Salmon ‘en papillote’ Salsa Verde

How can you get maximum satisfaction, elegance, and presentation from a dish, with minimal difficulty? By preparing salmon steaks ‘En Papillote’ with our Salsa Verde The Tapas Sauces. In just a few simple steps, this flavorful dish can be ready to serve and wow your guests. While salmon is one of the most popular types of fish in the culinary world, serving it with a rich and distinct flavor enhancer, such as a coating of salsa verde, truly takes it up a notch. Simultaneously, this En Papillote recipe brings its own concoction of onion, carrots, and olive oil to the mix, adding not only extra tastes but also a dash of vibrancy and charm. 

En Papillote Explained

What is En Papillote? En Papillote is a French-inspired method of cooking in which you wrap the ingredients up together, usually in foil or a pouch of paper, then bake them in the oven. This is typically done for a dish with fish and vegetables, although it also works well with poultry and lamb. 

The Origins of En Papillote

The credit for inventing En Papillote is often given to a chef named Chef Jules Alciatore at the famous Antoine’s Restaurant in New Orleans, opened by Antoine Alciatore, a French immigrant who moved there in 1840. It’s said the first dish created using this method was done to honor the Montgolfier Brothers who developed the first paper hot air balloons.  While Antoine Alciatore may have developed his own spin on En Papillote, there’s plenty of evidence to suggest that cooking in a similar fashion had existed in France for a long time beforehand, perhaps even a number of centuries. 

The Best Fish for En Papillote

Salmon is undoubtedly one of the best types of fish to cook ‘En Papillote’, but there are a few other contenders worthy of a mention. Among them are trout, flounder, halibut, and cod. The latter may be the most affordable of them all, but each brings its own qualities to your En Papillote recipes. 

En Papillote Benefits 

So why cook using this method? Firstly, it makes cooking quick. When fish and the other ingredients are wrapped inside paper or foil, it heats up and traps steam inside. Secondly, moisture, and therefore flavor, is retained because it simply cannot escape from the foil around it. Finally, cleanup is way easier when cooking is done on foil or with paper.

Foil or Parchment Paper?

You can use both. Foil tends to be a lot more common in people’s kitchens, so if that’s all you’ve got, go ahead and use it. However, a lot of chefs think that parchment paper may offer a couple of extra benefits. Fish is less likely to stick to parchment paper. Foil, on the other hand, is able to withstand higher temperatures. If you’re cooking anything at above 400 degrees, foil may be the better option. 

Other Ways to Cook Salmon

Salmon doesn’t have to go in the oven. You can also cook it in the pan on the stovetop. If you prefer doing them this way, make sure they are well seasoned on both sides and that you turn them over regularly to ensure even cooking on all sides. When the skin starts to get crispy, this usually means the salmon is ready to eat. The best way, nonetheless, to know it’s ready is by checking the change in its color. Salmon is pink and opaque when it’s done.