Spain · Spain

Bacalao al Pil-pil (Spanish Salt Cod in Garlic Oil)

Name: Bacalao al Pil-pil (Spanish Salt Cod in Garlic Oil)
Prep time: 260 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 290 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Spain
Ingredients: salt cod, soaked 700 g; garlic, thinly sliced 80 g; olive oil 200 ml; guindilla pepper 2 pieces; potatoes 600 g; flat parsley 12 g; fine salt 10 g

Salt cod poached in a golden garlic and oil emulsion.

290 minutes · 4 servings · Moderate

Bacalao al pil-pil is the Basque and Cantabrian way of cooking salt cod, where the fish barely sees heat and the sauce is an emulsion of olive oil, garlic and a little fish stock shaken together in the pan. A long-running friendly argument asks whether the garlic belongs in the pan at all or only in the finished emulsion. Keeping that emulsion from splitting is the one real technique here.

Ingredients

salt cod, soaked700 g
garlic, thinly sliced80 g
olive oil200 ml
guindilla pepper2 pieces
potatoes600 g
flat parsley12 g
fine salt10 g

Directions

1
Soak the salt cod in cold water 240 minutes, changing the water twice.
2
Slice the garlic thin and cook it in olive oil 5 minutes over low heat until pale gold.
3
Add the drained cod and 200ml of the garlic oil; poach at 70C for 20 minutes until it flakes.
cod separates into large flakes
4
Mash a spoonful of cod into the oil, return it to the pan and cook 5 minutes to emulsify.
the sauce turns opaque and glossy

Source: WorldBite Editorial · WorldBite Proprietary Editorial Content