Enca Mello's Creamed Salt Cod

Name: Enca Mello's Creamed Salt Cod
Yield: Makes 6 to 8 servings
Ingredients: 1 1/2 pounds dried salt cod, cut in 4 pieces; 1 large yellow onion, peeled and sliced thin; 5 tablespoons olive oil; 1 1/2 pounds new or California long white potatoes, peeled and cut into very small dice (about 3/8 inch); 1/4 cup water; 1 3/4 cups milk; 3 tablespoons unsalted butter; 3 tablespoons flour; 1/2 teaspoon white pepper; 1 1/2 cups heavy cream (or light cream or half-and-half, if you prefer)

(Bacalhau com Nata Feito à Moda da Enca Mello) Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are excerpted from Jean Anderson's book The Food of Portugal. Anderson also shared some helpful cooking tips exclusively with Epicurious, which we've added at the bottom of the page. To read more about Anderson and Portuguese cuisine, click here. Enca Mello (called "Pequenina" by friends because she's so pretty and petite) is a Lisboeta (Lisbonite) based at the Portuguese National Tourist Office in New York. She's an outstanding Portuguese cook and this recipe of hers is to my mind one of the best of all ways to prepare bacalhau.

By Jean Anderson

May 16, 2006

Jean Anderson shares her tips with Epicurious:

•"This recipe is not hard to make, and it's certainly easy to eat!" says Anderson. "The only requirement is that you find good salt cod." Look for authentic, board-stiff bacalhau at markets that cater to Portuguese clientele, where long fillets are piled in wooden boxes and cut to order. Request a thick middle piece rather than a narrow tail end, which will be saltier and bonier. Or order bacalhau online from www.tienda.com.
•"Be sure to leave yourself enough time to soak the fish — at least 24 hours, in several changes of water — to ensure that the resulting dish is not too salty," says Anderson. "There is little danger of oversoaking bacalhau." Once the fish is soaked and pliant, feel through it carefully with your fingers to remove as many bones as you can.

Recipe notes