Breathing new life into dried cod
Salted cod has fallen out of favour in the North Atlantic. A NORA-funded project is looking to change that by putting a modern spin on one of the region’s oldest products
Travellers to places like Spain and Portugal will be familiar with fish dishes made with what locals refer to as bacalao (or bacalhau, in Portugal). But despite being a dinnertime staple in Iberia—and, indeed in much of southern Europe—bacalao has something of an image problem in the countries of the North Atlantic where most of the fish is caught and prepared for export.
Take, for example, its most common name locally: saltfish. Young people who hear the term think that the “salt” in saltfish refers to the taste, according to Kolbrún Sveinsdóttir, a project manager with Matís, an Icelandic food-research institute.
But the salt, as their grandparents can tell them, refers to the preservation method. The process of using salt to cure cod was developed well before mechanical refrigeration and made it possible to transport fish from the North Atlantic over long distances. Even though the process is no longer necessary, it turns out that salting cod and other whitefish changes the texture of the meat, and, say aficionados, greatly enhances the flavour and aroma.
“Think prosciutto,” Kolbrún says.
Trendy cod
Salting cod dries it almost entirely, and, before it can be eaten, it needs to be rehydrated. That washes out most of the salt that was used to preserve it, but the process of doing so is another part of its image problem (even for Kolbrún and others with “fond childhood memories” of eating saltfish): rehydrating and desalting is an involved process that that can take a few days.
“Making a meal with saltfish is something you have to plan ahead for, and that’s not really compatible with a modern lifestyle,” she says.
As a result, consumption of saltfish has declined in the NORA area, and in particular among young people, who are also becoming less aware of its historical importance. In the hopes of reversing the trend, Matís, together with 15 other partners, has undertaken a project called Trendy Cod.
The recipient of a three-year grant from NORA and the Nordic Council of Ministers, Trendy Cod seeks to improve the image of saltfish in the countries where it is produced in order to increase its domestic consumption.
Old tradition, new sales methods
While putting more unprepared fish in the display case in the form of desalted cod has been one of the aims of Trendy Cod, the project also has its eye on the finished product. Project partners include firms that produce saltfish, makers of ready-to-eat products, chefs and cooking schools, and they have worked together in an effort to ensure that saltfish is something people encounter when they go out to eat and when they find themselves in the supermarket and in rush to come up with something for dinner.
In March, during ‘saltfish month’, Krónan, an Icelandic supermarket chain, featured four pre-made products developed by Grímur Kokkur, a producer of ready-made seafood meals. Krónan also posted recipes for saltfish that had been developed by chefs at Menntaskólinn í Kópavogi, a cooking school.
Putting saltfish in front of consumers, according to Kolbrún, was well received and led to more demand, but it also revealed a supply chain that is geared for export, not production for the small markets in the North Atlantic.
A codfish or egg situation
That, ironically, means food producers in a country like Iceland, which lives off fishing, have a hard time getting their hands on saltfish in the quantities they can store and eventually sell, given current demand.
“Saltfish has been far away from people’s daily lives in the North Atlantic, but exports have always been strong, and the system reflects that,” Kolbrún says. “We are seeing that is there is an argument for domestic production, but we need to be able to do more to convince producers that is the case.”
Since starting in January 2022, Trendy Cod has received 500,000 kroner from NORA. The project concludes at the end of 2024.
Nordic "Brandade"
Ingredients
- 500 g Salted fish (desalted) with skin, e.g., cod tail
- 200 ml Milk
- 250 g Potatoes
- 3 Garlic cloves
- 100 ml Cold-pressed rapeseed oil
- Freshly ground pepper
- Salt, to taste
- Toasted bread
Method
- Boil the potatoes until they are tender.
- While the potatoes are boiling, peel and slice the garlic. Put the garlic and the salted fish in a pot with the milk, bring to a simmer, and let it stand until the fish flakes easily.
- Once the potatoes are cooked, peel and cut them into pieces. Pour a little of the milk from the fish over them and press them through a potato ricer.
- Strain all the milk from the fish and set it aside. Remove the skin from the fish, ensuring there are no bones, and place the fish in a bowl.
- Add the mashed potatoes to the fish mixture and place in a pot. Stir vigorously until well mashed and creamy. Heat gently with the reserved milk, stirring in the rapeseed oil in a thin stream until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
- Season with salt and pepper and serve with toasted bread.
