Pompano en Papillote

Pompano en papillote — Gulf pompano baked inside a sealed parchment paper envelope with a rich crab and shrimp sauce — was created at Antoine's Restaurant in 1901 by Jules Alciatore (the same chef who created Oysters Rockefeller two years earlier) in honour of the Brazilian aviator Alberto Santos-Dumont's balloon flights over Paris. The puffed parchment paper emerging from the oven was meant to evoke the shape of a hot air balloon. The dish is the most theatrical fish preparation in the New Orleans fine dining canon and demonstrates the specific character of Creole fine dining: French technique applied to Gulf seafood, executed with a showmanship that the French would consider vulgar and New Orleans considers essential.

A fillet of Gulf pompano (a firm, sweet, fine-grained fish with a high fat content that keeps it moist during baking) placed on a heart-shaped piece of parchment paper, topped with a rich sauce of crabmeat, shrimp, and a white wine velouté seasoned with shallot, mushroom, and thyme. The parchment is folded and crimped to seal completely, then baked at high heat (220°C) until the paper puffs dramatically from the steam trapped inside. The sealed parchment is brought to the table, puffed and golden, and cut open with scissors — releasing an aromatic cloud of steam that is the dish's signature moment.

The dish is a fish course in a multi-course New Orleans fine dining meal — after the oyster course (Rockefeller, en brochette), before the meat course or dessert. Lemon wedges on the plate. A dry white Burgundy or Loire white. The rich crab-shrimp sauce makes the dish substantial enough that the following course should be lighter.