Last Friday's dinner for two: Red Snapper en Papillote

Last week I decided that on Friday I’d make dinner for two. Of course being a food enthusiast, reader of food media and food blog writer, I had some ideas. However, I decided to consult my friend who writes the blog In The Weeds. After all, he’d helped out another friend with a similar dilemma and I know that he enjoys menu planning. (Dear Friend, how should I refer to you in posts since you don’t publish your real name online?)

He thought about it and sent me two recipes, a fish and a lamb. After deciding on the fish, with modification indicated below, I googled for similar recipes and found the one that he’d sent me. The recipe: Red Snapper en Papillote. Now, I know that Mark Bittman recently got in trouble at grist.org for using red snapper. Apparently it’s one of the most endangered species in U.S. waters. Bittman replied to that page with an apology and explanation. I’d never made red snapper before, and darn it, I wanted to make red snapper. Hence my now often cited trip to St. Lawrence Market on Friday. (Seriously, I’ve never mentioned the market more often than I have in the last five days).

The original recipe from Gastronomie.

Red Snapper en Papillote

• 2 snapper (or other firm-fleshed white fish) fillets
• 2 medium yukon gold potatoes, sliced paper thin
• 1 red onion, sliced thin
• 2 stalks green garlic, sliced thin
• 1 lemon, preferably Meyer
• 10-12 cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 tbsp dried Fines Herbes (tarragon, thyme, chervil, parsley)
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Read on for directions, photos, etc.

I almost passed on the recipe when I got to the second ingredient. I neither have a food processor nor a mandoline slicer and my knife skills are not that accurate. Then I remembered that I rarely cook exactly to recipe.

Green garlic, also known as garlic scapes or garlic shoots, is similar to green onion (or scallion). It’s the shoots from the bulb of garlic. There’s a good description of green garlic here, and I actually remember the headline “My Friend the Garlic Scape” published in the Washington Post almost a year ago.¹ Green garlic/scapes/shoots is found in farmer’s markets but I have yet to find it out of season. Garlic scape season is July to August in Ontario.

I already had a container of mixed heirloom tomatoes at home (grown in an Ontario greenhouse) so I chose to use those rather than buy cherry tomatoes. I decided to use asparagus because I’d bought some earlier in the week at Fresh and Wild in Bloor West Village, along with the tomatoes and a bunch of kale.

My adaptation:
Red Snapper en Papillote

• 2 snapper fillets
• 1 red onion, sliced thin
• 1 Meyer lemon
• A bunch of asparagus, blanched & cut into smallish chunks (depending on the size of the bunch you might not need the entire thing  – see sides below)
• Mixed heirloom tomatoes, cut up (I think I started with 5 and added more)
• 1 tbsp Tarragon, thyme, parsley
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 450º.
2. Season the snapper on both sides with kosher salt & fresh-cracked black pepper. Set aside.
3. Lay out a piece of aluminum foil large enough to enclose both pieces of fish*. On top of that, lay a piece of parchment.
4. Next, layer on two-thirds of the onions, and half the tomatoes. Sprinkle this mixture with the zest and juice from half a lemon.
5. Lay the fish on top of the vegetables, and squeeze the juice from the remaining lemon half over the top (okay, I forgot to squeeze the lemon the second time). Season with salt & pepper, and drizzle with half the olive oil.
6. Top the fish with the remaining vegetables (remaining onions and tomatoes, asparagus), and the herbs. Drizzle with remaining olive oil.
7. Bring up the sides of the foil/parchment, and pinch closed; roll the ends tight to make a sealed pouch.
8. Bake at 450º for 22 minutes (or 18 minutes for flakier fish).

*This was suggested as a footnote in the original recipe and I decided to take the suggestion because foil is sturdier and I felt that it was less likely to fall apart than flimsy parchment paper. I also didn’t know the quality of my supermarket-purchased parchment.

Neither of us ate the onion because it was too strong but it provided aromatics.

Side dishes:

Inspired by the potatoes in the original recipe I roasted a combination of white and red baby potatoes in olive oil and a bit of kosher salt, and finished them with truffle salt.

After washing a bunch of kale and removing the stems I combined the kale and a splash of water in a large pan. I covered the pan (with another pan), and cooked the kale over medium-high heat, tossing occasionally with tongs, until the kale was bright green and tender. When it was almost finished I threw in some of the asparagus that didn’t make it into the fish. After removing from heat I tossed the kale with some balsamic vinegar.

I took some photos, but they are at home whereas I am not. I will update this post.

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¹ Perhaps the headline reminds me of the title of a Freaks and Geeks episode called “Kim Kelly is my Friend”.