By David Tanis
- Total Time
- 1 hour 30 minutes, plus overnight soaking
- Rating
- 4(166)
- Notes
- Read community notes
This hearty, brothy stew features popular ingredients from the Iberian Peninsula — salt cod, garlic, saffron, potatoes. Spanish and Portuguese cooks adore salt cod and use it in all kinds of ways; these same ingredients may also be reconfigured into salads or casseroles. You’ll need to soak the fish overnight to remove the salt. The chickpea broth adds great flavor.
Featured in: Salt Cod With an Iberian Point of View
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Ingredients
Yield:4 to 6 servings
- 1pound boneless salt cod fillets
- 1pound dried chickpeas
- 1small onion, halved and stuck with 2 cloves
- 1bay leaf
- Salt and pepper
- 4tablespoons olive oil
- 1large onion, diced
- 2teaspoons chopped garlic
- Pinch of crumbled saffron
- 2teaspoons pimentón (smoked paprika)
- 2tablespoons tomato paste
- ½cup dry white wine
- 1½pounds yellow-fleshed potatoes, such as Yukon Gold, peeled and cut in thick wedges
- 12littleneck clams, about 1 pound
- 2cups roughly chopped cilantro
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)
618 calories; 15 grams fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 8 grams monounsaturated fat; 3 grams polyunsaturated fat; 76 grams carbohydrates; 13 grams dietary fiber; 11 grams sugars; 43 grams protein; 948 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
Step
1
Rinse salt cod, then place in a bowl of cold water and soak for 8 hours or overnight. Change water every 2 hours if possible. (If desired, fully soaked cod may be refrigerated, drained and wrapped in plastic for up to 2 days.) Also put chickpeas in a bowl and cover with cold water by 2 inches. Leave to soak 8 hours or overnight.
Step
2
The next day, drain cod, chop it into 1-inch chunks, put it in a bowl and set aside. Put chickpeas and soaking water in a large pot over high heat. Add clove-stuck onion and bay leaf and bring to a boil. Skim foam, turn down heat and simmer for about 45 minutes, until tender. Halfway through cooking, add 2 teaspoons salt. Turn off heat and leave chickpeas in their broth until ready to use. (Chickpeas may be cooked several hours ahead or even a day in advance if desired.)
Step
3
Make the stew: In a heavy soup pot, warm olive oil over high heat. Add diced onion and let sizzle, then reduce heat and cook until softened, stirring, about 10 minutes. Stir in garlic, saffron, pimentón and tomato paste and cook for 2 minutes. Season mixture with salt and pepper. Add wine and bring to a brisk simmer. Drain chickpeas, reserving 6 cups of the broth. Add the broth and potatoes to the pot, cover and cook until potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes.
Step
4
Ladle about 2 cups of the stew’s liquid over the salt cod pieces and let steep for 10 minutes (the fish will cook while steeping), then pour this mixture into the pot. Add the clams and reserved chickpeas to the pot and simmer, covered, until clams open, 5 to 7 minutes. To serve, stir in the cilantro and ladle the stew into big bowls.
Tip
- This complex dish requires a versatile wine. The funky, earthy flavor of chickpeas pairs well with reds, while the fish and clams suggest whites. Potatoes can go either way. I might start with a dry rosé, possibly Provençal as Spanish rosés are frequently bigger and fruitier. Dry Iberian whites will go well too, like godellos from Valdeorras and possibly even white Riojas. But I think with the chickpeas, the smoky pimento and the touch of tomato, I might opt for a red as long as it’s not too tannic, oaky and fruity. How about an inexpensive Portuguese red from the Douro or Alentejo, or possibly a mencía from the Galician region of Ribeira Sacra? I’d be tempted to experiment with Austrian blaufränkisch. The final word goes to fino sherry, which just might be ideal. ERIC ASIMOV
Ratings
4
out of 5
166
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Cooking Notes
Hector Lahera
"Modern" salt cod is not as hard and salty as the traditional plank-hard type was. The cook must match soaking times and water changes to the cod at hand. Follow the recipe; but touch and taste the cod as it desalts. Stop while there is texture and "funk" to it.
A perhaps apocryphal tale/cooking tip: In the old days, restaurants and guest houses would soak salt cod in their toilet's tanks; thus insuring frequent and automatic changes of water.
Pete
Great recipe, but I had to make some changes to appease the masses in the household. I love the flavor of chickpeas, but not a fan of the consistency. I also thought that it would be too thin if I followed the recipe. I ended up pureeing half the chickpeas in the broth and reserved the remaining chickpeas for addition per the recipe. No one in the family but me likes bacala so I used fresh cod and cooked it along with the clams. I also added Spanish chorizo and dry sherry in place of wine.
