Cuisine Featured: Portugese
The Melting Pot section is where we have placed recipes for cuisines brought to America by the many immigrants to our shores. Over the years these cuisines have been Americanized, i.e., most viewers of our site have probably been exposed to many of these cuisines, either via the dining-out route or, perhaps, directly within our own families due to the multi-ethnic makeup therein. As an example of this multi-ethnicity within a single family, I can cite my own case-- My family consists of the following ethnicities: English, Irish, Scottish, German, Polish and Greek. Is it any wonder then that America is called the Melting Pot?
At the bottom of this page, you will have an opportunity to E-mail us and give us your thoughts on this page. We encourage this. After all, we will be tailoring this "Cooking Around the World" series according to the wishes of our viewers.
1 pound salt cod ¼ c finely chopped parsley
4 T olive oil 1 pound potatoes, peeled and sliced
1½ c coarsely chopped onions crosswise into 1/8-inch-thick
1 c tomato purée rounds
1 c chicken stock, fresh or canned 5 T butter, cut into bits
1¼ tsp salt 2 hard-cooked eggs, sliced into
Freshly ground black pepper ¼-inch-thick rounds
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Starting a day ahead, place the salt cod in an enameled, glass or
stainless-steel pan or bowl. Pour in enough cold water to cover the salt cod
by at least 2 inches, and soak the fish for at least 12 hours, pouring off
the water and replacing it with fresh water three or four times.Drain the cod, rinse under cold running water, place it in a saucepan and add enough cold fresh water to cover the fish by 1 inch. Bring to a boil over high heat, then taste the water. If it seems excessively salty, drain it off, cover the cod with fresh cold water and bring to a boil again. Repeat if necessary.
Lower the heat and simmer the cod, partially covered, for 20 minutes, or until the fish flakes easily when prodded gently with a fork. Drain the cod thoroughly. Remove and discard any skin and bones, and flake the fish into 1-inch pieces with a fork.
Heat the 4 T of olive oil in a heavy 10- to 12-inch skillet until a light haze forms above it. Add the chopped onions and cook over moderate heat for 5 to 8 minutes, until they are soft and lightly colored. Stir in the cup of tomato purée, the cup of chicken stock, ¾ tsp of the salt, 1/8 tsp of the black pepper and the chopped parsley. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to low and simmer uncovered for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the tomato sauce from the heat and set it aside to cool to room temperature.
Preheat the oven to 350°. Spread 1/3 of the tomato sauce on the bottom of a 2½- to 3-quart casserole. Arrange half of the potatoes on top of the sauce and sprinkle with ¼ tsp of the salt and several grindings of black pepper. Top the potatoes with half of the flaked cod, then repeat the layers, sprinkling the remaining ¼ tsp of salt and a few grindings of pepper on the potatoes, and ending with a layer of tomato sauce. Scatter the butter bits over the top of the sauce and bake in the center of the oven for 1 hour. Garnish the casserole with the slices of hard-cooked eggs and serve at once. Serves 4.
