If you’ve never tried cooking with parchment paper, it’s a game changer. The food is enclosed in a packet of the parchment paper (hello, easy clean-up!) and then cooked in the oven. You’re steaming the fish as the air is trapped in the packet. Warm up a side of a whole grain and dinner is served! Let me present to you, Salmon in Parchment. If I can convince you to turn on your oven.
This past week in Miami we have had record breaking temperatures. Record. 98˚. While I know it’s the summer, that’s still a record. That brings me to the question, do you turn your oven on when it’s that hot outside? Do you grill? Use your slow cooker? How do you make do in the summertime?
Enter the air fryer. What I thought might be my saving grace, or would it? I have a love/hate relationship with the air fryer. While I want to love it, I really do, however, every time I use it, I’m deeply disappointed with the outcomes. Maybe I need to purchase (or check out from the library) America’s Test Kitchen’s cookbook, Air Fryer Perfection, because everything they produce is perfection, so maybe the book would help?
Disclaimer: I do not typically fry food. Maybe I’m not the best judge of the air fryer? While I do get the hype, you can make chicken that is “fried” but in a healthier version. “Frying” a vegetable, I mean what wouldn’t you love about that? Again, maybe I need to look for better recipes to follow and/or maybe I need to get over the idea that you can’t make a lot at once. Whatever the case, my air fryer was not the answer for cooking in this heat and I truly wanted it to be.
Ingredients: Salmon In Parchment
- Salmon – any fish will actually cook in the parchment. Select which you like best, however, aim to include a few of the heart-healthy options if possible: salmon, mackerel, sardines, trout.
- Olive Oil – The fish has natural oils, however, the oil is actually to help cook the vegetables. Just a little drizzle, ensuring that the vegetables get the oil on them as well.
- Balsamic Vinegar – Acid of choice in this version, balsamic vinegar. You can also use lemons, limes, or oranges, they all turn out quite nice. The acid is also what helps to cook the fish as well.
- Zucchini/Tomatoes/Shallots – Adding vegetables to cook under the fish is a nice way to make a quick and easy meal. The idea here is to pick vegetables that will cook quickly: asparagus, green beans, mushrooms.
- Black Pepper – always opting for pepper vs salt. You can also use whatever other spices you’d like to add in: basil, rosemary, thyme.
Cooking for one my small toaster/convection oven has been my go-to, especially in the summer. Call it a win-win because I don’t have to turn on my larger oven and heat up the house. Even though I’ve been trying to minimize my appliances, I do still have quite a few. The small toaster/convection/air fryer oven has been a game changer as it’s an all-in-one.
How To Cook in Parchment
When I think summer, I think light, refreshing, yet still full of flavor. Using food that is fresh and in season, all the summer veggies makes all the difference. Enter this salmon recipe. If you’ve never tried cooking with parchment paper it really is a game changer. Food is enclosed in a packet of the parchment paper (foil could be used as well) and then cooked in the oven. Essentially you’re steaming the fish as the air is trapped in this packet. Where I used salmon in this recipe, you can use any fish, 1-inch thickness, in it’s place. If you weren’t pronouncing ‘en papillote’ correctly, I’ve got your back.
Pronunciation: ON poppy-YOTE Word Meaning: En papillote means “in paper” or “in parchment” in French. In Italian it is al cartoccio. Yes, the oven will still need to be turned on, however, the best part is that these packets make for less dishes which means an easier clean-up!
Print
Salmon in Parchment
If you’ve never tried cooking with parchment paper, it’s a game changer. The food is enclosed in a packet of the parchment paper (hello, easy clean-up!) and then cooked in the oven. You’re steaming the fish as the air is trapped in the packet. Warm up a side of a whole grain and dinner is served!
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
Ingredients
- 1 medium zucchini, sliced into 1/4-inch rounds
- 24 grape tomatoes, halved or quartered
- 1 shallot or 1/2 yellow onion, thinly sliced
- 1/2 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- Pepper, to taste
- 4 salmon fillets, each about 5 ounces each and 1 1/2 inches thick
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375˚F.
- Toss – in a bowl the zucchini, grape tomatoes, and shallot with the olive oil, vinegar, and pepper.
- Place in the center of the parchment paper (4 half-sheets, 12×16 inches each), 1/4 of the vegetable mixture and top with a salmon fillet. Season the salmon with pepper, drizzle with 1 teaspoon of olive oil (optional, but highly recommended).
- Bring together the long ends of the parchment paper to create a 1/2-inch fold. Make several more 1/2-inch folds to form a tight seal, then twist the ends of the packet to close completely. Place the packets on a sheet pan.
- Bake on the center rack in the oven the fish for 20 minutes.
- Remove the packet from the oven, and unwrap it or cut off the top. Serve immediately.
Notes
*You can switch out the salmon for any other white fish – cooking fish in parchment is ideal!
*The seasoning can be as simple as salt, pepper, and lemon, but the addition of herbs such as thyme or dill are always great!
*For the vegetables, choose something that’s quicker cooking, such as greens, tomatoes, thinly sliced mushrooms, summer squashes, or peppers, but probably not root vegetables or winter squashes.
*The combinations are endless, so pick up some parchment paper and start folding – it makes for an easy clean-up!
- Prep Time: 5
- Cook Time: 20
- Category: Dinner
1 thought on “Salmon in Parchment”
Simple, yet delicious!