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Bacalao al pil pil
Salt cod in garlic oil sauce
Bakailaoa pil-pilean: Basque salt cod in a silky garlic and olive-oil emulsion (plus 24–48 hours desalting)
Bacalao al pil pil belongs to Bilbao and the rest of Bizkaia, where it fills restaurant menus in Lent and Holy Week and reappears on Christmas Eve tables. It is made from just four things: desalted salt cod, olive oil, garlic and a dried chilli. The trick is the sauce. The cod gives off gelatine as it cooks gently in warm oil, and swirling the clay dish round and round turns that oil into a thick, pale, mayonnaise-like emulsion; the name comes from the 'pil pil' sound of it bubbling. Plan ahead, because thick salt cod needs 24–48 hours of soaking in the fridge. Chef's tip: buy thick, skin-on loins (lomos); the gelatine that makes the sauce comes from the skin.
- Total time
- 60 min
- Difficulty
- hard
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
- 4 thick salt cod loins, skin onabout 200 g each before soaking
- 1 ¼ cups mild olive oil
- 6 cloves garlicthinly sliced
- 1 dried red chilli (guindilla or cayenne)cut into rings
- 1 tbsp flat-leaf parsley (optional)finely chopped
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Method
0/9 doneStep 1: Desalt the 4 thick salt cod loins, skin on 24–48 hours before: rinse off the surface salt and put the pieces skin side up in a large bowl of cold water in the fridge. Change the water 3 times a day. After 24 hours, taste a flake from the thickest piece; it should be lightly salted, like fresh fish seasoned. If it's still salty, keep soaking.
Step 2: Drain the cod and pat it very dry with kitchen paper. Leave it to come to room temperature for 20 minutes while you prepare the oil; cold fish chills the oil and slows the sauce.
Step 3: Put the 1 ¼ cups mild olive oil in a wide clay cazuela or a heavy, shallow frying pan just big enough to hold the cod in one layer. Add the 6 cloves garlic and warm over a low heat for 4–5 minutes until pale gold. Add the 1 dried red chilli (guindilla or cayenne) for the last 30 seconds, then lift the garlic and chilli out with a slotted spoon and set aside.
5 minStep 4: Take the pan off the heat and let the oil cool for 5–10 minutes, to about 60–158°F: warm enough to make your hand feel the heat above it, but no longer shimmering. Common mistake: cooking the cod in hot oil. It fries, the gelatine doesn't come out, and the sauce never thickens.
8 minStep 5: Lay the cod in the oil skin side down and return it to the lowest heat. Cook very gently for 5 minutes, so the oil just trembles with small bubbles. You'll see little white drops of gelatine collecting in the oil.
5 minStep 6: Turn the pieces over, skin side up, and cook for 4–5 minutes more, until the flesh is opaque and flakes when pressed, about 145°F/145 °F in the thickest part. Lift the cod onto a warm plate.
5 minStep 7: Pour most of the oil into a jug, leaving about 4 tablespoons with the gelatine juices in the pan. Off the heat, swirl the pan round and round in small circles (or whisk with a small sieve held flat), adding the reserved oil back a thin trickle at a time, until the sauce turns thick, pale and creamy. This takes 8–10 minutes of steady swirling.
10 minStep 8: Return the cod to the pan skin side up, along with any juices from the plate, and swirl gently for 2 minutes over the lowest heat to warm it through and coat it in the sauce.
2 minStep 9: Scatter over the fried garlic, chilli and the 1 tbsp flat-leaf parsley if using, and serve straight from the pan with bread.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 620 kcal
- Protein
- 42 g
- Carbs
- 2 g
- Fat
- 50 g
- Fibre
- 0 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does bacalao al pil pil take?
- About 60 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 45 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of mild olive oil?
- Vegetable, sunflower or rapeseed oil, same amount (for cooking; keep olive oil for dressings if you have a little).
- What can I use instead of garlic?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
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