Cooking the salmon and vegetables en papillote (French parlance for something cooked and served in a paper wrapper) traps steam to add moisture and guarantees you’ll be relishing perfectly tender veggies and melt-in-your-mouth fish. Finishing it off with a sweet-savoury blackberry sauce adds a surprise element to the dish that makes it oh-so-summery.
Nutrition boost
Blackberries are a good source of dietary fibre, vitamin C, vitamin K, and manganese.
Think inside the box
Yes, you can also steam your parcels in the microwave for an even quicker meal. Microwave parchment packets on high for 4 minutes. Open a corner of a packet and check that salmon flesh is cooked through. If not, microwave in 30-second intervals until salmon is cooked. Let parchment packets rest, sealed, for 5 minutes.
Salmon En Papillote with Blackberry Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 small red onion, thinly sliced
- 2 small zucchinis, sliced into 1/2 in (1.25 cm) rounds
- 1 large red bell pepper, thinly sliced
- 4 - 4 to 6 oz (112 to 170 g) skinless wild salmon fillets
- 1 Tbsp (15 mL) fresh lemon juice
- 2 tsp (10 mL) grapeseed oil or sunflower oil
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tsp (10 mL) minced fresh gingerroot
- 2 cups (500 mL) blackberries
- 1 Tbsp (15 mL) balsamic vinegar, divided
- 2 tsp (10 mL) fresh thyme
- 2 tsp (10 mL) honey
- 2 tsp (10 mL) lemon zest
- 1/4 tsp (1 mL) cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp (1 mL) salt
- 1/4 tsp (1 mL) black pepper
- 1/4 tsp (1 mL) chili powder (optional)
- 1/3 cup (80 mL) chopped parsley
Nutrition
Per serving:
- calories330
- protein26g
- fat18g
- saturated fat4g
- trans fat0g
- carbohydrates18g
- sugars10g
- fibre6g
- sodium224mg
Directions
01
Preheat oven to 400 F (200 C).
02
Fold 4 - 14 x 18 in (36 x 46 cm) sheets of parchment paper in half. Open up sheets and place an equal amount of onion, zucchini, and red pepper on one side of each sheet. Place salmon on top of vegetables. Drizzle lemon juice overtop. Fold empty half of parchment sheets over salmon and vegetables and crimp them shut. Place fish packets on 2 baking sheets and cook for 20 minutes. Let rest for 5 minutes before carefully opening packets.
03
Meanwhile, in skillet over medium, heat oil. Add garlic and ginger to pan and heat for 1 minute. Place blackberries, 1 tsp (5 mL) balsamic vinegar, thyme, honey, lemon zest, cinnamon, salt, black pepper, and chili powder, if using, in pan. Bring to boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes. Stir in remaining balsamic vinegar.
04
Serve salmon and vegetables topped with blackberry sauce and parsley.
Matthew Kadey, MSc, RD, is a dietitian, nutrition writer, and recipe developer. He is also the author of Rocket Fuel (VeloPress, 2016) and Muffin Tin Chef (Ulysses Press, 2012).
