Spanish

Bacalao al Pil-Pil (Basque Salt Cod in Garlic Olive Oil Sauce)

Name: Bacalao al Pil-Pil (Basque Salt Cod in Garlic Olive Oil Sauce)
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Spanish
Ingredients: 1.5 lb dried salt cod; 1.5 cups extra virgin olive oil; 6 garlic cloves; 2 dried guindilla chilies

Javier @javier_v84

Bacalao al Pil-Pil (Basque Salt Cod in Garlic Olive Oil Sauce) is Spanish home cooking, eaten at lunch. On the plate it is the dish at the centre. Below is what usually sits beside it, what it does and does not contain, and what else to cook once you have made it.

45 min Involved Low carb Pescatarian Halal Gluten free Dairy free

Ingredients

Serves

The quantities follow this count.

1.5 lb dried salt cod
1.5 cups extra virgin olive oil
6 garlic cloves
2 dried guindilla chilies

How to cook it

Soak the salt cod in cold water for 24 to 48 hours, changing the water three or four times, then drain and pat the pieces dry, keeping the skin on since it holds the gelatin that thickens the sauce.
Warm the olive oil gently in a wide heavy pan with the sliced garlic and the dried chilies until the garlic turns golden, then lift out the garlic and chilies and set them aside.
Lower the heat so the oil is only barely warm, add the cod pieces skin side down, and let them poach gently for about 10 minutes, spooning the oil over them, until the fish just turns opaque.
Remove the pan from the heat, lift out the cod, and pour all but a few spoonfuls of the oil into a jug, leaving behind the cloudy gelatin the fish released.
Let the pan cool for a minute, then swirl it in steady circles while drizzling the reserved oil back in a spoonful at a time, so the gelatin and the oil emulsify into a thick, pale golden sauce; it takes patience and a steady wrist rather than any tool.
Once the sauce holds together, return the cod pieces to the pan, spoon the pil-pil sauce over them, and scatter the reserved garlic and chilies on top before serving straightaway.

Watch how to cook Bacalao al Pil-Pil (Basque Salt Cod in Garlic Olive Oil Sauce)

Someone making it start to finish, so you can see what the steps look like.

Bacalao al pil pil, receta facil con todos los TRUCOS para montar el pil pil Play the video

Serve it with

A Spanish lunch is a plate rather than a single dish. These are the courses that normally sit beside Bacalao al Pil-Pil (Basque Salt Cod in Garlic Olive Oil Sauce), read from the same composition Dinejot builds a real meal from.

Something to sip
- Ajoblanco (Chilled Malaga Almond and Garlic Soup)
  
  20 min
The cooked vegetable
- Acelgas Rehogadas (Sauteed Chard with Garlic and Pimenton)
  
  25 min
What it is eaten with
- Arroz Blanco (Plain White Rice)
  
  20 min
Something cool and fresh
- Boquerones en Vinagre (Vinegar-Cured Anchovies)
  
  15 min

Safe at your table

Dinejot tracks ten allergens and tags every one of them by hand, so the absences below are as deliberate as the presences. Bacalao al Pil-Pil (Basque Salt Cod in Garlic Olive Oil Sauce) carries fish. It is free of the remaining 9 allergens on that list.

Every tracked allergen in Bacalao al Pil-Pil (Basque Salt Cod in Garlic Olive Oil Sauce)
Allergen	In this dish	Cook this instead
Peanuts	No
Tree nuts	No
Dairy	No
Gluten	No
Shellfish	No
Eggs	No
Soy	No
Fish	Yes	Ajoblanco (Chilled Malaga Almond and Garlic Soup)
Sesame	No
Coconut	No

These tags are set by a person rather than inferred from an ingredient list, and they describe the recipe as written here. Read the labels on whatever you actually buy.

What it brings to the plate

Estimated, per serving

Calories: 380 kcal
Protein: 34 g
Carbs: 2 g
Fat: 26 g
Fiber: 0 g
Sugar: 0 g
Sodium: 620 mg
Saturated fat: 4 g

Estimated values. Actual nutrition varies with ingredients, brands, and how you cook.

When to cook it

Bacalao al Pil-Pil (Basque Salt Cod in Garlic Olive Oil Sauce) takes about 45 minutes from a cold stove to the table, and the cooking itself is a proper project. It is eaten at lunch. Nothing in the calendar rules it out, so it is a year round dish.