Creamed Bacalhau/Bacalhau com Natas

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Creamed Bacalhau/Bacalhau com Natas:
One of the popular 1001 bacalhau (salted cod) recipes, this is certainly on entry level as far as eating salted cod is concerned. The flavour of the cod infuses the creamy sauce which in the oven forms a delicious gratin crust. This dish uses flaked cod so you don’t need prime cuts however, the better the cod the better the dish. This recipe uses fried potatoes but these can be replaced by boiled potato cubes though it is important that the whole thing doesn’t turn into mash so stay away from floury potatoes!


250gr Salted Cod (Soaked for 48 hours changing water twice a day)

250gr Fried potato in small cubes (prepared in advance)

1 large onion, sliced

2 bay leaves

2.5 dl full cream

2.5 dl milk

2 tbsp butter

1 tbsp Olive oil

6 black peppercorns

2 cloves of garlic (minced)

Grated nutmeg and black pepper to taste
1. Parboil the cod pieces in milk with the bay leaves and peppercorns for about 5 minutes at moderate heat then flake, removing any bones and skin (keep the infused milk).
2. In a large pot, fry the sliced onions in butter and olive oil until soft then add the garlic and cook for another couple of minutes.
3. Add the cod and half the milk and mix all the ingredients gently
4. Add the fried potatoes and the cream stir gently and season with nutmeg, pepper and salt, tasting carefully and adjusting consistency with more milk if required. The texture should be creamy and rich.
5. Transfer to a oven dish and gratin in a hot oven for about 15 minutes or until you get a golden crust.
6. Let the dish rest for a few minutes and serve with a green salad or on a bed of sauteed spinach.