Packet Snapper

Pile on your favorite vegetables to enhance the flavors in your packet.

My family calls this meal Packet Fish.  The fish is enclosed in a foil packet along with seasonings and vegetables.  In this case we used red snapper, but tilapia, cod, or other white fish works well too.

serves:  4                    prep time:  10 minutes

foil squares

olive oil or Pam spray
4 4-ounce red snapper fillets
4 new potatoes, thinly sliced
1 red pepper, thinly sliced
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Start with a 12-inch square of foil for each person.  Set the pieces of foil on the counter and spray with Pam or brush with olive oil.  Lay a 3 to 4-ounce piece of fish on the foil and top with thinly sliced red onion, new potatoes, and red pepper.  You may use other vegetables too such as zucchini, tomatoes, carrots, and mushrooms.  Drizzle a small amount of olive oil over.  Season lightly with salt and pepper and top with sliced lemon.  Enclose the fish by bringing the sides of the foil up and securely sealing in the ingredients.  Place packets on a baking sheet and cook for 25 minutes at 350 degrees.

Remove packets from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes before opening.  When you unseal a packet, be careful not to burn yourself with steam. 

Packets may be placed directly on the plate.  Each packet has approximately 375 calories and over 4 g fiber. Serve with a large tossed green salad and 1/2 cup of brown rice.  This entire meal has over 100% of your RDA for B12, close to 100% for selenium, a quarter of the RDA for potassium, and a multitude of other beneficial elements.

This is a "time-friendly" meal.  Start to finish, the meal was completely cooked in just under 45 minutes.  This is how:  1) Start with the brown rice as this takes the most time.  Brown rice in my rice cooker takes just about 40 minutes.  2) Make the fish packets and put them in the oven.  3) Make the green salad.  Our salads include lettuces, avocado, tomato, and a light vinaigrette.  4) Pull the fish packets out of the oven and set aside while you toss the salad.  5)  Plate the fish, brown rice, and green salad.  One of my kid helpers sets the table and another one pours the water into glasses.  Voila!

- Kim Fielding