Bacalhau à Brás

Name: Bacalhau à Brás
Prep time: 1475 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 1515 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Portuguese
Ingredients: 500 g salt cod (bacalhau), thick loin pieces (weighed dry, before soaking); 600 g floury potatoes (peeled); 1 l sunflower or vegetable oil (for frying); 2 whole large onions (halved and very thinly sliced); 3 cloves garlic (thinly sliced); 1 leaf bay leaf; 80 ml extra virgin olive oil; 6 whole eggs; 1 bunch flat-leaf parsley (leaves finely chopped); 16 pcs black olives (Portuguese galega olives if possible); 0.5 tsp freshly ground black pepper; salt (to taste, only if needed)

Serves 4 · 1515 min · Portuguese

Ingredients

500 g salt cod (bacalhau), thick loin pieces
600 g floury potatoes
1 L sunflower or vegetable oil
2 large onions
3 cloves garlic
1 leaf bay leaf
80 ml extra virgin olive oil
6 eggs
1 bunch flat-leaf parsley
16 black olives
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
to taste salt

Method

01
Soak the cod Rinse the salt off the cod, put it skin side up in a large bowl of cold water and leave it in the fridge for twenty four hours, changing the water about every eight hours.
02
Shred the cod Drain the cod, pull off the skin and bones, and tear the flesh with your fingers into fine strands, then set it aside.
03
Cut the potato straws Cut the potatoes into very thin matchsticks, about the thickness of a matchstick or finer, using a mandoline or a sharp knife.
04
Rinse and dry potatoes Rinse the potato sticks in cold water to remove the starch, then dry them completely on a clean tea towel.
05
Heat the frying oil Heat the frying oil in a deep pan to about one hundred and eighty degrees Celsius.
06
Fry the potatoes Fry the potato sticks in small batches, stirring gently, until crisp and pale golden, about four minutes per batch, then drain on paper towels.
07
Soften the onions In a wide frying pan, warm the olive oil over medium low heat and cook the onion, garlic and bay leaf, stirring often, until soft and translucent but not browned.
08
Cook the cod Add the shredded cod to the onions and stir it through, cooking until it turns opaque and has soaked up the oil.
09
Fold in the potatoes Remove the bay leaf, lower the heat and gently fold the fried potato straws into the cod and onion.
10
Beat the eggs Beat the eggs in a bowl with the black pepper and half of the chopped parsley.
11
Scramble gently Pour the eggs over the pan and stir constantly over low heat just until they thicken into a soft, creamy coating, then take the pan off the heat.
12
Season and serve Taste and add salt only if needed, then scatter over the black olives and the rest of the parsley and serve straight away.

Method

Soak the cod

Rinse the salt off the cod, put it skin side up in a large bowl of cold water and leave it in the fridge for twenty four hours, changing the water about every eight hours.

Taste a small flake before cooking. If it is still very salty, soak a few hours more in fresh water; very thick loins can need up to forty eight hours.

Soak the cod · 1440 min

Shred the cod

Drain the cod, pull off the skin and bones, and tear the flesh with your fingers into fine strands, then set it aside.

Shred it finely, almost like threads. Big flakes stay chewy and do not blend with the potato.

Cut the potato straws

Cut the potatoes into very thin matchsticks, about the thickness of a matchstick or finer, using a mandoline or a sharp knife.

If you are short on time, many Lisbon cooks use bought batata palha, the ready-made Portuguese potato straws, in place of frying your own.

Rinse and dry potatoes

Rinse the potato sticks in cold water to remove the starch, then dry them completely on a clean tea towel.

Wet potatoes make the oil spit and turn out soggy, so take the time to dry them well.

Heat the frying oil

Heat the frying oil in a deep pan to about one hundred and eighty degrees Celsius.

Without a thermometer, drop in one potato stick. It should sizzle steadily and rise to the surface straight away.

Heat the frying oil · 8 min

Fry the potatoes

Fry the potato sticks in small batches, stirring gently, until crisp and pale golden, about four minutes per batch, then drain on paper towels.

Do not let them go dark brown. They soften a little when mixed with the egg, so they need to start crisp but light.

Fry the potatoes · 4 min

Soften the onions

In a wide frying pan, warm the olive oil over medium low heat and cook the onion, garlic and bay leaf, stirring often, until soft and translucent but not browned.

Soften the onions · 10 min

Cook the cod

Add the shredded cod to the onions and stir it through, cooking until it turns opaque and has soaked up the oil.

Cook the cod · 5 min

Fold in the potatoes

Remove the bay leaf, lower the heat and gently fold the fried potato straws into the cod and onion.

Fold in the potatoes · 1 min

Beat the eggs

Beat the eggs in a bowl with the black pepper and half of the chopped parsley.

Scramble gently

Pour the eggs over the pan and stir constantly over low heat just until they thicken into a soft, creamy coating, then take the pan off the heat.

Pull it off while it still looks glossy and slightly wet. The heat of the pan keeps cooking it, and dry, rubbery egg is the classic mistake.

Scramble gently · 1 min

Season and serve

Taste and add salt only if needed, then scatter over the black olives and the rest of the parsley and serve straight away.

Bacalhau à Brás

Ingredients

Method

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