Maker · Fish
't Smallert
Dutch trout from spring water of the Veluwe, raised by a former chef who puts quality over numbers. Fresh on ice, usually on your plate three to four days after slaughter.
The story
Who's Behind It
't Smallert is a trout farm in Emst, north of Apeldoorn. The spot was a water mill at the start of the twentieth century; now that same spring water flows through the farm ponds. Sander Hertgers runs the business, which he took over from his father. He worked as a chef earlier, and that shapes how he looks at his fish: quality over numbers for him. Slaughter and processing happen on location in Vaassen; the farm in Emst is open to visitors.
What Really Sets It Apart
The water comes from the streams and springs of the protected Kroondomein. The farm operates water-neutral: what flows in leaves the property later equally clean or cleaner, because oxygen is added. The water board tests quality regularly and it's higher at the outflow than at the intake.
The eggs come from elsewhere and grow at 't Smallert in cool, flowing water. A trout takes about a year to reach weight, between 500 grams and a kilo. The feed is composed with fellow growers based on fish meal and fish oil; you need roughly 1.1 kilos of feed per kilo of fish. That's a slower, more precise regime than conventional mass farming.
After slaughter the fish is cleaned and filleted. Some goes fresh on ice and is then usually three to four days old. Some is first salted then smoked for about two hours over beech wood, with no E-numbers or other additions. Alongside trout is arctic char. The business carries the Recognized Veluwe Regional Product mark.
How You Stand Out with This
Dutch trout with an address on it is a strong story on the menu, especially next to standard imported salmon. You can name the origin: spring water from the Kroondomein, a farm that returns the water cleaner than it receives it. For guests who pay attention to season and region, that's more concrete than a mark alone.
The freshness gives you room to move. Fillet without skin suits raw or lightly dressed courses, fillet with skin the pan. The whole fish yields bones for stock, so you get more from one delivery. Set trout as a fixed freshwater fish on your menu and you have a local product available year-round.
Chef’s tip
Ask for the whole fish if you fillet it yourself: you keep the frame and bones for a light fumet that holds the flavor of the spring water. The fillet with skin sears tight on the skin side and stays soft inside.
How to use it
Ideas for your menu
Trout on the skin
Fillet with skin, high heat on the skin side, brief finishing. Beurre blanc with a splash of white wine and dill on the side.
Raw arctic char
Sliced thin arctic char without skin, dressed with lemon, olive oil and sea salt. Works as a light start to the menu.
Whole trout from the oven
Whole fish filled with fennel, lemon and thyme, in the oven or on the plancha. Plate for the table, bones stay whole.
Trout and spring water vegetables
Poached fillet with watercress, broad bean and radish. A plain plate that leans on the freshwater flavor of the fish.
For your menu
“Veluwe trout from 't Smallert (Emst), raised in spring water from the Kroondomein”
Products from 't Smallert
What we carry from this maker
Forel vers, kweek
Forelfilet m/huid vers, kweek
Forelfilet z/ huid vers, kweek
Prices and availability are in the portal. Not a customer yet? Become a customer or log in to order.
Taste it in your own kitchen
Book a no-obligation tasting with Niels. No contract, just tasting.