Salt Cod - Brandade de Morue
Salt cod becomes silken in this tempting dish from the Mediterranean coast of France.
Servings: 10 people
Ingredients
- 1 pound, 500g skinless boneless salt cod
- 1 cup;250ml whole milk
- 3/4 cup;180ml extra-virgin olive oil
- 4 large cloves garlic green germ removed
- ½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 8 to 10 small slices bread toasted and rubbed with 1 clove garlic
- 1/4 cup oil or salt-cured black olives
- piment d’Espelette or hot paprika
Instructions
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Soak the cod in plenty of cold water, changing the water several times, for 1 to 2 days.
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Drain the cod well. Place it in a saucepan, add cold water to cover , and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium, simmer the cod until softened slightly, about 10 minutes. Drain the cod. When cool enough to handle, break into flakes, discarding any skin or bones.
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Scald the milk in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. At the same time, heat the olive oil in a small saucepan over medium heat, until hot but not smoking.
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Place the salt cod and the garlic in the bowl of a food processor. With the machine running, add the hot oil in a thin stream. Pulse on and off, so the cod isn’t over-beaten. When the oil is incorporated and the mixture is quite smooth, slowly add the milk in a thin stream, pulsing on and off to avoid over mixing the brandade. It should be light, white, and fluffy, like pudding.
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Add the nutmeg and the lemon juice to the brandade; pulse 1 to 2 times. Season with the pepper. Scrape the brandade into a shallow serving bowl, mounding it in the center.
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Cut the toast into triangles. To serve, arrange the toast triangles with a point up, around the base of the brandade. Sprinkle with the piment d'Espelette and serve.
