If you think parchment paper is just for lining baking sheets, think again! It's a great tool for making a simple yet elegant dinner en papillote.
Whether you're cooking for one or many, wrapping up parcels of seafood, chicken, tofu, mushrooms, or vegetables in parchment paper (en papillote) is an easy way to make a relatively hands-off meal. Baked in a hot oven, the parchment parcels retain moisture to create wonderfully succulent proteins and vegetables. Because of the steam, you don't even need to use oil, just herbs and seasonings, so this is also a low-fat way to cook.
Need some inspiration? Check out these recipes for dinner en papillote:
• Sesame-Ginger Salmon en Papillote (Cooking Channel)
• Mexicana Chicken (Delish)
• Tofu In The Style Of Southeast Asian Steamed Fish (Herbivoracious)
• Mushrooms and Tofu en Papillote (The First Mess)
• Jennifer's Farmers Market Bounty En Papillote (The Kitchn)
Parcels can often be assembled in advance, so you can have them ready to pop in the oven when you get home from work.
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(Images: Cooking Channel; Jonny Valiant/Redbook)
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How do you pronounce "papillote"?
pa-pee-yoht
I like to make white fish en papillote with thinly sliced shallots, light smear of sambal oelek, couple dashes of soy sauce and a drizzle of sesame oil.
Thanks ATN654!
Now I'm curious about sambal oelek? Do you make your own or buy it?
sambal oelek is garlic chili sauce, not Srirachi though. It's a bit oily and you can see the pepper seeds. Huy Fong, in addition to Srirachi, also make sambal oelek:
http://www.earthy.com/Sambal_Oelek_Chili_Paste__18_oz_P488C67.cfm
You could make your own, but there's plenty of good brands in the markets.
oops, sorry, there's no garlic in sambal oelek. it's just vinegar, chilis, and salt. though my aunt's homemade has sugar too.
I've tried this once - with chicken - and while I loved the final product, I found closing the parchment paper to be difficult. Any advice on that?
@Lazy_Lurker - could you use bakers twine and tie it up in a bundle? Would that work in the oven?
Folding tutorial with pictures.
http://macrobiotic.about.com/od/seafoodentrees/ss/SteamFish.htm
why not staple it shut?
In Turkey, there is a kebab (meat food) called "kağıt kebabı" (paper kebab), lamb meat and vegetables cooked with their own juice in the paper and served in it.