Baccala' Fritto - Fried Salted Cod

 I cook baccalà many ways (with potatoes, roasted) but fried is our Christmas Eve favorite.  It's a poor dish very simple but extremely tasty and flavorful.

                                                                        Fried baccala

I like to use a flour-and-water batter.

Ingredients:

• 1 packet dry active yeast or a cake of fresh live yeast

• 1 cup warm water

• 2 1/2 cup all-purpose flour

• 1 1/2 pounds prepared baccalà

• Vegetable oil for frying

Prepare and soak your baccalà at least 4 days prior. 

In a large mixing bowl, mix together yeast and water. Add the flour and mix the batter until the consistency resembles a thick pancake batter. 

Cover the mixing bowl with plastic wrap and leave to rise in a warm place for about 1 hour. 

Rinse the cod, dry well and cut into small pieces about 3/4-inch.

Fill a frying pan with vegetable oil and heat to 375˚F.

Drop a handful at a time of baccalà pieces into the batter.  Gently drop the pieces in the oil and cook until golden brown and crisp, about 5 to 10 minutes.

Remove the fish from the oil and drain over paper towels. 

Serve warm.

BACCALA' (SALTED COD) and POTATOES

Baccala' or salted cod is probably the most consumed fish in Abruzzo. It's hard to meet someone from our region that does not appreciate this particular fish. And for good reasons, since cod is nutritionally good as it is low in calories, low fat and rich in omega 3.

Since cod is dried and salted, in order to make it edible, it needs to be rehydrated. When purchasing cod, it must have a pleasant smell, although very sharp, and it should appear white and soft.



The first thing to do is to rinse the salted cod under cold running water in order to remove all the visible salt and then cut into 5” pieces. Place the cut cod in a bowl and fill it with cold water to cover the pieces. Put the bowl in the refrigerator and change the water every six hours or so. This process should last at least 48 hours. You want to make sure that the cod is not salty.

Baccala' soaking

The traditional way of cooking baccala’ in Abruzzo, is to cook it with herbs and spices in a pan or oven, accompanied by seasonal vegetables. It is also excellent floured and fried or roasted and made into a salad.

In our household, we prefer BACCALA' e PATATE

All photos - Copyright - ©2011 - La Casa e Il Giardino - picasaweb

Ingredients - 4 persons

3 lbs. boneless baccala' or salted cod
4 potatoes cubed
1 large onion chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
1 can chopped tomatoes
3 celery stalks with leaves chopped

Procedure

In a large pot, add oil and chopped onion. Cook until golden. Add tomatoes, potatoes and celery. Simmer for 15 minutes covered. Add pieces of baccala' or cod and continue to cook until potatoes are tender. Serve with toasted bread or cornmeal pizza.

Another great "poor" dish from Abruzzo.

C'e' La Luna (song)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pflp9MdhXSM

Translation -

There is a moon in the middle of the sea
Weh, Ma I want to get married
I do not know who to give you
Ma, you worry about it.
O ma, fried fish baccala, O ma fried fish baccala

If you marry a fisherman,
He goes and comes
But he always has a fish in his hands
And if his fantasy, strikes him
He may make a fish out of you.
Chorus - O Mamma, piscia fritta baccala, O Mamma piscia fritta baccala

(woodmaker)

(plane)
Chorus (O Mamma...)

(shoemaker)
(hammer)
Chorus (O Mamma...)

(farmer)
(plow)
Chorus (O Mamma...)

(butcher)
(sausage)
Chorus (O Mamma...)