Bacalhau com Natas Descomplicado
(bah-cahl-YOW kohn NAH-tahs)
O Fiel Amigo: Accessible Bacalhau & Coastal Flavors
Bacalhau com natas is not a multi-day project reserved for loud family lunches. By swapping out the laborious deep-fried potato cubes for roasted frozen hash browns, the cook skips the mess without losing the soul of the dish. The flavor still comes from sweating the onions low and slow with bay leaf, and building a velvet béchamel out of the exact same milk used to poach the cod—but the weeknight shortcut relies on frozen flakes of desalted cod, a pint of heavy cream, and a 400-degree oven for a blistered potato crust.
Before you start
Desalt the cod in advance.
If using traditional dried salt cod, soak it in a large bowl of cold water in the refrigerator for 24 to 48 hours, changing the water three to four times a day. Add a teaspoon of salt to the first soak to help chemically draw out the curing salt faster.
Ingredients
- salted cod1 lb
- whole milk3 cup
- frozen diced hash brown potatoes20 oz
- extra virgin olive oil1/3 cup
- yellow onion2 large
- garlic clove4 med
- dried bay leaf2 med
- unsalted butter4 tbsp
- all-purpose flour4 tbsp
- heavy whipping cream1 cup
- whole nutmeg1 med
- white pepper1/4 tsp
- fresh lemon juice1 tsp
- sea salt1/4 tsp
- low-moisture mozzarella cheese1 cup
- parmesan cheese1/4 cup
Method
- 01
Poach the cod and reserve the infused milk.
In a medium saucepan, cover the desalted cod with the whole milk and bring to a very gentle simmer over medium heat. Reduce the heat to low, poach for 5 to 7 minutes until the fish flakes apart, then remove the cod to a plate. Strain and save every drop of that milk—it is the essential foundation for the sauce.
- 02
Flake the fish into bite-sized pieces.
Once the cod is cool enough to handle, use your fingers to flake it apart, discarding any stray bones or skin.
- 03
Roast the potatoes.
Preheat the oven to 425°F. Toss the thawed diced potatoes with two tablespoons of the olive oil and a pinch of salt, then roast on a sheet pan for 15 to 20 minutes until pale but soft. Lower the oven temperature to 400°F.
- 04
Build the cebolada.
Heat the remaining olive oil in a large skillet or Dutch oven over medium-low heat. Add the onions, garlic, and bay leaves, sweating them slowly for 10 to 15 minutes until entirely translucent and sweet, taking care not to brown them.
- 05
Combine the filling.
Discard the bay leaves, fold the flaked cod into the onions to absorb the garlic and oil for a couple of minutes, then remove from the heat and stir in the roasted potatoes.
- 06
Create the béchamel.
In the wiped-clean saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat, whisk in the flour, and cook for 1 to 2 minutes to form a pale roux. Slowly pour in the reserved warm, cod-infused milk, whisking constantly until the sauce thickens.
- 07
Finish the cream sauce.
Remove the thickened sauce from the heat and stir in the heavy cream. Season heavily with the freshly grated nutmeg, white pepper, and lemon juice, tasting for salt before adding any.
- 08
Assemble and gratinate.
Fold two-thirds of the cream sauce into the cod and potato mixture, then transfer everything to a 9x13-inch baking dish. Pour the remaining sauce over the top, sprinkle evenly with the mozzarella and Parmesan, and bake uncovered at 400°F for 15 to 20 minutes until bubbling and golden-brown.
Notes
Use authentic batata palha if you prefer.
If you can easily source bags of Portuguese batata palha (crispy shoestring potatoes) at your local market, you can skip the frozen potato roasting step entirely and fold them directly into the onion and cod mixture for an even faster weeknight hack.