Wild Caught Alaskan Salmon in Parchment

 How many times in life can you serve wild caught Alaskan salmon and say you actually caught the ingredients yourself? If you're like me, it would be once in a lifetime. So far anyway.
I spent a wonderful week last July with some friends who moved to Juneau. We chartered a boat and went to the Icy Straits to fish for halibut at 350 feet, and then later for salmon. Two very different kinds of fishing.
We filleted, had it frozen and sent it back home where we've been enjoying it all year.

Mostly I've been throwing it on the grill, but with the frigid temperature last Saturday night, I couldn't bring myself to stand out there shivering over a flame.

I had to work with limited ingredients because I was overdue for a trip to the market. I had no salad ingredients, and had no idea how I was going to turn this into an interesting meal for a friend coming over.
I had some store bought shrimp thawed out I thought I'd use for something. I decided on jazzed up brown rice for a side dish.

Here is how I prepared the fish:

I chopped up some zucchini, carrot, mushroom, and onion in a small dice. I made two good sized parchment paper hearts and made a bed of chopped vegetables for the fish on one side of the paper heart. I drizzled a little extra virgin olive oil on top and sprinkles some of my favorite seasoning (Hot Rocks) on top. Oh and a sprinkle of fresh parsley I have growing in my window sill.  You could use your favorite seasoning for fish, or just a bit of salt and pepper. It's up to you. Get creative! 

Next I sealed up the packet by folding the other side of the heart over and then folding over the edges all the way around. The oven was preheated to 425, and the fish packets were placed on a cookie sheet and baked for 15 minutes. It's amazing how the vegetables come out perfectly, and the fish is cooked through while staying moist and tender. There is no fish smell in the oven, and you just throw the paper away, so there is no mess either. When it comes out of the oven, simply cut an X in the top of each packet, and pull opposite edges to open the X and allow some of the steam escape. You can serve it right in the parchment, or carefully slide it onto a plate.

 

 

I highly recommend this method of cooking any kind of fish. It works well with more delicate fish like Tilapia as well.You can actually prepare these and freeze before baking. Take them out for individual servings for a quick meal.

The brown rice was short grain brown sushi rice. I love this type of rice. It's sticky and when I cook it with broth, it had a risotto like vibe. I kept it simple by sauteing garlic and onion and cooking the rice with a mixture of chicken broth and water. At the end, I threw in that shrimp I had thawed out because I didn't know what else to do with it, and some roasted red peppers that I'd fire roasted and frozen back in October.

It was a simple, casual, healthy and delicious meal, made by winging it. Winging it is challenging at times, but that's just how I roll.