I wanted to show Shorey how to make a great one-dish meal for dinner, so I chose this one featuring sausage, potatoes, onions, and mushrooms en papillote. Papillote refers to a wrapping of foil or parchment paper in which meat or fish is cooked. This is a great dish to make for a party, as it can be assembled ahead, even the day before, and then placed in the oven an hour before serving. We use nonstick aluminum foil instead of parchment paper, and Shorey put all the ingredients in the foil well in advance.
The food should not be wrapped too tightly, so steam develops and keeps the food moist. This dish can also be made with chicken pieces or meatballs, other vegetables, or fish.
Serves 4
Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Cut a piece of nonstick aluminum foil 32 inches long by 12 inches wide and place the foil on a baking sheet so half of it extends beyond the sheet.
Place the sausages, vegetables, garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper on the foil on the baking sheet and drizzle with the oil. Fold the extended foil over the ingredients and secure the three open sides of the foil by rolling the edges over on themselves twice. Do not wrap the foil tightly around the ingredients; they should be loose inside.
Place the papillote in the oven and cook for 1 hour. Remove from the oven and let rest for 10 minutes.
Carefully open the foil; the food will be steaming hot. Scrape the ingredients and juices onto a large platter, sprinkle with the parsley, and serve immediately, with mustard, if desired.
To see how it’s done, go to www.surlatable.com/jacquespepin.