Huevos a la Donostiarra

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Non-reactive container large enough to soak the cod
• •Medium saucepan
• •Wide frying pan
• •Balloon whisk or firm wooden spoon
• •Shallow 30 by 22cm gratin dish

Instructions

1. 1

   Desalt the bacalao

   Rinse the salt crystals from the cod under cold running water. Put it skin-side up in a non-reactive container, cover with at least 5cm of cold water, and refrigerate for 36 to 48 hours. Change the water every 8 to 12 hours. At the final change, pull a small flake from the thickest part, cook it for one minute in simmering water, and taste it. It should remain pleasantly seasoned but not aggressively salty.

   Keep the cod refrigerated throughout the soak. Warm water speeds the process unevenly and leaves the fish soft outside while the centre stays salty.
2. 2

   Boil the eggs

   Put the eggs in a saucepan and cover them by 3cm with cold water. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer for 9 minutes. Transfer them immediately to cold water and leave for 10 minutes. Peel carefully, cut each egg lengthwise, and arrange the 16 halves cut-side up in a buttered 30 by 22cm gratin dish.

3. 3

   Sweeten the onion

   Warm the olive oil with 30g of the butter in a wide frying pan over low heat. Add the sliced onions without salt and cook for 25 to 30 minutes, stirring every few minutes, until collapsed, pale gold, and sweet. They must soften all the way through without crisp edges. If they begin catching before they are tender, add 15ml water and lower the heat. This slow cooking is what mellows the salt cod later.

4. 4

   Add the bacalao

   Drain the cod and pat it thoroughly dry. Remove the skin and every bone, then break the flesh into flakes about 2cm wide. Fold the cod into the onion and cook gently for 3 minutes, just until the flakes become opaque. Do not fry it hard or it will tighten and turn woolly.

5. 5

   Build the besamel

   Sprinkle the flour evenly over the onion and cod. Stir over low heat for 2 minutes so the flour loses its raw taste. Add the warm milk in four additions, stirring well after each one. Simmer gently for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring along the base of the pan, until the sauce is smooth and thick enough to coat the eggs without running straight to the bottom of the dish. Season with the white pepper and nutmeg. Taste before adding any salt; properly desalted bacalao usually supplies enough.

6. 6

   Cover the eggs

   Spoon the onion and bacalao sauce over the egg halves, making sure each receives several flakes of fish. Spread the remaining sauce between them in an even layer. Mix the breadcrumbs with the remaining 15g butter, rubbing them together with your fingertips, and scatter the mixture lightly over the top.

7. 7

   Gratinate until golden

   Heat the grill to high and set the dish 12 to 15cm below it. Grill for 3 to 5 minutes, watching continuously, until the breadcrumbs are golden in patches and the sauce bubbles around the edges. The eggs are already cooked, so leave them only long enough to colour the surface. Rest for 5 minutes, scatter with parsley if using, and serve from the baking dish.

Chef Tips

• •Buy salt cod in one thick, pale fillet with firm flesh and a clean sea smell. Thin tail pieces desalt much faster and can become fibrous during the long soak.
• •Ready-desalted frozen bacalao is a sound choice when dried salt cod is hard to find. Thaw it overnight in the refrigerator, pat it dry, and begin at the egg step. Salted pollock also works, though its flesh is firmer and its cured flavour milder.
• •Do not season the onion automatically. The salt remaining in the bacalao moves into the milk sauce as it cooks, so taste the finished besamel first. Pésalo, no lo adivines, and taste it as well.
• •The breadcrumb layer should be fine and light. A heavy crust hides the soft eggs and delicate sauce. Cheese is unnecessary here; bacalao and sweet onion already give the dish its character.
• •Serve with crusty bread and a sharply dressed green salad. A cold, lightly spritzy Getariako Txakolina suits the salt cod and clears the richness of the eggs.
• •Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours and eat them within 2 days. Reheat covered at 180°C until hot through, then uncover briefly to restore the golden surface.

Advance Preparation

• •Begin soaking thick salt cod 36 to 48 hours before cooking, changing the cold water every 8 to 12 hours. Keep it refrigerated throughout.
• •The eggs can be boiled, peeled, and refrigerated in a covered container up to 24 hours ahead.
• •The onion and bacalao besamel can be cooked one day ahead. Cool it promptly, cover, and refrigerate separately from the eggs. Rewarm gently with 30ml milk before assembling if it has set too firmly.
• •The complete dish can be assembled and refrigerated for up to 6 hours. Let it stand at room temperature for 20 minutes before placing it under the grill, then allow an extra minute or two for the centre to heat.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 440g)