Easy Smoked Trout and Pasta Salad

Until today, the weather has been warm and sunny, perfect days for a leisurely outdoor picnic. Unfortunately, with my ridiculous work schedule, I don't have time to indulge right now. However, I decided to make a perfect pasta salad for picnics anyway. While I was at Trader Joe's the other day, I picked up a can of smoked trout. For days, I had no idea how I would want to eat it, normally, I would have just eat it straight from the can, but I was determined to make it slightly more interesting. So when I decided to make the pasta salad, what better to use than this can of trout?

I must say that the result was absolutely delicious! I made a decent size batch of it, so I can have a yummy snack for myself before and after work. Even my boyfriend thought it was very tasty and that I should remember this for our future outdoor dinner parties and potlucks!

Read on to see this very simple and easy recipe!




Easy Smoked Trout and Pasta Salad

1/2 lb Elbow pasta (or Shell, Penne, Gemelli, nothing too tiny)
1 can of smoked trout (mine was in canola oil), drained
1 cup of frozen peas
3 TBsp of mayo
salt and pepper to taste

1.  In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook pasta until al dente. Rinse under cold water. Drain well. Transfer to large bowl.

2.  Place frozen peas in a strainer, run hot water until thawed, about 1-2 mins.

3.  Add thawed peas and mayo to pasta, mix well. Gently flake the trout as you mix all the ingredients. Season with salt and pepper, if desired. (Since I cooked the pasta in salted water, and the smoked trout is somewhat salty, I did not add any more salt at all.)

4.  Cover, and refrigerate for at least a couple of hours. (I chilled mine overnight and it turned out very good.)

I know this is not a very fancy recipe, but it only took about 20 mins to make, and I have all the ingredients at home already. In the future, I might fancy it up with some fresh dill, but for now, I know a have a delicious and refreshing snack sitting in my fridge waiting for me to get home from work!