Salt cod does not always have to be baked, fried, or turned into a casserole. This cold, oil-and-vinegar salad is what shows up on Portuguese tables in the summer, when nobody wants the oven on and there is already a jar of good olive oil sitting on the counter.
It is built the same way as salada de feijão frade, the black-eyed pea version already on the site, but with white beans and shredded bacalhau standing in for the smoky sausage. If you already have a piece of soaked, cooked bacalhau leftover from making bacalhau à brás or bacalhau à gomes de sá, this is the perfect place to use the last bits and pieces.
This salad is a good way to show that salt cod is far less intimidating than it looks. Served cold with good bread, it disappears fast at a summer cookout, and nobody has to know it started as a stiff, salty plank of fish.
Salada de Feijão Branco com Bacalhau Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound dried salt cod (bacalhau), soaked and desalted 24-48 hours, water changed several times
- 2 (15 ounce) cans white beans (cannellini or great northern), drained and rinsed
- 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
- 3 hard-boiled eggs, quartered
- 1/2 cup pitted black olives
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- Salt and black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Drain the soaked salt cod and rinse well. Place in a pot, cover with fresh water, and bring to a gentle simmer (do not boil hard) for about 15 minutes, until the fish flakes easily.
- Drain, cool slightly, and remove any skin and bones. Flake the fish into bite-sized pieces.
- In a large bowl, combine the flaked cod, white beans, red onion, and olives.
- Whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, garlic, salt, and pepper. Pour over the salad and toss gently to coat, being careful not to break up the beans.
- Let the salad rest at room temperature for at least 15 minutes so the flavors come together, or refrigerate up to a day ahead.
- Top with quartered hard-boiled eggs and chopped parsley just before serving.
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