Marjorie Och
This was delicious. I used whole small, new yellow potatoes rather than larger Yukon Golds. Next time I might use 1 t. of pimentón (it's very forward and you have to love this), and definitely more clams. I held back some chick peas to make hummus; 1 pound of dry chick peas is a lot of chick peas. And about the chick peas -- 45 minutes is not enough time. Soak these overnight and start cooking early; keep checking.
We enjoyed a 2014 godello with this, thank you Mr. Asimov!
Teresa
I had to laugh: "Soak for 8 hours or overnight. Change water every 2 hours if possible." Only babies deserve that kind of attention.
Michele
A fine recipe, though I would say don't add the salt in step 3. The bacalao is plenty salty, if properly soaked, and the clams are too. If you feel it needs more salt before serving, you can always add it then. My bacalao needed more cooking than the steeping an 5-7 minute simmer suggested in step 4. Otherwise, a delicious stew.
Great Soup
This is A LOT of soup. More like 6-8 servings. If just for you and Isaac then halve everything except for the bacalao. I also added more tomato paste, like 3 tablespoons or more, to cut the pimentón flavor for Isaac.
Davey W
This is indeed one heck of a lot of chickpeas. Maybe 1 cup was intended? Great dish either way. I subbed mussels for the clams, which worked out fine.
Mark
What??“place in a bowl of cold water and soak for 8 hours or overnight. Change water every 2 hours if possible.”
Parker
Cooked this during 2020 quarantine, substituting in canned clams. Was a bit too ‘fishy’ first day but really mellowed out and was delicious the next!
Substitute Flounder
If you prefer the flavor of a milder fish and a quicker preparation, use a thick cut flounder or codfish. I loved the chickpeas. I used the onion from the chickpeas to sautee for the soup.
Teresa
I had to laugh: "Soak for 8 hours or overnight. Change water every 2 hours if possible." Only babies deserve that kind of attention.
Erik
Great dish, though I had to improvise a bit since I was cooking for one. Salt cod seems quite different over in England, not boned, longer rinsing and cooking times, compared with the recipe. This was my third dish from a plank of salt cod, so I anticipated the longer cooking time. I used canned chickpeas rather than dried, but the smoked pimentón was wonderful, an ingredient I don't use often enough.
Edward Baker
Tere are chickpeas and chickpeas and they react in different ways. Better not to salt them at all, wait until everything is finally in the pot and add salt as needed.
Over a period of many years I have done this terrific winter dish with baby spinach, a couple of large handfuls added in the last half hour or so of cooking, but never did it with clams. Think I´ll try your version, sounds good.
Red Douro. Yes!
Deborah VC
This was delicious though I will definitely cut back on the amount of broth next time. The smoked paprika and the fresh cilantro are musts.
Pete
Great recipe, but I had to make some changes to appease the masses in the household. I love the flavor of chickpeas, but not a fan of the consistency. I also thought that it would be too thin if I followed the recipe. I ended up pureeing half the chickpeas in the broth and reserved the remaining chickpeas for addition per the recipe. No one in the family but me likes bacala so I used fresh cod and cooked it along with the clams. I also added Spanish chorizo and dry sherry in place of wine.
Anne
This sounds terrific, But really, chickpeas are more inviting if you skin them. It is a chore, but it gets easier the more you do it. (Put on some music you enjoy to distract you.) After they are cooked, rinse them in cold water to loosen the skins, which will pop off when you press the bottom of the chickpea. Then skin them when they are as hot as you can stand - hotter is easier.
Phyllis
Well I guess salt cod is an acquired taste and I don't have it. This really turned out ugly to my surprise because practically all the recipes I've made from Cooking have been wonderful.
John Wray
This is a great recipe just as presented. However, next time I make it I'll cut back just a bit of the amount of liquid reserved from chickpeas (to say 4 cups) - just a bit too much liquid for my taste. Finally, I used hot smoked paprika - excellent!
Marjorie Och
This was delicious. I used whole small, new yellow potatoes rather than larger Yukon Golds. Next time I might use 1 t. of pimentón (it's very forward and you have to love this), and definitely more clams. I held back some chick peas to make hummus; 1 pound of dry chick peas is a lot of chick peas. And about the chick peas -- 45 minutes is not enough time. Soak these overnight and start cooking early; keep checking.
We enjoyed a 2014 godello with this, thank you Mr. Asimov!
Mary B.
Oh my... what an aroma filled the house when I was sauteing the pimento, onions, garlic and saffron. Delicious dish -- I'd never had salt cod before (inspired by Kurlansky's book "Cod") but it was truly wonderful, and excellent, even, the next day. I could have used better clams but that's a function of where I live, which is far from the ocean.
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