Have You Eaten A “Tortilla de Bacalao”?

I found this photo online – it’s a salt cod tortilla, and since my blogging friend Jo Tracey has organized another fun cookbook review, I looked at her choice and decided to tackle a cod recipe from one of the great Spanish Chefs!

 Cooking Basque!

What a great choice for a cookbook to review, Jo! Spanish Chef Jose Pizarro dives deep into his cultural flavors to give us a broad array of recipes to try!

Throughout the book, a collection of Spanish recipes are included, specifically focussing on Basque cuisine from the area spanning the border between France and Northern Spain. Recipes include the likes of José Pizarro’s tortilla de bacalao, which offers a Basque take on the Spanish national dish of tortilla de patatas, embellished with bacalao (salt cod) popular in the Basque region.

On his tortilla de bacalao recipe, José Pizarro says: “Another tortilla de bacalao? Well yes, I couldn’t write a book on the food of the Basque Country and not include this recipe. It’s a must-have dish when you are in a sidrería (cider house). My interpretation is to caramelise the onions to bring more sweetness to the tortilla and the bacalao is not cooked.

“When you caramelise the onions, make plenty as you can keep them in the fridge for at least a week – they make a great addition to any sandwich, or just on toast with some goat’s cheese. Heaven.”

Let’s get cooking!

Here are the ingredients:

• 400 g salt cod (14 oz)
• 125 ml olive oil (4 fl oz)
• 3 large white onions finely sliced
• A handful of thyme leaves stripped
• 6 free-range eggs
• Freshly ground black pepper
• A handful of flat-leaf parsley finely chopped

I made a half portion of the dish, and it was fun and pretty easy to pull off!

Heat the oil in a large pan and gently fry the onions for a few minutes. Cover with a lid and cook over a low heat for 25 minutes until really soft. Remove the lid, add the thyme and cook for a further 20–25 minutes until really caramelized and sticky.

Note: I also added garlic because I am who I am…here’s a quick peek at the process:

Scoop out with a slotted spoon, keeping some of the oil, and cool.

Next, cook your cod chunks in olive oil, which gives the fish a chance to cook on its own, coaxing out flavor…here’s a look:

After about five minutes, add the entire onion/garlic mixture back into the pan with the cod, and you are ready for the last step….

Beat the eggs with plenty of black pepper and gently fold it into the onion, cod and parsley that is in the pan.

Pour in the egg mixture and swirl the pan over a high heat until the mixture starts to set around the edges, then reduce the heat and cook for 4–5 minutes until it just starts to set, so that the bottom and sides are golden but it is still quite loose in the middle.

Cover the pan with a flat lid or board, turn the tortilla carefully onto it, then put the pan back on a low heat. Return the tortilla to the pan, cooked side up, and use a spatula to tuck the edges of the tortilla under to give its characteristic curved look. Cook for a couple of minutes, then turn onto a board and serve. It should still be lovely and juicy when you cut into it.

I made a short video that captured the entire cooking process for you:

And here is the finished result:

The slightly crispy exterior gave it a nice bite, and the bacalao itself was refreshingly light and flavorful, thanks to the caramelized onion and garlic…the eggs hold it all together nicely, and there was enough of a cod flavor to make it feel rich without too fishy.

I’d make this dish again in an instant…the caramelized onion and garlic made it pop and the smoothness of the cod was very satisfying…thanks again to Jo for putting this together…here’s is the site where you can learn more and join in!

Dorothy also shared her recipe and review over at her site “The New Vintage Kitchen” and you can see it here:

As for this Basque dish, it reminded me of the “potato chip egg” recipe I tackled once from another Spanish Chef – well, the world’s most “molecular” Chef!:

Chef Adria created some of the world most unique food, as well as “potato chip eggs!” So why did I make it twice?

Click for that story!

The recipe also reminded me of a Frittata I made once as well – click here to see that recipe:

Thanks Jo for organizing this cookbook review – I can’t wait to share the other recipes as well! Jo also put together a Facebook cooking group – check it out as well at this link!

https://www.facebook.com/groups/2318373691845074

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