Bacalhau Com Natas
As Clarice Pinto and Lucy Pires from Santiago, Cape Verde, taught Lindsay Sterling in Brockton, Massachusetts.
Cooking Time: 1 hour + 24 hours soaking the salt cod
Servings: 10
Note: Recipe adapted slightly to avoid MSG, which was in a couple of pre-prepared spice mixtures they used.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lb. salt cod
- 2 1/2 lb potatoes
- 3 eggs
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1 onion sliced into 1/4"-thick rounds
- 1/4 tomato sliced into 1/4"-thick rounds
- 1 small bunch cilantro, rough chopped including stems and leaves
- 1/2 red pepper, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 tsp salt
- dash chili powder
- dash sweet paprika
- dash annatto or achiote powder (optional)
- 2 tsp white pepper
- 1/2 cup pitted green olives
- 2 Tbsp butter
- 2 cups milk
- 1/2 cup cream
- 1 Tbsp corn starch
Instructions
1. The night before cooking, soak the salt cod in water in the fridge over night.
2. At least an hour before you want to eat, peel the potatoes and cut into 1" chunks. Cover with water in a large pot. Put the eggs (shells on) in the water along with the potatoes. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 14 minutes or until the potatoes are soft. Take the eggs out and peel them. Strain the potatoes.
3. Preheat the oven to 350. Strain the salt cod.
4. In a large pot with 1/2 cup olive oil in it, saute the onions, tomato, cilantro, red pepper, yellow pepper, and garlic with all the spices (chili powder, paprika, annatto, and white pepper). When onions are soft, add the salt cod. Stir and cook until salt cod breaks down a little bit and turns kind of mushy. Then gently stir in the the potatoes.
5. In medium sauce pan, melt butter, whisk in corn starch, and then whisk in milk and cream. Heat on medium, stirring constantly, until the milk and cream thicken.
6. Spread the sauteed fish-potato mixture evenly in an oven-safe casserole dish. Slice the eggs into 1/4" rounds. Decorate the top of the cod and potato mixture with green olives and cross sections of egg.
7. Pour the thickened milk mixture over the whole thing. Bake for 40 minutes. Broil at the end so the top is slightly browned.