Salt Cod (Porto Style)

Salt Cod, Porto Style

Throughout Portugal you will will find a variety of recipes for bacalhau à brás, a dish of potatoes, onions and salt cod, bound together with beaten eggs. While traveling to Porto, we were served something more like this recipe, topped with poached eggs instead of being held together by softly scrambled eggs. We added the…

Salt Cod, Porto Style

Throughout Portugal you will will find a variety of recipes for bacalhau à brás, a dish of potatoes, onions and salt cod, bound together with beaten eggs. While traveling to Porto, we were served something more like this recipe, topped with poached eggs instead of being held together by softly scrambled eggs. We added the…

Guidelines in the recipe will help you scale it to your desired portion size
Shopping List

salt cod, about 3 oz per person

potatoes, 1 russet per person

eggs, 1 egg (or 2) per person

onions, ½ medium per person

garlic, to taste

red and yellow peppers, ½ to 1 per person

olive oil

parsley

Rehydrate

  • salt cod, maybe 3 ounces per person

We like it a bit salty, but just change the water according to your taste. When it’s done rehydrating, drain and poach until cooked; it’s easiest in a skillet rather than a saucepan. Remove from the water and when cool, remove bones and flake the fish. You can do this well ahead of time.

Prepare the potatoes according to this recipe. We use about 1 large (russet) potato per serving. That recipe makes addictive roasted potatoes, so don’t say you weren’t warned.

While the potatoes are roasting, prep these vegetables.

  • onions, cut in half-slices or diced (about 1 medium onion per 2 servings)
  • garlic, minced finely or cut in slices (1 medium clove per 2 servings)
  • red and yellow peppers, cut into strips (½ to 1 pepper per serving)

Saute the onion slices in

  • a couple glugs of olive oil

Add the garlic and peppers, letting them saute until tender. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Lower the heat and get ready to poach the eggs, one person. If you aren’t comfortable poaching eggs, you can fry them (over easy), but trust me, these directions work really well. ATTN I add 1 tsp of white vinegar to each egg and let them sit for a minute before lowering them into the water.

As the potatoes are nearing completion, raise the heat gently on the onion mixture, add the flaked salt cod. When the potatoes are out of the oven, put them in a warmed serving plate, cover with the onion/pepper/fish mixture, sprinkle with

  • chopped parsley, to taste

Blot the poached eggs dry and then place them on top of the serving dish.
Serve immediately: you may want to give each person their own egg(s) or else you can stir the whole thing together and serve it that way.