Big Fish, Little Fish, Cardboard Box

In 1985, in a record shop in Valencia, a meeting between the city's most notorious rave DJ's took place. Someone piped up with ‘This is the Bakalao Bilbao’, literally saying, this music is such a good export, it’s like premium cod. It stuck, Bakalao clubs sprung up in the Valencian countryside and the youth embarked on a pilgrimage know as the Ruta de Destroy. Partying and pilling from Friday through to Monday, the Bakalao movement is still going in Spain today. This week Raquel and I went in search of Bacalao. But Readers, the real deal, no jaw chewing beats, instead actual premium salted cod, cos that, is how we roll.

In these trying times Raquel and I have devoted ourselves to the kitchen, pooling our money and planning out the week’s lunches. Due to the cold snap we are craving winter warmers, Raquel suggested we cook Bacalao, dried and salted cod. This preservation technique harks back to the bronze age. Salting means the fish can last up to a year and can be flat packed and transported with ease. It’s stacked or hung in market stalls, resembling something you’d find on a pirate ship. I will add it’s pretty pricey, and fair play being that cod is over fished, so I’ll only be eating this on the odd occasion.

Like cooking beans, when dealing with bacalao, you gotta think ahead and get that baby soaking the day before. This revives and de-salts it, so it’s best if you change the water twice. Raquel’s mum used to cook this for her, so I stood by and watched. She boiled the bacalao up in water with a peeled onion for about 15 minutes, until the fish was tender and she had a cooking stock of sorts. Meanwhile she made a sauce of olive oil, chopped garlic and fresh tomatoes to which she later added the bacalao stock for extra body. Once the sauce was simmering nicely she added softened sweet red peppers, pre-cooked chick peas and the bacalao to the pan. She let it bathe together for another 15 minutes more, so the flavours could swirl and absorb. My kitchen smelt like a very expensive restaurant, I don’t think there is an ambi pur that could compare.

 

The combination is perfection. Bacalao obvs is the star of the show, juicy tender flakes of flesh, with a mouth watering flavour and just a hint of salt. The sweet peppers work alongside like Robin to Batman. A high five from the chickpeas, adding a creamy texture and the tomatoes hug everything with a gooey freshness. I LOVED it. Warmed me up good and proper, it was banging, just like this hit by bakalao DJ Chimo Bayo.

Fork notes:

• Science says this process of curing breaks down the proteins and grows amino acids which actually adds flavour.
• It’s expensive but you can buy off cuts for a reasonable price. Also a little goes a long way because it’s such a flavour hit.
• Good source of Omega 3, Vit A and my beloved Vit D.
• Other countries lay claim to this way of curing fish (Italy, Norway, Mexico, Portugal to name a few) so there are bound to be heaps of other recipes.
• If you have any left over you could use it to make croquetas (see Fear of Frying for inspo)
• Bacalao means cod. So look out for bacalao en salazón.
• If you came here to read about Bakalao music, soz, but watch this good docu here.