Make Yourself at Home

Passport & Plate - Codfish with Cream (Bacalhau com Natas)

Portugal | Friday, March 6, 2015 | 5 photos

Ingredients
4 chunks of salted codfish
6 Medium potatoes
500ml Vegetable oil
1 onion
Salt q.b.
Ground Black Pepper q.b.
Nutmeg q.b.
120g Flour
200ml Milk
100 - 200mls Single Cream
Grated Cheddar cheese q.b.
Ketchup (optional)

How to prepare this recipe

BEFORE HAND:
Place the salted codfish in a bowl with cold water 2-3 days before hand. Change the water twice a day and make sure it fully covers the codfish.

THE DAY OF THE MEAL:
1 – Boil the codfish for 20-30min in a pot with fresh water, or until it’s soft.
2 – Place the boiled fish in a plate and save the pan with the water aside (later to be used for the béchamel).
3 – Meanwhile peel the potatoes and slice in little cubes or sticks.
4 – Fry the potatoes and save them aside.
5 – Peal the codfish in little chunks – carefully remove skin and all bones and set aside. For better results, this should be done with your hands, so don’t let the fish get too cold or it’s harder to peal, but mind you don’t burn your fingers if it’s too hot.

Béchamel:
6 – In a bowl put first the flour and then add the cold milk. Mixing until well blended. It should have a soft consistency but be almost liquid.
7 – Add salt, black pepper and nutmeg q.b. to 600 ml of the water used to boil the codfish and heat until boiling point.
8 – Add the blended flour and milk mixture to the boiling water, mixing well. Don’t stop mixing until you have a creamy consistency. Be aware, if boiled for too long the mixture will get hard. Taste for salt and nutmeg and add more if needed.

Bringing all ingredients together:
9 – Pre-heat the oven: grill mode at 200ºC;
10 – In a large frying pan, pre-heat oil and add a sliced onion in small pieces. Cook it until golden and soft.
11 – Add the fried potatoes and the codfish. Mix all very well.
12 – Add the Béchamel and blend it in.
13 – Add 100 – 200 ml of Single Cream and mix.
14 – Cook it for 10 minutes, mixing occasionally.
15 – Pour all the ingredients in a large tray. Sprinkle the grated cheese on top to fully cover it and decorate with some Ketchup (optional).
16 – Place in the oven, leave it until cheese is golden. Then it’s ready!

Share with friends, serve with love and eat with passion.
Hope you like it!


The story behind this recipe:

It’s ringing! On the other side of the line, a sweet voice answers already knowing it is me calling: “Olá meu amor!” (Hello my love!) It’s my mum!

I’ve been living in UK for 4 years and everyday I call home. It’s an assurance for them (and for me) to know everybody is ok, and I feel close to them: sharing stories about our days, knowing what was for dinner…

“Mum, I am going to cook the codfish, could you pass the phone to dad?”? Food is what I miss the most from Portugal, and specially my father’s food! So when I’m craving a particular dish I call home for instructions from my parents in an attempt to recreate the flavours and refresh the memories.

The salted codfish was carefully packed together with other Portuguese goods. I lost count how many times I had my bag checked at the airport and I had to raise my shoulders and smile to justify the content of my luggage.

“How do you make codfish with cream?” I ask him.? My father works as a marine and he is capable to cook for 300 people without measuring how much milk or weighing the flour. It’s all “made by the eye”. So his instructions can be hard to follow.

I listen carefully while he describes the smells, the consistency, the look of it, how to handle the spoon to blend it in… I take note.
When the call ends I feel ready to embark on a journey: boil, fry, stir fry, grill, cut, slice, peel and tear into little pieces.

The smells start to blend in the air, my hands inspect the fish carefully looking for bones… and Michael, my boyfriend, arrives home from work. He says the smell is already in the hall of the building and he was pleased to know it came from our door!

The last tip makes me smile: “You can decorate with ketchup!” As a child my father would draw a cat with ketchup on top of the cheese to amuse me and my sister.

I close my eyes, and take the first bite. Hmm! It’s magic! How the smells and the flavours transport my mind to the past, to a far away place, a safe one, to Home Sweet Home.