As many of you probably know, en papillote refers to a method of cooking, where the ingredients are wrapped up in a pouch and baked. Cooking fish this way practically guarantees a moist finished product, and allows all of the ingredients to infuse the fish, imparting an incredibly fresh taste.
It's also a wonderful mid-week dish because, from start to finish, it takes well under an hour.
Red Snapper en Papillote
- 2 snapper (or other firm-fleshed white fish) fillets
- 2 medium yukon gold potatoes, sliced paper thin
- 1 red onion, sliced thin
- 2 stalks green garlic, sliced thin
- 1 lemon, preferably Meyer
- 10-12 cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 tbsp dried Fines Herbes (tarragon, thyme, chervil, parsley)
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- Preheat oven to 450º.
- Season the snapper on both sides with kosher salt & fresh-cracked black pepper. Set aside.
- On a piece of parchment* large enough to enclose both pieces of fish**, lay out a single layer of potato slices, and season lightly.
- Next, layer on two-thirds of the onions and garlic, and half the tomatoes. Sprinkle this mixture with the zest and juice from half a lemon.
- Lay the fish on top of the vegetables, and squeeze the juice from the remaining lemon half over the top. Season with salt & pepper, and drizzle with half the olive oil.
- Top the fish with the remaining vegetables, and the fines herbes. Drizzle with remaining olive oil.
- Bring up the sides of the parchment, and pinch closed; roll the ends tight to make a sealed pouch.
- Bake at 450º for 22 minutes (or 18 minutes for flakier fish).
* I like to double-layer aluminum foil and parchment for better sealing & control (you can see what I mean in the first photo, above).
** You can also make individual pouches for each piece of fish, which is a very elegant presentation for a dinner party.
