Salmon in Parchment with Fennel and Potatoes

Do you cook much fish at home?  As much as I love it, I really don’t.  I think it is because I can’t honestly say that I know we will be eating at home when I am at the store.  I can guess which days we will cook, but as you know, things come up – things change.  And so while I am fine having chicken and veggies hang out in the fridge, waiting until I get my act together, fish, not so much.

I want to cook it and eat it the same day I buy it.  I want it to be fresh, fresh, fresh!  And so what happens more often than not, I just don’t buy it.  Am I alone here?

But Sunday, I knew we were both going to be home from dinner, and there was some salmon at the market that looked so good, I thought it had just jumped right out of the water and into the fish case.  So I jumped on it myself.

But ha!  I should have known better.  And after this happened, I called it quits and snuggled up with a blanket, beet pancakes and the gawked at the fashion choices called the Grammy’s.

Now we are on day two of fish in the fridge and it needs to be cooked.  Now matter how much I am craving something else.  (This is again why I don’t buy it – tomorrow I may want something else entirely!)  So, I decide to step it up and do something more than my standard lemon and dill in the oven version.

Not surprisingly since I don’t cook fish that often, I had never gone the parchment packet route or papillotes. And boy, I was really missing out.

It took a few extra minutes on the prep side to slice and blanch the vegetables, but after that, it worked its own magic.  Potatoes, fennel, lemon and dill are obvious complements to salmon, but when they bake together, steaming each other, something entirely new happens.  Let’s just put it this way – it was so good that we both preferred to eat it as is, not gussied up with any sort of sour cream sauce. BOTH!!  That is saying something.

Next time I make this, I don’t think I would change one thing, lest the occasion.

Perfect dinner party food!!  If you are anything like me, you don’t mind a bit of prep on the back end when you are having friends over, but once they arrive, you are done.  These are great for that.  Prepare the packages ahead of time, keep them in the fridge, and then pop them in the oven during apps.

You get the “wow” factor with each person getting their own present; fish, poatotes and a veggie all in one dish; AND clean up is a snap!  Just throw away the paper!  Gives you more time for bubbly with your guests and less with bubbles in the sink.

And its another reason to buy fish!

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Salmon in Parchment (Papillotes) with Fennel and Potatoes

Loosely adapted from Gourmet, October 2000

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The original recipe in Gourmet had olives, carrots, and thyme, to name a few differences.  I used this recipe more as a guide to know how long to cook the fish in this method, as I would not be able to see it.  As for the flavorings, I went with my favorite – lemon, dill and capers with salmon.  Tried and true for a reason.  But now that I know how easy and fun this is, I will be trying plenty more adaptations.  But for me, I think the olives will have to stay with a whitefish…

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Oh, and I added the lemon slices, versus just some zest, because I just didn’t think that would be enough lemon for my taste.

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NOTE: I halved these amounts, as there were only 2 of us, and it worked perfectly.

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1 small fennel bulb, stalks discarded

1/2 lb small red potatoes

1 lemon

1½ – 2 T. fresh dill (depending on preference)

2 large garlic cloves, minced

1 T. capers, drained

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 (1 1/2-lb) piece center-cut salmon fillet, skinned and fish cut into 4 square pieces

kosher salt

freshly cracked pepper

white wine (optional)

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4 (15-inch) squares parchment paper

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Place a large baking sheet on bottom rack of oven and remove any other racks. Preheat oven to 400°F.

Halve fennel bulb lengthwise. Remove most of core, leaving enough intact to keep layers together when sliced.

Slice fennel bulb (lengthwise), lemon and potatoes into 1/8-inch-thick slices, using a knife or mandoline; keeping vegetables separate.

Blanch vegetables, separately, in salted boiling water: fennel 2 minutes, potatoes 2 minutes and lemon less than 1 minute (I like to quickly blanch the lemon to remove and bitterness in the pith). Transfer fennel and lemon to a bowl of ice water, then drain well. Drain potatoes.

Toss fennel and lemon with capers, dill, half of garlic, 2 tablespoons olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste.

Toss potatoes with remaining oil and garlic and salt and pepper to taste.

Divide potato mixture among centers of parchment squares. Season salmon with salt and pepper and place on top of potatoes, then top salmon with the lemons, followed by the fennel and any capers remaining in the bowl.

If it looks a little dry, feel free to give the packets a light drizzle of olive oil or a drip (or 2) of white wine.

Gather sides of parchment up over fennel mixture, folding tightly; repeat with other sides to form a pouch, leaving no openings. (Gourmet recommends tying them up with kitchen string, but I didn’t find that necessary).  Place packages directly on hot baking sheet in oven and cook 20 minutes. Serve immediately.

Serves 4.

Gourmet’s notes:

• If your parchment paper is less than 15 inches wide, crisscross 8 (15-inch-long) sheets to approximate 4 (15-inch) squares.
• Foil can be substituted for parchment. Crimp edges tightly to close; do not tie.