AI-generated image
Bacalao guisado
Stewed salt cod
Bacalao guisado: Puerto Rican Lenten salt cod stewed with tomato, potatoes, olives and sofrito
In Puerto Rico, bacalao guisado is the dish of Lent and above all Good Friday, when meat is not eaten. Soaked salt cod is stewed with sofrito, tomato sauce, potatoes, olives, capers and peppers until thick and fragrant, and served with white rice, boiled root vegetables (viandas) or avocado. It is homely, salty-sweet and very comforting. Chef's tip: soak the cod in the fridge for a day and a half and taste it before seasoning; most of the salt in the stew comes from the fish.
- Total time
- 65 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
- 1 ½ lb salt codsoaked (see step 1)
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onionsliced
- 1 green peppersliced
- 1 cup tomato sauce or passata
- 1 ⅛ lb potatoespeeled, in 2 cm cubes
- 2 ⅞ oz stuffed green olives
- 1 tbsp capers
- 1 bay leaf
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- 1 cup water
Shop this recipe on Amazon
Spices & pantry
Links open Amazon in a new tab. As an Amazon Associate, WhatToEat.Today earns from qualifying purchases.
Method
0/5 doneStep 1: Soak 1 ½ lb salt cod in cold water in the fridge for 24–36 hours, changing the water at least 4 times. Drain, take off the skin and bones and flake into large pieces.
Step 2: Heat 3 tbsp olive oil in a pot and fry 1 onion and 1 green pepper for 5 minutes, then add ½ cup sofrito (onion, peppers, garlic, culantro blended) and cook for 3 minutes.
8 minStep 3: Add 1 cup tomato sauce or passata, 1 ⅛ lb potatoes, 1 bay leaf, ½ tsp dried oregano and 1 cup water. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes, until the potatoes are almost tender.
15 minStep 4: Add the cod, 2 ⅞ oz stuffed green olives and 1 tbsp capers and simmer gently, uncovered, for 15 minutes, until the potatoes are soft and the fish is tender and flaking. A common mistake is boiling it hard, which shreds the fish.
15 minStep 5: Taste before adding any salt. Serve with white rice or boiled viandas.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 320 kcal
- Protein
- 32 g
- Carbs
- 24 g
- Fat
- 10 g
- Fibre
- 4 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does bacalao guisado take?
- About 65 minutes in total: 20 minutes to prepare and 45 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 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 onion?
- 2 shallots per onion.
- What can I use instead of tomato sauce or passata?
- Chopped tomatoes, blended smooth.
Reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first to cook it.
Rate this recipe
Sign in to rate and review this recipe.
You might also like
Moreton Bay bugsSlipper lobster with garlic butter
Moreton Bay bugs are the flat, shovel-nosed slipper lobsters caught off the Queensland coast around Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast, and for Queenslanders they are a summer treat, split and grilled at the beach house. The tail meat is sweet and rich, somewhere between lobster and prawn. Buy them raw, frozen or fresh, from a fishmonger and ask them to halve them if you like. A common mistake is overcooking, which makes the meat rubbery; it is ready the moment it turns white. Chef's tip: grill flesh side down first to mark it, then turn and baste in the shell.
Australian
All i pebreEel and potato paprika stew
In El Palmar and the other villages around the Albufera lagoon south of Valencia, the restaurants that are famous for paella serve something older first: all i pebre, "garlic and pepper", a brick-red stew of lagoon eel and potatoes thickened with a pounded almond and fried-bread picada. It is rich, garlicky and gently hot, eaten with bread to mop up the sauce. Ask your fishmonger to skin and cut the eel, and handle it with gloves: raw eel blood is irritating, though harmless once cooked. If you can't find eel, monkfish or hake works well. A common mistake is letting the paprika burn; it turns bitter in seconds, so add it off the heat. Chef's tip: break the potatoes with a knife instead of cutting cleanly; the rough edges release starch and thicken the sauce.
Spanish
Midia saganakiMussels with tomato and feta
Thessaloniki is Greece's mussel capital, with farms in the Thermaic Gulf a few kilometres from the seafront ouzeries where this two-handled pan arrives, still bubbling, at the table. Mussels steam open in a quick sauce of peppers, tomato and chilli, and crumbled feta melts into the juices at the end. Bread is essential. The classic version adds a splash of ouzo; this one is alcohol-free, using a pinch of fennel seed for that aniseed note (add 2 tbsp ouzo with the tomatoes if you like). Common mistake: overcooking — take the pan off the heat as soon as the shells open. Chef's tip: buy mussels on the day and keep them in the fridge in a bowl covered with a damp cloth, never in water.
Greek