Fish en Papillote with Shitake Mushrooms

Fish en papillote – sounds fancy, eh?  Well, don’t let this French term scare you away from one of the easiest and most fool proof ways to prepare fish. All “en papillote” means is “in parchment.” The method just requires some minor origami folding skills (which is diagramed below), which creates a tightly sealed pouch that steams the ingredients inside. It’s a simple and healthy dinner quick enough for weeknights but also impressive enough for a weekend dinner party. Plus, there are little to no dishes to wash from the preparation process. Yes, I repeat, little to no dishes to wash.

The first time I had fish en papillote was actually at a dinner party thrown by one of my best friends, who at the time was a pastry chef at Google. For this dinner party, she had teamed up with another Google chef to cook up a four course feast. The fish en papillote was presented as the third course, and I remember how fun it was to open up the parchment package, not knowing what surprises we’d find inside. As we unwrapped our meal, we discovered just 4 ingredients: salmon, chard, thyme, and lemon. It was so simple, elegant, and whimsical. Most importantly though, it was delicious. The packaging traps moisture inside, so you’re ensured a juicy and tasty bite of fish.

I’ve used this fish cooking formula many, many times since that first discovery, experimenting with a variety of flavor profiles and vegetable accompaniments. The seasoning can be as simple as salt, pepper, and lemon, but the addition of herbs such as thyme or dill are always great. Inject an ethnic angle with spice blends (e.g., garam masala for Indian, ras al hanout for Middle Eastern) or sauces (e.g., soy sauce for Asian, curry for Thai / Indian). For the vegetables, choose something that’s quicker cooking, such as greens, tomatoes, thinly sliced mushrooms, summer squashes, or peppers, but probably not root vegetables or winter squashes. The combinations are endless, so pick up some parchment paper and start folding.

Below I offer one of my favorite combinations and flavor profiles.It reminds me of weeknight dinner at my house. My dad would often “steam” fish in the microwave with some soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, and aromatics. Toss on some shitake mushrooms, and we’d have a delicious dinner. I’ve used the same flavor profile and ingredients here, but just packaged it up en papillote.