'En papillote' cooking

COOKING ‘en papillote’ comes from France and is a simple, gentle and tasty method of preparing food. It is also a method that combines baking, steaming and braising. The ingredients are wrapped in parchment paper or aluminium foil and hermetically sealed. This way, fish, meat, vegetables or fruit can stew in their own juices - or rather, they are gently steamed, which preserves the aroma, flavour and healthy ingredients. The food remains juicier, herbs and spices enhance their qualities.

The steam also makes it unnecessary to add fat, which is why this cooking method is also excellent for the spring season, as it helps you get rid of your excess winter kilos.

Whether fish, seafood, vegetables, fruit or meat: preparation ‘en papillote’ tends to call for products that do not require such a long cooking time. Ideally those requiring between 15 and 30 minutes. Usually, an oven temperature of about 180 degrees is used. If some foods are denser, they should be precooked or cut into smaller pieces. Soft ingredients that are too delicate should be avoided, because they could disintegrate at the temperature that develops in the steam.

If the packet is puffed up which it can only be if it is well sealed - steam is inside and the cooking process starts. And it should not be opened until it is taken out of the oven.

Fish stays juicy

Cooking fish in a wrapping such as parchment or aluminium foil protects the quality, taste and nutrients of the fish. Porous parchment paper is more suitable for semi-fatty fish; while aluminium foil is more suitable for dry fish, which can stew in its own juices. To ensure that none of the delicious broth is lost, it is best to serve it still in its wrapping.

Mushrooms, courgettes, spring onions, peppers, fennel, leeks ... are excellent accompaniments for the fish. Don't forget to season before baking in the oven!

If you use parchment paper, cut two pieces of paper four times the size of the food. Place one of them on the baking tray and brush the middle with olive oil or melted butter. Place the food to be cooked on top and cover with the second piece of paper. Press the paper lightly with the palm of your hand so that it sticks to the contents. This prevents too much air in the packet from inflating and destroying it.

Fold the edges inwards two or three times to keep everything well sealed. If you want to be on the safe side, brush the edges with egg white.

To ensure that nothing of the delicious broth is lost, it is best to serve the food in its packaging. Cut it open lengthwise in the middle with scissors and bend the paper apart. Another option is to cut a lid all around the edges.

If cooking in aluminium foil, lightly coat a large rectangular piece of foil with oil and place the food in the middle. Fold the sides over the contents, fold the edges a few times and press them together with your fingers to seal the package tightly.

Baked asparagus with mushrooms and Serrano ham

For 4 pers. 1 pound of green asparagus (espárragos verdes, cut the ends off), 100 g of shiitake mushrooms (cleaned and cut into pieces), 60 g of serrano ham (jamón serrano, cut into strips), 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil (aceite de oliva virgen extra) plus 2 teaspoons more for drizzling, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, black pepper, nutmeg (nuez moscada), 3 sprigs of tarragon (estragón), 100 g of couscous.

Preheat the oven to 90 degrees.

Line a baking tray with parchment paper, it should be twice the size of the tray. Pile the asparagus in the middle, add the mushrooms and ham on top. Drizzle with the 2 tsp oil, season with 1/4 tsp salt, pepper and nutmeg. Shake the whole thing so that everything is mixed a little. Place the tarragon on top.

Fold up the parchment paper or use a stapler to close it. Place in the oven for one hour. The asparagus should then be just cooked. If it is still too firm, leave it in the oven for a while longer.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring 180 ml plus 3 tbsp water, 2 tsp olive oil and the remaining salt to the boil. Stir in the couscous and remove from the heat. Cover and leave it to swell for about five minutes. Loosen with a fork. Put the couscous on a plate and drizzle with olive oil. Spread the asparagus and ham with their juices on top.

Sea bream ‘en papillote’ with garlic, chilli and rosemary

For 1 pers.: 6 cloves of garlic (ajo), some olive oil (aceite de oliva) and sea salt (sal marina), 1 sea bream (dorada, ready to cook, approx. 450 g), 1 dried chilli pepper (chile), 2 sprigs of rosemary (romero) and some sea salt, 100 ml olive oil, 50 ml dry white wine (vino blanco seco), 1 tsp. parsley (perejl, the smooth one, finely chopped). Preheat the oven to 160 degrees.

