Duration
90 minutes
Serves
2
En papillote, or al cartoccio in Italian, is a method that bakes an entire meal is a single pouch made of parchment paper. The folded envelope holds the moisture inside, steaming the food while cooking. Forming the packets resembles the classic pastry crimping technique used in pocket-style dishes like calzones and pasties.
Generally, ingredients for this technique are fairly delicate such as fish and vegetables. For this recipe, walleye is on the menu, but you could easily substitute a multitude of fish species. One in particular that comes to mind is burbot, also known as eelpout. The mushroom powder I've added gives the dish a nice umami punch and plays well with the sherry vinegar.
This dish is a great stay-at-home dinner for Valentine's Day that should wow your significant other, especially since you can open the pouch at the table for a full aroma effect. Pair with a nice bottle of white wine and support your local restaurant by grabbing an appetizer and dessert to round out the meal. Dress up, put the kids down, play some slow jams, and enjoy.
Ingredients
- 1 lb. walleye, cut into two equal portions
- 1 lb. skin-on gold potato, sliced, blanched, and chilled
- 1 cup yellow onion, sliced thin
- 1 cup fennel bulb, sliced thin
- 1 lemon, sliced thin
- ½ cup stock, fish or game
- ¼ cup white wine
- 2 tsp. sherry vinegar
- Coarse salt to season
- Cracked black pepper
- Sliced compound butter
- Extra virgin olive oil
Compound butter
- ½ lb. unsalted butter, room temperature
- ⅓ cup fresh dill, chopped
- ⅓ cup fresh Italian parsley, chopped
- 2 large garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- Zest of one lemon
- 1 tbsp. wild mushroom powder (optional)
- 2 tsp. coarse salt
- 1 tsp. chili flake (optional)
Also works with
Special equipment
Preparation
- First, make the compound butter. Add all of the compound butter ingredients to a food processor or blender and puree until smooth. Scrape the butter onto a piece of plastic wrap and shape into a log form. Pinch the ends and twist the plastic until the cylinder of butter is tight and evenly formed. Chill in the refrigerator.
- Next, blanch the potatoes. Using a mandoline or sharp knife, slice the potato into pieces between ⅛ and ¼ inch thick. Add the sliced potato to cold, salted water. Bring the potatoes to a boil and cook until just tender. Strain, drizzle with olive oil, and chill in the refrigerator.
- Prep the rest of the ingredients. Cut the walleye into even portions, slice the onion, fennel bulb, and lemon. Keep everything separate for assembly.
- Trim two pieces of parchment paper to roughly 18 inches long.
- Assemble the packets. Have the parchment facing away from you lengthwise. Find the center and begin assembly off-center enough where ingredients will mostly remain on one side. Start with about three tablespoons of the compound butter, then add sliced potatoes and season with salt and pepper. Next add the sliced onion and then place the piece of fish on top, season the fillet with salt, add three more tablespoons of butter, place the fennel on top, and finish with the thinly sliced lemons.
- To seal the packets, fold the parchment over so that the edges meet and lightly press down to secure the ingredients. Starting in one corner, fold over and crimp the parchment every inch or two, forming a half-circle. At the end, leave enough space before finishing the creases to pour in the wine, stock, and vinegar. Fold and secure the ends tightly and place them onto a sheet pan.
- Bake the packets at 450ºF for 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and carefully move the pouches to plates. Cut the front edge with a knife and roll the parchment back to reveal the dish. Serve with warm bread to soak up the extra sauce.
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(1)En papillote, or al cartoccio in Italian, is a method that bakes an entire meal is a single pouch made of parchment paper. The folded envelope holds the moisture inside, steaming the food while cooking. Forming the packets resembles the classic pastry crimping technique used in pocket-style dishes like calzones and pasties.
Generally, ingredients for this technique are fairly delicate such as fish and vegetables. For this recipe, walleye is on the menu, but you could easily substitute a multitude of fish species. One in particular that comes to mind is burbot, also known as eelpout. The mushroom powder I've added gives the dish a nice umami punch and plays well with the sherry vinegar.
This dish is a great stay-at-home dinner for Valentine's Day that should wow your significant other, especially since you can open the pouch at the table for a full aroma effect. Pair with a nice bottle of white wine and support your local restaurant by grabbing an appetizer and dessert to round out the meal. Dress up, put the kids down, play some slow jams, and enjoy.
Ingredients
- 1 lb. walleye, cut into two equal portions
- 1 lb. skin-on gold potato, sliced, blanched, and chilled
- 1 cup yellow onion, sliced thin
- 1 cup fennel bulb, sliced thin
- 1 lemon, sliced thin
- ½ cup stock, fish or game
- ¼ cup white wine
- 2 tsp. sherry vinegar
- Coarse salt to season
- Cracked black pepper
- Sliced compound butter
- Extra virgin olive oil
Compound butter
- ½ lb. unsalted butter, room temperature
- ⅓ cup fresh dill, chopped
- ⅓ cup fresh Italian parsley, chopped
- 2 large garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- Zest of one lemon
- 1 tbsp. wild mushroom powder (optional)
- 2 tsp. coarse salt
- 1 tsp. chili flake (optional)
Also works with
Special equipment
Preparation
- First, make the compound butter. Add all of the compound butter ingredients to a food processor or blender and puree until smooth. Scrape the butter onto a piece of plastic wrap and shape into a log form. Pinch the ends and twist the plastic until the cylinder of butter is tight and evenly formed. Chill in the refrigerator.
- Next, blanch the potatoes. Using a mandoline or sharp knife, slice the potato into pieces between ⅛ and ¼ inch thick. Add the sliced potato to cold, salted water. Bring the potatoes to a boil and cook until just tender. Strain, drizzle with olive oil, and chill in the refrigerator.
- Prep the rest of the ingredients. Cut the walleye into even portions, slice the onion, fennel bulb, and lemon. Keep everything separate for assembly.
- Trim two pieces of parchment paper to roughly 18 inches long.
- Assemble the packets. Have the parchment facing away from you lengthwise. Find the center and begin assembly off-center enough where ingredients will mostly remain on one side. Start with about three tablespoons of the compound butter, then add sliced potatoes and season with salt and pepper. Next add the sliced onion and then place the piece of fish on top, season the fillet with salt, add three more tablespoons of butter, place the fennel on top, and finish with the thinly sliced lemons.
- To seal the packets, fold the parchment over so that the edges meet and lightly press down to secure the ingredients. Starting in one corner, fold over and crimp the parchment every inch or two, forming a half-circle. At the end, leave enough space before finishing the creases to pour in the wine, stock, and vinegar. Fold and secure the ends tightly and place them onto a sheet pan.
- Bake the packets at 450ºF for 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and carefully move the pouches to plates. Cut the front edge with a knife and roll the parchment back to reveal the dish. Serve with warm bread to soak up the extra sauce.