This recipe was created in New Orleans and uses a parchment package to steam fish. Pompano has a sweet and mild flavor and cooks in a delicate wine sauce. Like other Creole preparations, this recipe is derived from French cuisine. Rich local seafood including oysters also star in the dish. Using a somewhat theatrical presentation that was common to the New Orleans fine dining scene of the late 1800s, each diner opens their package to release the content’s aroma. The dish was created in tribute to the pioneering aeronautical balloonists of the era, with the puffed-up parchment packages resembling balloons.
Recipe Servings: 4
Prep Time
10 minutes
Cook Time
20 minutes
Total Time
30 minutes
Vegetarian
Vegan
Gluten Free
Dairy Free
Kosher
Halal
Ingredients
- 10 Tbsp unsalted butter, divided
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 3 cups half and half
- Kosher salt, to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 cup mushrooms, thinly sliced
- 2 Tbsp dry sherry
- 8 shucked bluepoint oysters, juices reserved
- 10 oz medium shrimp (about 20), peeled and deveined
- ¼ lb jumbo lump crab meat
- 2 Tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped
- 2 scallions, finely chopped
- 4 pompano fillets
- 1 Tbsp paprika
Directions
- In a 2-quart saucepan, heat 4 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat.
- Add flour and whisk, cooking 2 minutes.
- Stir in half and half and bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and cook 2–3 minutes until thick.
- Season the sauce to taste with salt and pepper and set aside.
- In a 12-inch skillet, heat the remaining butter over medium-high heat.
- Add the mushrooms and brown 4–6 minutes.
- Add the sherry, oyster juices, salt, and pepper, and cook for an additional 2–3 minutes, until reduced by half.
- Remove the pan from heat and stir in the oysters, shrimp, crab, parsley, and scallions. Stir in the reserved sauce.
- Preheat oven to 500°F.
- Cut four pieces of parchment into heart shapes about 16 x 10 inches.
- Fold each in half and crease down the center.
- Working one at a time, place a fish filet on one side of each heart, and season with salt and pepper. Over each filet, place a portion of the seafood mixture.
- Sprinkle with paprika and fold the paper over the filet and up to seal.
- Transfer the wrapped filets to a baking sheet and cook for 8–10 minutes, until the fish is cooked and flakes easily when tested with a fork.
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