Fish En Papillote recipe, is a Mediterranean-style of Baked Fish In Parchment with fresh herbs, vegetables and lemon slices for a moist and tender fish.
Fish In Paper
While there are many ways to prepare and cook fish, none delights me more than Fish in Paper.
Some will make this recipe wrapped in aluminum foil but I find a distinct after taste that must come from a chemical reaction between the acid of the lemon and the metal of the aluminum.
So if possible, use parchment paper or perhaps a small baking dish with a lid.
There are so many reasons why I prefer this approach to my fish dinner:
- It can be prepped inside the sheets of parchment paper way ahead of time and cooked just when you are ready.
- The delicate fish steams in its own juices and all the flavors you hide inside the package, giving it a tender texture with essence of anything you want.
- Fresh vegetables or herbs can be lightly steamed while cooking fish en papillote so there are no other pots or pans needed.
- A complete dinner in a bag – so to speak – can be prepared and served in a single serving, or many.
Baked Fish
Wrapping fish in paper is not the only way to insure tender and moist fish baked inside.
Many cultures have a similar cooking technique as this, by wrapping fish in a variety of things such as banana or grape leaves.
My British hubby grew up in boarding schools in Kenya (long story).
He remembers watching the whole fish wrapped in a mound of salt, buried in a hole in the ground with a smoking fire.
The salt baked on around the fish like clay and when the salt was removed, the fish inside was moist and cooked with amazing flavor.
What Kind Of Fish Bakes Best In Parchment?
Being a salmon kinda gal, of course my first choice would be to use salmon, especially because of its fat content, making for a very moist and light meal.
However, my second choice, perhaps your first if a less fat, healthy meal is what your preference is, would be a cod filet.
Preparing cod en papillote, is a great way to infuse great flavor into an otherwise delicate tasting fish.
Cod, however, is often the preferred fish to use in many Portuguese and Brazilian seafood recipes.
If using cod, or any other white fish, a great addition is to layer slices of grape tomatoes across the tops before the sealed parchment paper goes into the oven, creating an extra moist heat.
This will result in moist flaky fish and add an extra dimension of Mediterranean flair to the parchment pouches.
Mediterranean-Style Baked Fish
When I had the fabulous opportunity to bring my Mediterranean-Style cooking to a PBS program, I knew I had to showcase my favorite fish dish, Fish In A Fig Leaf.
It was a hit!
Fig leaves are not always available to most people, even during the height of fig season, however I wanted to make this beautiful fish recipe that can easily be baked by anyone, any time of the year, by using parchment paper instead, and love the results.
Baked Salmon In Paper
While any piece of filet of fish can be used in this recipe, it seems that salmon is most available to us, year-round.
A variety of vegetables can be sliced thin, layered on top of the fish and seasoned with drizzles of olive oil, squirts of lemon juice, even a splash of white wine.
The veggies used must be able to cook as fast as the fish does, in about 15 minutes.
I chose bok choy, with citrus slices and finely chopped chives for this recipe but the possibilities are endless, and make for an easy ‘in-one’ meal.
Leafy greens such as spinach, kale or chard cook beautifully in the time the fish bakes, as does thinly sliced tomatoes, zucchini or yellow squash.
Ingredients Needed
- Salmon Filet
- Baby Bok Choy
- Lemon
- Olive oil
- Garlic salt
- Black pepper
Equipment Needed
- Baking sheet pan
- Parchment paper
- Small mixing bowl
- Cutting board
- Chopping knife
- Small whisk
- Oven
More Delicious Fish Recipes To Love
These days, it seems everyone has become dietary specific, and having a large family I’ve tried to accommodate many of these.
Fish is, and always will be, a welcome ingredient in my kitchen, and so I have several recipes I believe you will love, if you love fish!
- Smoked Okra and Smoked Salmon Salad – Freshly smoked and charred okra with smoked salmon over a salad bed of beet greens and fresh oregano, easily homegrown garden to table recipe.
- Salmon Croquettes With Chili Honey – Salmon Croquettes With Chili Honey, ginger and five-spice, tossed in rice crumbs, gently fried and drizzled with chili honey, are loaded with flavor!
- Herb Dusted Salmon Over Salad – A woman’s luncheon is expected to have bling, be healthy and taste amazing; this herb dusted salmon salad delivers all the bling.
Mediterranean Baked Fish In Parchment
Equipment
- Rimmed Baking Sheet
- Parchment paper
Ingredients
- 2 6 oz Salmon Filet or other fish filet
- 2 Baby Bok choy 1 small bundle per filet
- 1 1/2 Lemon or lime thin citrus slices
- 1 1/2 tbsp Olive oil
- 1/2 tsp Garlic salt
- Black Pepper – to taste
- Fresh thyme or fresh dill 1 sprig per fish filet
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375. Set out a rimmed baking sheet.
- Thinly slice the lemon or lime into 8 very thin slices, set aside.
- In a small bowl, squeeze the lemon juice (or lime), from the remaining half of lemon into the bowl along with a pinch of lemon zest. Whisk in the olive oil and garlic salt. Set aside.
- Fold one whole sheet of parchment paper on half. Lay it opened on the work space.
- Trim the thick bottom from the bok choy or Swiss chard, or slice thin rounds of zucchini. Layer the chosen vegetable in the center of a sheet of parchment paper. Lay fish filet on top of the vegetable. Layer a few slices of lemon on top of the fish, along with a few sprigs of fresh herbs and black pepper. Drizzle the mixture of lemon and olive oil across the top of each filet of fish.
- Fold the edges of the parchment paper over to the other side, meeting the ends.Starting from one open end, make a triangle fold, then another fold next to the previous and so on until the entire open end of the paper has small folds, sealing the opening closed, creating a parchment packet.Repeat with the second fish filet.
- Transfer the fish filled parchment paper packets to the baking sheet and bake for about 15-20 minutes. If the fish is thicker than one inch, bake the bundle for 25-minutes, if it is thinner than one inch then bake for 15-minutes. Serve.
Notes
- It is important to use Parchment paper and not wax paper.
- Any variety of quick cooking leafy vegetables can be used, or thin slices of zucchini and squash.
Mediterranean Baked Fish In Parchment
I believe the table... that place that draws people to gather, is the most powerful symbol of togetherness. All that happens before the table is set, the planning, the gathering, the preparing, are all an intricate part of the dance that create the mood of celebration to share with friends and loved ones.