Bacalhau à Brás

Portugal's attachment to bacalhau is remarkable given that cod does not swim in Portuguese waters. Portuguese fleets fished the North Atlantic from the age of exploration onward, and salting and drying the catch produced a protein that survived long voyages and long storage without refrigeration.

Salt cod became a fixture of the national diet, particularly on days when the Catholic calendar discouraged meat. The often-repeated claim that there is a different bacalhau recipe for every day of the year is folklore, but it captures a real abundance of preparations.

Bacalhau à Brás is among the most popular, and it is a Lisbon dish by tradition, associated with the older quarters of the city.

Salt cod must be desalted before use, soaked in several changes of cold water over a day or more depending on thickness. Skipping or shortening this step is the single most common way to ruin any bacalhau dish.

The fish is then poached briefly, cooled, and pulled into fine shreds by hand, with bones and skin removed. Shredding rather than flaking is what gives the dish its texture.

Potatoes are cut into very thin matchsticks and fried until crisp. Many Portuguese cooks use the packaged straw potatoes sold for the purpose without embarrassment, and the result is essentially the same.

Onion and garlic are softened in olive oil, the cod is warmed through with them, and the fried potatoes are folded in. Beaten eggs go in last, off or over very low heat, and are stirred until barely set.

The eggs should bind the mixture into something moist and creamy, not cook into curds. Overcooking at this stage is the difference between the dish as intended and a dry scramble.

It is finished with chopped parsley and black olives, and served immediately, while the potato still has some resistance. A dry Portuguese white is the customary accompaniment.