Bacalao al Chilindrón

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Nonreactive soaking container holding at least 4 litres
• •Wide heavy sauté pan or shallow casserole, 28 to 30cm
• •Box grater for the tomatoes
• •Fish slice
• •Fish-bone tweezers

Instructions

1. 1

   Desalt the cod

   Rinse the salt from the cod and place the pieces skin-side up in a nonreactive container. Cover with at least 3 litres of cold water and refrigerate for 36 hours, changing the water after 8, 16, 24 and 32 hours. Keep it cold throughout. To check the seasoning, cut off a small shaving, simmer it in plain water for 30 seconds and taste it. If it remains sharply salty, soak the cod for another 4 to 8 hours.

   Pieces thicker than 4cm usually need closer to 48 hours. Judge by thickness and the cooked taste test, not by the clock alone.
2. 2

   Dry and flour

   Drain the cod and pat every surface thoroughly dry. Run your fingers over the flesh and remove any easy-to-find pin bones with tweezers. Put the flour on a plate, coat the cod very lightly and shake off every loose patch. Don't add salt.

3. 3

   Color the cod

   Heat the olive oil in a wide, heavy pan over medium heat. When a pinch of flour sizzles immediately, add the cod skin-side down without crowding it. Cook for 2 minutes, turn carefully and cook the flesh side for 1 minute. It should take on only a pale golden coating and remain raw inside. Lift it onto a plate. Leave about 60ml oil in the pan, spooning out any flour fragments that have turned dark.

4. 4

   Build the sofrito

   Lower the heat and add the onions and red peppers. Cook gently for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring every few minutes, until the onions are dark gold and jammy and the pepper strips are completely soft. They should sweeten in the oil, not scorch at the edges. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.

5. 5

   Add ham and wine

   Stir in the diced serrano ham and cook for 2 minutes, just until its fat turns glossy. Pour in the wine and scrape the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Let it bubble steadily for 3 to 4 minutes, until reduced by about half and the raw smell of wine has gone.

6. 6

   Reduce the tomato

   Add the grated tomato pulp and bay leaf. Cook uncovered over medium-low heat for 18 to 22 minutes, stirring often near the end. The chilindrón is ready when it has turned deep brick red, a spoon drawn across the pan leaves a clear trench for a moment and small beads of oil show around the edge. Pésalo, no lo adivines applies to ingredients; here, trust what the pan is showing you.

7. 7

   Finish the cod

   Nestle the cod into the thick sauce skin-side down and spoon a little chilindrón over each piece. Hold the pan at the gentlest simmer for 6 to 8 minutes, depending on thickness. Shake the pan once or twice instead of stirring around the fish. The cod is done when it is opaque and separates into broad, moist flakes under light pressure, or reaches 63°C at the thickest point.

8. 8

   Rest and serve

   Take the pan off the heat and let it rest for 5 minutes. Remove the bay leaf, then taste the sauce only now, after the cod has released its final salt. Add up to 2g salt if it truly needs it. Serve one cod portion per person with plenty of pepper and ham sauce, and bread for the oil-rich juices.

Chef Tips

• •Buy thick salt-cod loin rather than thin tail pieces. The loin opens into broad flakes and can finish in the sauce without drying. Frozen, ready-desalted bacalao is the closest substitute and is common in Spanish homes; thaw it in the refrigerator, dry it well and begin at the flouring step.
• •If salt cod is impossible to find, use 700g thick fresh cod loin. Sprinkle it evenly with 7g fine salt, refrigerate for 45 minutes, rinse briefly and dry well before flouring. The result will be softer and less deeply savory because a short salting cannot reproduce a full cure.
• •Use fresh tomatoes only when they are ripe and heavy. Outside their season, canned whole peeled tomatoes are the honest choice. Drain them lightly and crush them by hand; the sauce will taste rounder and less fresh, but far better than one made with hard winter tomatoes.
• •Serrano ham and cured cod both carry salt, so season only after the fish has finished in the sauce. Salt early and you may spend supper looking for a jug of water.
• •This belongs comfortably at an Easter Sunday table, but it is not suitable as written for a strict day of meat abstinence because chilindrón contains ham. Omitting the ham makes a good pepper-and-tomato bacalao, but it loses the cured depth of this version.
• •A young Garnacha from Campo de Borja or a dry Garnacha Blanca suits the sweet pepper, tomato and salt cod. Keep the wine simple. The stew has enough to say.

Advance Preparation

• •Begin desalting the cod 36 hours before cooking and change the water four times. Once properly desalted, drain and refrigerate it covered for no more than 24 hours before cooking.
• •The chilindrón sauce can be cooked through the tomato-reduction step up to 2 days ahead. Cool it promptly, cover and refrigerate. Reheat it gently before adding the freshly floured and colored cod.
• •The finished dish can rest for 20 minutes before serving. Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours and keep them for up to 2 days; reheat over low heat only until warmed through, since hard bubbling dries the cod.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 520g)