Cod is, almost probably, one of the star dishes in Spanish Holy Week. Discover how to prepare it with these 2 delicious and exquisite recipes.
During the celebration of Holy Week both religious practices and gastronomy and rest are mixed on these days. And it is that these days recipes are made precisely related to those days in which Lent, Vigils and fasting make their presence.
So it is very common these days that fish and salads, vegetables, legumes and pasta gain a certain role when preparing menus.
In this post we provide two fish recipes that we can prepare these days of Easter or also at any other time of the year.
We will prepare Vizcaína Cod and a Smoked Cod Salad with orange and a vinaigrette.
To prepare fish dishes these days, cod is used above all, as well as other delicious salty fish with which many recipes are prepared, we can also use fresh fish.
Cod Biscayne
The cod vizcaína is a representative dish of the cuisine of the Basque country. Although it is prepared to taste it at any time of the year, during Holy Week its preparation is part of the tradition during those days.
This recipe is very rich and becomes one more recipe to add to our recipe book with which to prepare and taste cod these days.
Ingredients:
- 4 pieces of previously desalted cod of a rather large size.
- 4 red onions and 3 spring onions peeled and julienned.
- A washed and chopped leek.
- 6 cloves of garlic without skin and minced.
- Extra virgin olive oil.
- 6 slices of bread.
- Half a liter of fish broth or water.
- 8 chorizo peppers.
- Salt (optional, first taste).
Elaboration:
- We desalinate the cod at least 24 or 48 hours before cooking it, changing the water to desalinate it every 8 or 10 hours and always keeping it in the fridge between changes.
- We remove the seeds from the chorizo peppers and soak them in a bowl with warm water to hydrate them for about 3 hours.
- Then we drain them well and open them in half to remove all the pulp with the help of a spoon or knife and reserve it.
- In a cauldron we put a small pot of oil to heat to brown the slices of bread a little.
- When they are golden brown, we remove them from the cauldron and reserve them on absorbent paper or napkin so that the excess oil drains, then we chop them.
- In the same cauldron and same oil, brown the garlic cloves.
- When the garlic is almost ready, add the cod pieces together with the garlic and brown the cod pieces a little on both sides. We remove the cod and reserve it on a plate.
- Then, in the same oil, if necessary, add a little more oil and poach the onions and leek.
- We lower the heat to poach and when it is all poached we add the pulp of the chorizo peppers, stir and cook for 5 more minutes.
- Add the sliced fried bread slices, the fish stock, and cook for 15 minutes over moderate heat. Then we remove from the heat and grind the sauce with the mixer until it becomes a puree.
- Again we put the sauce in the cauldron and add the pieces of cod.
- Cook the cod over moderate heat for 15 minutes and pour over the cod while it is cooking tablespoons of the same sauce.
- We check if the cod is already cooked and we turn off the heat.
We can accompany the Biscayan cod with some boiled potatoes, some diced fried potatoes, or a garnish of vegetables.
Smoked cod salad with orange and vinaigrette
Smoked cod is ideal for preparing salads. The smoked cod salad is very tasty and immediately we have a starter or starter ready to taste these days of Easter or on summer days when the heat is pressing and we want fresher dishes.
As with all salads, we can vary and play a lot when choosing the ingredients to prepare them, we just need to make our imagination fly and prepare delicious salads. We have chosen these ingredients and it has been very tasty.
Ingredients:
- A bag of mixed lettuce, or lamb’s lettuce, or arugula.
- 200 grams of sliced smoked cod.
- 2 boiled eggs.
- 2 oranges
- Cherries tomato or salad tomato cut into small cubes.
- A handful of pitted black olives.
- A pinch of salt.
- Optional: If you wish, you can add broccoli and onion.
Ingredients for the vinaigrette:
- One tablespoon of sherry vinegar.
- 6 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil with a mild flavor.
Elaboration:
- We wash the lettuce mix well and drain. We put the lettuce mixture in a salad bowl or source and reserve.
- We wash the cherries tomatoes and put them on top of the lettuce.
- We put the eggs to cook in a heater with water and cook over moderate heat, when it starts to boil cook for 10 minutes and remove from the heat. Let cool to remove the peel, cut them into wheels and reserve to garnish the salad.
- Chop the cod slices and add it to the salad bowl. We remove the skin from the oranges, extract the segments and cut them into pieces.
- We add the chopped orange segments to the salad and the black olives as well. Add a little salt on top and carefully stir a little.
- We prepare the vinaigrette, in a cup we mix the vinegar and oil until they bind well.
- Pour the vinaigrette over the salad and serve.
