Tag: baccalà

Baccalà is dried salted Atlantic Cod (merluzzo in Italian), not to be confused with stoccafisso which is dried (unsalted) cod.  Authentic cod should be made using Atlantic cod, merluzzo, but at times I have seen people sell other fish (such as black cod and lingcod) under this same name, so check.  Baccalà is traditionally served in Italy on Christmas Eve and Fridays during Lent.

Here are two outstanding recipes for Baccalà. Please note that you need to start preparing baccalà three days in advance in order to remove the salt flavor from the fish.

How to De-Salt Baccalà

When you buy baccalà, you need to remove the salt before you cook it.  This needs to be done three days in advance of cooking it.

1. Put the filets of baccalà in a large container and rinse for about an hour under a faucet that continuously drips cold water on it.
2. Place the container full of fresh water and the Baccalà in the refrigerator. Change the water every morning and evening It will be ready the evening of the third day.

Baccalà Soup for 4 – 6 people (Baccalà in Guazzetto)

Ingredients

• 1 lb. De-salted baccalà (500 grams)
• ½ cup extra virgin olive oil, divided
• 1 medium red onion, chopped
• 2 hot red peppers (Calabrian preferred)
• 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and smashed
• 2 – 3 sprigs of fresh thyme
• 1/4 tsp dried Italian oregano (this has a different flavor than the dried spice you find in most grocery stores, look for the Italian dried oregano)
• A handful of fresh Italian parsley, minced
• Fresh Italian basil
• 800 grams of peeled Italian peeled whole tomatoes (the best are home canned tomatoes)
• 1 cup of dry white wine (remember to use a decent wine for any cooking), I used Pinot Grigio
• Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

1. In a large clay pot or Dutch oven (if you do not have a clay pot) place the de-salted baccalà filets with about ¼ of a cup of olive oil and thyme. Massage the thyme over the baccalà. Let it rest for at least 30 minutes while you prepare the sauce.
2. In a medium-large pot, add enough olive oil to cover the bottom. Add the chopped red onion, 2 hot peppers, 2 peeled, smashed garlic cloves smashed, two tablespoons of chopped parsley, and about 10 whole leaves of basil. Cook on medium-high heat.
3. Once the garlic starts to take color, add 1 cup of white wine. Cook for about a minute to allow the alcohol to evaporate, then add about 2 pounds (800 g) of canned whole Italian tomatoes (or your own canned tomatoes). Add 1 teaspoon of Italian oregano and 1 cup of cold water, one teaspoon of salt, lower the flame, and let it cook covered for 25 minutes.Uncover the pot while continuing to cook for another 5 minutes.
4. Preheat the oven to 325F.
5. Add the sauce to the pot containing the baccalà filets, mix well, and put in the oven for 35 minutes.
6. Serve with a crusty fresh bread.
7. Buon appetito!

Note: This typical Roman dish often has pine nuts and raisins added at the end. I much prefer the soup without them, but if you like them, you can add them. Also rather than cooking the Baccalà in the oven you can cook on the stovetop on low heat.

Rigatoni with Baccalà and Mussels for 4 to 6 People (Rigatoni col Baccalà e Cozze)

This is a phenomenal dish invented by my friends at Sora Lella, one of the best and most traditional Roman restaurants on the Isola Tiberina in the center of Roma.

One of Sora Lella’s best recipes is the baccalà and mussel pasta.

Ingredients

• 500 grams of Rigatoni for 4 – 6 people
• 3 pounds of mussels (cozze 1.3 kg)
• ¾ pound de-salted baccalà (400 grams)
• ½ cup grated pecorino (the best aged Roman or Calabrian pecorino you can find). The amount of pecorino varies depending on how intense it is, for a very good one ½ cup (40 grams) is sufficient, for an average pecorino, one you need double that amount/
• 4 green scallions, finely sliced
• Zest of 2 lemons
• large clove of garlic, peeled and smashed
• 4 small sprigs of fresh thyme
• 3 tablespoons of fresh Italian parsley, chopped
• 1 cup of white wine
• 1 cup of extra virgin olive oil, separated
• 2 hot chopped red peppers (Calabrian preferred)
• Freshly ground black pepper

Preparation

1. In a large pot, start boiling the water for the pasta.
2. Clean the mussels.
3. Cover the bottom of a large pot with enough olive oil to cover the bottom (about 1/8 inch of oil, or 3 mm). Heat to high, and when the oil is hot, add the peeled garlic cloves. As soon as the garlic takes on a gold color, remove it.
4. Immediately add the mussels to the hot oil, and cover. Once the noise of the frying mussels changes, it means the mussels have opened, which usually takes about 2 to 3 minutes.
5. Remove the cover, add 2 tablespoons of chopped fresh parsley, mix well and add one cup of white wine. Cover the pot again and remove it after 1 minute. Allow the alcohol to evaporate for 30 seconds. Immediately remove the pot from the heat—do not overcook the mussels!As long as the mussels are open, they are fine. Add black pepper, mix well. Remove mussels from the pot but reserve the liquid.
   
6. Remove about 5 whole mussels in their shells and reserve them in a medium sized bowl. For the rest of the mussels, remove the mussel from the shell and chop each mussel into about 4 pieces.
7. In a small pot, add 1/3 of a cup of olive oil and the scallions cut in thin slices and after a few minutes add some water, say ¼ of cup, cook on low heat for about 7-10 minutes., add ¼ of cup of white wine, bring the heat to high for 1 min to let alcohol evaporate. Turn heat off and add this to the larger pot containing the mussels sauce turn on fire to medium.
8. Throw the pasta in the hot water.
9. Cut the Baccalà in strips and put it in the pot with the mussel sauce. Add the minced hot pepper, the chopped mussels, half of the zested lemon peel, 1 teaspoon of parsley, and the thyme. Let it cook on medium for 3 minutes. Turn the heat off. Let it rest.
10. Cook the pasta. When the pasta is very al dente, say 2 minutes less the indicated cooking time on the box, drain it, reserving some of the water. Add the al dente pasta to the pot containing the Baccalà/mussel sauce. Bring up the heat to high and cook the combined sauce and pasta for about 3 to 5 minutes, gently mixing the pasta and sauce together to allow some of the sauce to absorb into the pasta.If the sauce seems too thick, you can add some of the reserved pasta water, but it should not be necessary.
11. Take the pot from the hot burner, add the grated pecorino, the remaining lemon zest, and a couple of tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil.
12. Put into the pasta bowls, decorating each plate with the 5 mussels reserved in Step 6.
13. And now, as my friends at Sora Lella would say, enjoy this “poetry”!