October 14th, 2011 by Dawn Becker

I’m trying to expand my repertoire and take on new dishes that I felt were a challenge in the past. My post on gnocchi was the beginning and in between I’ve reunited myself with crème brûlée, which isn’t really hard at all once you understand how a bain marie and a kitchen torch works.

Next I decided to try using salt cod. Salt cod has been used in recipes for hundreds of years. Essentially the cod is dried and salted to extend it’s shelf-life. Many cultures have recipes that use salt cod including bacahlau famous in Portugal and Spain, ackee and saltfish in Jamaica and other Caribbean countries, and in Northern Europe, parts of Africa and all over China. In fact China uses this preservation method for many types of seafood including mussels and oysters and too many types of fish to list to here. Check out this blogger’s post for a varied list of Chinese dried fish products complete with great photos.

Now back to the cod. Cod has been fished off the shores of Atlantic Canada specifically Newfoundland for hundreds of years but overfishing has created a dent in supply that may never be recovered. Other white fish can be found using the same dried and salted preservation method and depending on your recipe, makes a fine substitute.

One thing I’ve heard about working with salt cod is that cooking with them takes a long time. What should be clarified is that the time is really in the prep in order to desalt the cod. You have to put the salt cod in a large bowl of cold water at least 24 hours in advance, and change the water regularly, every few hours, in order to rid the fish of the excess salt. There will still be saltiness left in the fish after a day which brings me to my next important point. Don’t add additional salt to your recipes until you’ve tasted the near-final product, otherwise you might end up with an inedible dish. More likely than not, you won’t need any.

My recipe is shown below for salt cod cakes. I’m not a huge fan in general of crab cakes or fish cakes but my sons are and if it vouches for anything, Cole ate three of them in one sitting.

Salt Cod Cakes

1 lb salted cod fish

2 cups of milk

2 cloves of garlic, lightly smashed

1 large or 2 small Yukon Gold potatoes, cut in quarters (Russet potatoes also work as you’re essentially making mashed potatoes to mix with the desalted cod)

1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1 small onion, diced

freshly ground pepper, to taste

1 cup of flour (1/2 cup for cod cake mixture, 1/2 cup reserved for dusting form cod cakes)

1/4 cup vegetable oil (canola, olive oil or grape seed oil are all fine to use)

A day in advance, place the salt cod in a large bowl of cold water. Cover and refrigerate for 24 hours. Every few hours change the water and replace with fresh, cold water. The next day, drain the salt cod and cut into fillets (if they are not already cut up or in pieces) just small enough to fit into your saucepan. Heat milk in the saucepan and add the garlic. When the milk nears boiling add the salt cod fillets and reduce heat to low to simmer for 20 minutes. In a separate pot filled with water, add the potatoes and boil on high until the potatoes are cooked (test with a kitchen knife and when the potatoes slide right off the knife when poked, they’re ready). The potatoes and fish should be ready around the same time. Drain both the fish and potatoes and allow them to cool.

Once cooled, place the potatoes into a large mixing bowl and give them a rough mash. Gently flake the fish into the bowl and add the Old Bay seasoning, egg, grindings of pepper, onion and 1/2 cup of flour and mix until evenly combined. Form the cod cake mixture into hockey puck-sized patties and dust with flour on both sides before setting the formed patties onto a plate. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator overnight so the cod cakes have a chance to set up. This is an important step so the cod cakes don’t fall apart when you cook them, however, you can sneak one or two to fry at this point if you really can’t wait.

To fry the cod cakes, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the cod cakes in batches until they are golden brown on both sides about 3 or 4 minutes per side. Drain on paper towels and serve immediately with wedges of lemon and tartar sauce, if you wish.