Tilapia En Papilotte with fresh herbs, white wine and onions
Have you ever traveled somewhere in the world where your native tongue is not the main language of use, in this case, English?
If you are like me you pick up your little travel dictionary before arriving at the travel destination. The kind of dictionary that translates words from the native tongue to English and vice versa ensuring that even if your pronunciation is a bit lacking you can still communicate the word and achieve your desired result.
In some English Dictionaries, the French word Papilotte is generally defined by two words together En Papillote as if one ‘in parchment’ that’s two words right? The general idea refers to a style of cooking in a pouch.
Just for curiosity, I checked out Cooking in a Pouch but after three pages of internet headlines, I saw none that transferred back to the term En Papillote.
En Papillote in the US is a common restaurant usage to describe the technique of using parchment paper, greasing it, then filling it with typically fish or vegetables and rolling the edges tightly in a somewhat semicircle shape resembling one side of a butterfly wing. The ingredients in the pouch baked in the oven cook by steaming, locking in the juices and moist flavors.
The Free Online Dictionary uses the word Papillote singularly in a definition also shared by some, not all, as the frilly paper that tops the meat on chops or a crown roast.
The Oxford French Dictionary purchased on a visit to Oxford, England many years ago inspired me that R&B Singer Chaka Khan best shared the definition soulfully in her song, Papillon, AKA Hot Butterfly informing us that Papillon in French means Butterfly.
The other Oxford Dictionary definition for Papillon is a parking ticket.
Think about this, suppose you go on a trip to France with your little Oxford Dictionary and En Papillote something, something fish and vegetables are the Plat du jour. You open up your little French Dictionary to the French to English half and wonder if they are serving butterfly, certainly not the other choice, a parking ticket.
Ironically, the logical choice might be to move your finger right up to the word above, drum roll…it is the word ‘papier’ listing everything from parchment paper, to wrapping paper to kitchen paper and aluminum foil. Aha, La Paris you think to yourself what a genius I am choosing to visit this culinary bastion, where they serve vegetables with Hot Butterfly cooked in paper.
It certainly is interesting to see how word definitions, concepts, and variations transfer between languages. In my case, this all started due to a small interruption sidetracking me to pull out a long sheet of aluminum foil instead of parchment paper for your Tilapia En Papillote with fresh herbs, wine and onions. I wondered if I should technically call this dish En Papillote wrapped in aluminum foil. The answer is yes, the wrapping after all did look like a big Butterfly Wing.
Tilapia En Papilotte with fresh herbs, white wine and onions
Ingredients
- For the Tilapia:
- 4 tilapia fillets
- 1 cup white wine
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 -3 bay leaves, broken in half
- 8 peppercorns
- 1 medium size onion, thinly sliced
- 12-15 sprigs fresh thyme
- 12-15 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 3/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper
- 2 large sheets aluminum foil, one to lay across glass dish on bottom
- For the Spinach:
- 1/2-3/4 pound fresh baby spinach, rinsed with water clinging to leaves
- 2 cloves chopped garlic
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 2 pinches coarse kosher salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees, lay a large sheet of aluminum foil across a long glass dish, set Tilapia on top lengthwise, pour over the white wine, drizzle over the olive oil, scatter bay leaf pieces across, then the peppercorns
- Lay thin onion slices evenly across the top then the fresh thyme and rosemary sprigs covering as much of the fish as possible, lay another large sized piece of aluminum foil on top of the dish bringing up the sides of the bottom piece then roll up and fold the ends tightly together
- Place dish into the oven and cook around 35-40 minutes until onions are very soft and fish is cooked through
- Before serving, remove fresh herbs and bay leaves pushing off loose peppercorns, Lift fish out of aluminum foil, transfer to a platter, top with the onions and spoon the wine sauce over the fish, sprinkle the top of fish with cracked black pepper, serve with fresh sauteed spinach and garlic, and lemon wedges on the side
- Preparing the Spinach: Heat saute pan to hot, add olive oil, add fresh chopped garlic and saute for about ten seconds then add in all of the spinach with the water clinging to the leaves, use tongs to pick up the spinach and stir around continuously until the spinach has wilted, sprinkle with a couple pinches of salt, stir through
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