Branzino al Cartoccio con Erbe

Al cartoccio — cooking in parchment — is one of the great techniques of the Italian kitchen, used since at least the Renaissance. Each parcel becomes its own sealed cooking environment: the fish steams in its own juices mingled with white wine, lemon and fresh herbs, arriving at the table dramatically sealed, then opened tableside to release a cloud of fragrant steam.

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 4 whole sea bass (branzino), each approx. 350g (12 oz), scaled and gutted (or use 4 x 180g fillets)
• 1 lemon, very thinly sliced into rounds
• 4 sprigs fresh rosemary
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme
• Small bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 8 cherry tomatoes, halved
• 12 Taggiasca or Kalamata olives, pitted
• 4 tbsp (60ml) extra-virgin olive oil
• 100ml (7 tbsp) dry white wine
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tbsp (15g) small capers (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F). Cut 4 large sheets of baking parchment (about 45 x 60cm / 18 x 24 inches each).
2. Lay each fish (or 2 fillets for a larger portion) on one half of a parchment sheet. Season generously inside and out with salt and pepper.
3. Stuff the cavity of each whole fish with 2–3 slices of lemon, a sprig each of rosemary and thyme, and a few slices of garlic. For fillets, lay these on top.
4. Scatter cherry tomatoes, olives and capers (if using) around each fish. Drizzle with 1 tbsp olive oil and 25ml white wine per parcel. Add a few more lemon slices and fresh parsley on top.
5. Fold the empty half of the parchment over the fish. Starting at one corner, make a series of tight, overlapping folds all the way around the open edges to create a sealed parcel. The parcels can be assembled up to 2 hours ahead and refrigerated.
6. Arrange parcels on baking trays. Bake 18–22 minutes for whole fish, 12–14 minutes for fillets, until the parcels have puffed dramatically.
7. Bring the sealed parcels to the table on plates. Open with scissors tableside, being careful of the escaping steam.

Cook's Notes: The sealed parcel creates gentle steam pressure that cooks the fish perfectly without any risk of drying out. Branzino is ideal here but sea bream, red mullet or trout all work beautifully. Serve with crusty bread to mop up the herbed cooking juices.