In a small pan, drizzle the garlic with a little olive oil, salt lightly and roast in the oven for ten minutes. Then leave to cool.

Increase the oven temperature to 240 degrees.

Place the sea bream on a sheet of parchment paper large enough to wrap the fish completely in. Crush the chilli pepper over the fish and spread the garlic cloves all around. Place rosemary sprigs into the belly cavity of the fish, salt the sea bream and baste with the olive oil. Then carefully fold into the paper, folding the edges inwards except for a small opening. Pour the wine into this opening, then seal that too. Cook the fish in the oven for 15 minutes.

To serve, cut open the paper, sprinkle the sea bream with parsley.

Mullet ‘en papillote’

For 4 people: 4 mullets (salmonetes, ready to cook), 1 lemon (limón), 1 carrot (zanahoria), 1 leek (puerro), 1 celery (apio), 1 celeriac (pesca). celery (apio), 2 spring onions (cebollas tiernas), 100 g butter, 100 g anchovies (anchoas), 2 tbsp. oil, pepper

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.

Wash and clean the vegetables, taking only the white part of the leek. Chop everything very finely.

Clean the anchovies under running water (remove salt and bones). Drain and mash in a deep dish with a fork. Mix with the butter and store in the fridge.

Cut four rectangular pieces of parchment paper and place a mullet on each one. Spread the finely chopped vegetables on top, drizzle with oil and top with the finely sliced lemon. Season with a little pepper and close the parchment paper tightly. Cook in the oven for about 25 minutes.

Take out and wait for about three minutes, then open carefully. Arrange on plates and serve with the anchovy butter.

Tip: Leave the desalted anchovy fillets to soak in milk or dry white wine for half an hour before serving.

Salmon ‘en papilote’

Serves 4: 600 g salmon (cutlet or sliced fillet), 1 courgette (calabacín), 2 carrots (zanahorias), 4 cabbage leaves (col), 2 leeks (puerro), 4 shallots (escalonias), 100 g butter, ground pepper, coarse salt.

Wash the vegetables. Peel the shallots and carrots. Cut the cabbage leaves, carrots, courgettes and the white of the leek into strips. Blanch the cabbage, carrots and leeks for two minutes in salted water. Sauté the shallots in a little butter. When they become translucent, add the drained cabbage. Sauté for another two minutes.

Cut eight pieces of paper (25 x 25 cm). Put some cabbage and shallots, a few strips of courgette and a walnut-sized piece of butter on four pieces. Place the salmon on top, season with salt and pepper and spread a few strips of carrot, some more cabbage and the leek on top of the fish. Cover with a piece of paper and seal the edges well. Cook in a hot oven on the tray at 210 degrees for about 15 minutes.

Sea bream ‘al limón’

For 4 people: 4 ready-to-cook seabreams, olive oil, parsley (perejil), basil (albahaca), 1 lemon

Salt and pepper the inside of the sea bream and put a slice of lemon in each one. Place each on a piece of parchment paper, sprinkle with the chopped herbs and strips of lemon zest, drizzle with a little olive oil. Cover with the other piece of parchment paper, close and cook in a preheated oven at 180 degrees for 20 minutes.

Apricots baked in foil with vanilla ice cream

Serves 2: 3 apricots (albaricoques), 4 saffron threads (azafrán), 1 vanilla pod (vaina de vainilla), 1 tbsp dark aromatic honey (miel), 2 scoops vanilla ice cream (helado de vainilla), 2 wafer rolls (barquillos), mint leaves (menta)

Wash the apricots, carefully remove the stone so that the halves remain whole. Place on a rectangular piece of aluminium foil. Cut open the vanilla pod and scrape out the inside with a knife. Spread the vanilla pulp, saffron and honey over the apricot halves. Close the aluminium foil like an envelope. Place the parcels in the oven at 160 degrees for ten minutes. Open them on the table while they are still hot. Place the apricots with a little of the delicious apricot juice on plates. Top each with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, garnish with mint leaves and crumbled wafer rolls.