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Xató
Xató: Vilanova's curly endive salad with salt cod, tuna, anchovies and xató sauce
From late autumn to early spring, the towns of the Garraf coast, Vilanova i la Geltrú, Sitges and Vilafranca, hold xatonades: festive lunches built round this salad of bitter curly endive dressed with a thick sauce of ñora peppers, almonds, hazelnuts and garlic, and loaded with salt cod, tuna and anchovies. Each town insists its sauce is the true one. Like esqueixada, the cod is often only desalted; it is poached here for safety, since raw cured fish is not for pregnant women, young children or anyone with a weakened immune system. Chef's tip: dress the endive in the sauce with your hands, so every frond is coated before the fish goes on top.
- Total time
- 70 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the salad
For the xató sauce
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What you'll need
Spices & pantry
Fresh ingredients (2)
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Soak 3 dried ñora peppers in hot water for 30 minutes. Roast 1 head garlic and 1 ripe tomato at 400°F (350°F fan) for 25–30 minutes until soft and blistered.
30 minStep 2: Bring a pan of water to a bare simmer, add 7 oz salt cod, turn off the heat and leave for 5 minutes until opaque and flaky. Drain, cool, and tear into shreds, removing skin and bones.
8 minStep 3: Scrape the flesh from the ñora skins. Pound or blend 1 ⅜ oz blanched almonds, ⅔ oz hazelnuts and 1 slice bread into crumbs, then add the ñora flesh, the squeezed garlic, the peeled tomato and ½ tsp salt and work into a paste.
Step 4: Add 2 tbsp red wine vinegar, then ½ cup extra virgin olive oil in a thin stream, until the sauce is thick and orange-red. A common mistake is making it too thin: it should cling to the leaves, not pool at the bottom.
5 minStep 5: Wash 1 head curly endive (frisée or escarole), dry it very well in a salad spinner and put it in a wide bowl. Add most of the sauce and toss with your hands until every leaf is coated.
Step 6: Arrange the cod, flaked 4 oz tinned tuna in olive oil, 8 anchovy fillets in oil and 2 ⅛ oz arbequina olives on top and spoon over the rest of the sauce. Serve at once.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 460 kcal
- Protein
- 30 g
- Carbs
- 13 g
- Fat
- 33 g
- Fibre
- 5 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does xató take?
- About 70 minutes in total: 40 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- What can I use instead of tinned tuna in 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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