from Wild Mushrooms, in the Northwest Homegrown Cookbook Series

The prized matsutake is luckily among the many delicious edible wild mushrooms of our region, the quality so high that many of these mushrooms are sent to Japan where they command top dollar. I was fortunate to find three beautiful specimens on a foraging trip on Washington’s Olympic Peninsula, which inspired this recipe. Oyster mushrooms or chanterelles would be particularly good substitutes for the matsutakes in this recipe.

Papillote is a French term for a simple technique of cooking foods enclosed in paper. I love this method, which traps in moisture and flavor during cooking, ideal for lean and delicate ingredients, including fish. You may use foil rather than paper, skipping the step of cutting the heart shape. Simply arrange the ingredients on one half of the foil, fold the top piece over and double-fold the three open sides to fully enclose. This doesn’t have the same visual appeal as the paper packet, however.

1 bunch green onions, trimmed 1/4 cup sake 1 tablespoon soy sauce 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 8 ounces each) 2 ounces matsutake mushroom, brushed clean, trimmed, and thinly sliced

Cut the green onions into about 3-inch lengths, then cut those pieces lengthwise into julienne strips. Put the green onion strips in a small bowl and drizzle with the sake and soy sauce. Toss gently to mix and set aside for 5 to 10 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 425°F. Cut 2 pieces of parchment paper about 18 inches long. Fold each piece in half lengthwise and trim the paper into an oversized heart shape.

Lift out about half of the green onion strips from the sake/soy mixture, allowing excess liquid to drip back into the bowl, and put them on one half of a parchment paper heart, just in from the folded edge. Set a chicken breast over the green onions. Repeat for the second sheet of parchment. Drizzle the remaining sake/soy mixture evenly over the chicken breasts, then lay the matsutake slices on top.

For each packet, fold the other half of the parchment heart over the chicken breast. Starting at the top of the heart at the folded edge, begin making short folds that overlap slightly, working all around the open cut edges to fully seal them. If the edge doesn’t seem well-sealed, and you have ample paper, you can go back around and do the same again.

Set the parchment packets on a baking sheet and bake for 18 minutes. Take the baking sheet from the oven and carefully transfer the packets to individual plates. Either snip open the top of the packet with kitchen shears or simply tear the packet open with your fingers, careful to avoid that first puff of hot steam that will rise up along with the wonderful cooking aromas.

Makes 2 servings