sure of that. But when I make her fish again (and I will, because she’s already planning next year’s trip), I’ll have a log of this lemon dill compound butter ready in the fridge. A slice melted over hot, crispy-skinned trout the moment it comes out of the pan is the kind of simple, bright finish that honors good fish without getting in the way. It’s what you make when the cook — even a twelve-year-old one — deserves a little extra credit on the plate.
Lemon Dill Compound Butter
Prep Time: 10 min | Cook Time: 0 min | Total Time: 1 hr 10 min (includes chilling) | Servings: 12 (1-tablespoon pats)
Ingredients
- 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 2 tablespoons fresh dill, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest (from about 1 lemon)
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 small clove garlic, minced or pressed
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Soften the butter. Let the butter sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes until fully softened and easy to work with. Do not melt it — you want it pliable, not liquid.
- Combine ingredients. In a small mixing bowl, combine the softened butter, fresh dill, lemon zest, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and black pepper. Use a fork or rubber spatula to mix thoroughly until everything is evenly distributed throughout the butter.
- Roll into a log. Spoon the butter mixture onto a sheet of plastic wrap or parchment paper. Shape it roughly into a log, then roll the wrap around it tightly, twisting the ends to seal. Aim for a log about 1 to 1 1/2 inches in diameter.
- Chill until firm. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour until the butter is firm enough to slice cleanly. For longer storage, freeze the log and slice off pats as needed — it keeps in the freezer for up to 2 months.
- Serve. Slice 1/2-inch rounds and place directly onto hot pan-fried or grilled fish straight from the pan. The residual heat will melt the butter into a glossy, herb-flecked sauce right on the plate.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 68 | Protein: 0g | Fat: 8g | Carbs: 0g | Fiber: 0g | Sodium: 80mg
About the cook who shared this
Bobby Tran
Week 116 of Bobby’s 30-year story
· Houston, Texas
Bobby Tran was born in a refugee camp in Arkansas to parents who fled Saigon with nothing. He grew up in Houston straddling two worlds — Vietnamese at home, Texan everywhere else — and learned to cook from his mother's pho and a neighbor's BBQ smoker. He's a former shrimper, a recovering alcoholic, a divorced dad of three, and the guy who marinates brisket in fish sauce and lemongrass because he doesn't believe in borders, especially when it comes to flavor.
