Salmon en papillote

4
Points®
Total Time
24 min
Prep
12 min
Cook
12 min
Serves
4
Difficulty
Easy
Cooking en papillote simply means cooking food in a sealed packet—the packet is traditionally made from parchment paper, but foil is a good substitute. The tight seal around the packet allows the contents to marry flavors and create a tasty sauce. Proteins stay more moist when none of the steam can escape and its a quick way to cook multiple ingredients at once. These little packets open onto the cooked rice and your meal is complete within 25 minutes. Toss the foil in the recycling and your clean-up is done. When you are ready to eat, a quick knife cut into the packets allow the hot steam to escape, preserving the juices and keeping your hands safe from a nasty steam burn.

Ingredients

Onion

½ small, chopped

Lemon zest

1 tsp, grated

Fresh lemon juice

2 Tbsp

Capers

1 Tbsp, drained and chopped

Table salt

¾ tsp

Black pepper

¼ tsp, freshly ground

Uncooked farmed Atlantic salmon skinless fillet

16 oz, 4-ounces each

Asparagus

1 pound(s), tough ends trimmed

Plum tomato

3 medium, seeded and chopped

Cooked long grain brown rice

2 cup(s), hot

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 450°F. Spray 4 (12 x 20-inch) sheets of foil with nonstick spray. Fold each sheet in half from one short end to mark the center line, then unfold the foil.
  2. Combine the onion, lemon zest, juice, capers, 1⁄2 teaspoon of the salt, and 1⁄8 teaspoon of the pepper in a small bowl; set aside.
  3. Sprinkle the salmon fillets with the remaining 1⁄4 teaspoon salt and 1⁄8 teaspoon pepper. Place one piece of salmon in the center of the bottom half of each sheet of foil. Top each with one-fourth of the lemon mixture. Place one-fourth of the asparagus next to each piece of salmon. Sprinkle the tomatoes over the salmon. Fold the foil over the salmon and asparagus, making a tight seal.
  4. Place the foil parcels on a large baking pan and bake until the salmon is just opaque in the center, 10–12 minutes. Open the parcels with care to avoid getting a steam burn. Serve the salmon and vegetables with the rice. Yields 1 salmon parcel and 1⁄2 cup rice per serving.

Notes

Although they need to be baked at the last minute, the salmon packets can be assembled several hours ahead and kept in the refrigerator until you are ready to bake them.