14 Apr 2009

Cod a Gomez de Sá

Salt cod If I say that I always love salt cod certainly will be cheating myself, I provably start to like cod when my father was transferred from Sao Paulo to Lisbon. On my first visit to that city my parents invited me out to dinner. Cod Gave me panic when I started to read the menu I only saw there fish, lots of them, pasta and veal- I hate it, and I ate very few bovine meats. But this night my dad makes me change my mind about fish and order Bacalhau com natas (Cod with cream) It was fabulous, soft, tasty sinful delicious The restaurant was in Cascais the city thet they lived in these times, unfortunately I didn’t remember the restaurant’s name Later I discover that is just one of the 365 ways to prepare salt cod in Portugal, one for every day of the year. The Norwegians call it klippfisk, the Spanish bacalao, the Italians baccalà, the Portuguese bacalhau, the French morue – and they forgive it its sins. Salt cod is easy to prepare, but not easy to prepare well. It has to be soaked for a day or two or three This week end I prepared Cod a Gomez de Sá .Is essentially a casserole of cod, potatoes and onion, for the simplicity and purity of flavors is considered one of Portugal's greatest bacalhau recipes. Salt cod Ingredients • 700g salt cod • 1 cup olive oil • 5 large -sized onions finely sliced • 1Tbsp garlic, finely-chopped • 7 medium-sized potatoes • 6 hard boiled eggs, sliced • 2 Tbsp parsley, finely chopped Method
  • Starting the day before, soak the salt cod, refrigerated, in a container of water for 16 - 24 hours, changing the water 3 or 4 times.
  • Drain and rinse the cod. Place in a saucepan and fill with water to cover the fish by 1 inch. Bring to a boil and then simmer for about 20 minutes until the fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Drain thoroughly and flake the fish coarsely, removing any skin or bones with a paring knife. Set aside.
  • Boil the potatoes in their skins until easily pierced with a fork or skewer but not soft. Drain, cool and peel. Slice into ¼-inch slices. Set aside.
  • In a heavy frying-pan, heat a ½ cup of olive oil over medium high heat for two minutes. Add the sliced onion and sautée for about 6 or 7 minutes until the onions are translucent. Stir in the garlic and remove from the heat.
  • To assemble, lay half the potatoes in the bottom of a casserole. Cover them with half the cod and then half the onion. Repeat with the rest and drizzle the rest of the olive oil over the top.
  • Bake for about 20 minutes in a 400ºF/200ºC oven until the top is lightly browned.
  • Garnish with olives and hard-boiled egg slices. Sprinkle with parsley.
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8 comments:

Ginny said...

When I was living in Rome, my host mother would make a really good tomato based stew with salt cod... I loved it! We can't find it around here- unfortunately! If I do, I know what recipe to try! :)

Thistlemoon said...

I love love love baccalà! Such good stuff. This dish looks amazing, Sylvia.

Anonymous said...

Oh, this looks so good! And I love that it is simple to make.

You KNOW I'm going to try this recipe. Right!?

Thanks!

Paz ;-)

helen said...

I see salt cod often at Italian or Portuguese markets – always want to buy but never know what to do with them. This looks like a great preparation. I’ll be trying it soon.

Manggy said...

You know, I just saw a small pack of salt cod from Canada at the grocery-- it was soooo expensive! Looks like this beautiful dish will have to wait :(

lisa (dandysugar) said...

I love this dish. Your recipe looks delicious! Would love to try this. I'll let you know how it goes! Cheers!

lisaiscooking said...

I've been wanting to try cooking with salt cod, but I haven't located it yet. Your casserole looks delicious!

cucchiaiopieno.com.br said...

Querida Sylvia, muito obrigada pelo apoio e carinho nos dias dificéis que passei.
Voce nao para de me surpreender com tuas receitas, parabéns! Bjim. Léia