Salt Cod With Onions, Wine And Cabbage

Total Time: 2 hrs 5 mins Preparation Time: 45 mins Cook Time: 1 hr 20 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 4
• 1 1/2 lbs dried salt cod fish (or (substitute 4 thick steaks of any fresh, firm-fleshed fish)
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 lbs onions, finely sliced (about 6-7 medium onions)
• 1 green cabbage
• 2 lbs boiling potatoes, also called waxy potatoes, peeled and thickly sliced
• 1/2 cup dry wine, traditional portuguese is vinho verde
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, estimated, to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper, estimated to taste
• 1 teaspoon parsley, optional as a garnish
• 1 teaspoon piri-piri, optional as a garnish (can be store bought or many recipes already in recipezaar)

Recipe

• 1 if using salt-cod, cut into 4 pieces and reconstitute as described in the introduction; don't drain or dry the fish when done.
• 2 if using fresh fish (4 steaks), rinse, lightly salt, and leave in a colander for 1-2 hours.
• 3 preheat the oven to 350 degrees f.
• 4 in a medium-size (at least 10-12 inch diameter) frying pan, warm up the olive oil, then add the onions to sautee for about 30 minutes; you want golden, not brown, and soft; this is a basic cebollata (see intro).
• 5 keep the cebollata warm (lowest stove top setting).
• 6 prepare the cabbage by trimming and removing four of the largest and most perfect outside leaves; cut out the thick, stiff stem at the base of each leaf.
• 7 use a heavy knife to flatten the leaves and make them more pliable.
• 8 shred the heart of the cabbage and set it aside for now.
• 9 wrap each of the 4 pieces of fish in a cabbage leaf.
• 10 lay the wrapped fish on a baking tray, put in the oven, and bake for 20-30 minutes, "until the wrappers are as dry and brown as tobacco leaves".
• 11 while the fish are cooking, prepare the potatoes as follows:.
• 12 put a medium-sized covered pan (big enough to hold the potatoes and the shredded cabbage) on the stove top and put in the potatoes.
• 13 add the wine and enough water to cover and cook (medium heat) for about 10 minutes.
• 14 remove the cover, add the shredded cabbage, and cover tightly to let the cabbage steam (turn up the heat a bit if necessary).
• 15 cook until the potatoes are tender, probably a total of 15-20 minutes.
• 16 remove the potatoes and cabbage with a slotted spoon to your serving dish.
• 17 add the cooking juices from the potato/cabbage pot into the cebollata in the frying pan, taste and season, then increase the heat to reduce the liquid until you have a thick rich sauce.
• 18 pour the sauce over the potato and cabbage base.
• 19 remove the fish from the oven, place them on the potato and cabbage base and open the wrappers.
• 20 optionally, garnish with parsley and piri piri.
• 21 enjoy!