Salted Cod Casserole (Bacalhau a Gomes De Sa)

Growing up this was a staple dish in our home. My mother would make this throughout the year, but more so during Lent. I believe the reason she made it so often was because it was easy, and of course because we loved it.

Being that I was brought up on mainly ALL Portuguese dishes,I feel that when I started cooking I tried to avoid making the "traditional" Portuguese meals and branch out into different cuisines. Now that a few years have passed, I find myself wanting to return to my "roots" and cook more Portuguese dishes.

I told myself that I would try to blog at least one Portuguese dish a week. Unfortunately I have slacked on that, but I do plan on being better. So to get myself started I decided that I would blog about this dish. I hope that you enjoy this dish as much and my family and I have. If you do try this dish, I would love to get some feedback. Happy cooking!

Recipe source...My Mother!

WHAT YOU WILL NEED!

Yields 4-6 serving... I have tripled this recipe before to serve to a large crowd and it came out amazing!

2 lbs. salt cod
1 cup olive oil (Use good quality olive oil, if possible try using Portuguese oil)
4 medium sized red onions (You can use any kind of onion)
2-3 cloves of garlic, finely-chopped
6 medium-sized potatoes peeled
20 pitted black olives (I omit this because both my husband and I hate olives...in the passed I have served then on the side for guests)
6 hard-boiled eggs, sliced
2 Tbs. parsley, finely chopped

WHAT YOU WILL NEED TO DO:

You will need to soak the salt cod, in water for 16 - 24 hours, changing the water 3 or 4 times. During this time you will need to keep the cod refrigerated.

After you have soaked your cod for 24 hours, drain and rinse the cod.

Place Salted Cod in a pan and fill with water to cover the fish by 1 inch.

Bring to a boil and then simmer for about 20 minutes until the fish flakes easily.

Drain cod and flake the fish coarsely. make sure that you remove any and all skin and also remove all bones. Once this is done set cod aside.

In the same pot boil the potatoes until easily pierced with a fork

Once cooked drain, and let cool.

Slice into 1/4-inch slices or cubes. Set aside.


In a frying-pan, heat a 1/2 cup of olive oil over medium high heat.

Add the sliced onion and sautée for about 6 or 7 minutes until the onions are translucent and slightly brown.

Stir in the garlic and remove from the heat.


To assemble Casserole pour about 3 tablespoons of olive oil on the bottom of casserole dish to help casserole from sticking.

Then begin by laying half the potatoes in the bottom of a casserole.

Cover them with half the cod and then half the onion and half the eggs.

Repeat above steps with the rest of ingredients, and then drizzle the rest of the olive oil over the top.

Bake for about 20 minutes in a 350ºF until the top begins to lightly browned.

Garnish with olives and sprinkle with parsley.

Serve from the casserole dish with a cruet of olive oil on the side.