Recipe: Walleye in Parchment with Lemon and Dill

WALLEYE IN PARCHMENT WITH LEMON AND DILL

"Walleye, often called the sole of freshwater fish, is snowy white, fine flaked, sweet, and tender. Although sometimes called walleye pike, the fish is not a pike at all, but instead a member of the perch family and closely related to the sweet yellow perch. On the Wolf River in Wisconsin, walleyes migrate a hundred miles upstream from Lake Winnebago, to the delight of northern Heartland sport fishers. If walleye is not available, substitute sole, snapper, or flounder in this recipe."

6 tablespoons (3 oz/90 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
4 walleye fillets (4 to 6 oz (125 to 185 g) each)
1 lemon, thinly sliced
4 to 8 fresh dill sprigs
4 8 fresh flat leaf (Italian) parsley sprigs
8 dashes of Tabasco or other hot pepper sauce
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). Cut four 24 by 12 inch (60 by 30 cm) pieces of parchment (baking) paper. Using 2 tablespoons of the butter, liberally butter each sheet.

Rinse the fillets and pat dry with paper towels. Place 1 walleye fillet at one wide end of the parchment, leaving about 2 inches (5 cm) of paper uncovered at the bottom. Put 2 or 3 slices of lemon, 1 or 2 dill sprigs, and 1 or 2 parsley sprigs on top of each fillet. Shake 2 dashes of hot pepper sauce over each fillet Season the fish with salt and pepper. Dot each fillet with equal amounts of the remaining 4 tablespoons (2 oz/60 g) butter.

To close the parchment paper, moisten the edges of the paper with water. Fold the free half of the paper over the fish, closing it like a book. Fold the edges of the paper over, crimping as you go, to enclose the fish. Assemble the remaining 3 packets, and place all the packets on a baking sheet.

Bake until the parchment paper is puffed and brown, 10-12 minutes.

Place the packets on individual plates, slit open carefully, avoiding the steam, and fold back the parchment. Serve at once.

Makes 4 servings
Source: The Heartland, part of the Williams Sonoma New American Cooking series. Recipes by Beth Dooley, photographs by Leigh Beisch