Portuguese Salt Cod and Potato Casserole has become a favorite dish to serve on Christmas Eve. Salt cod is layered with potatoes and sautéd onions and topped with hard boiled egg slices and black olives to create this flavorful dish that is delicious hot, at room temperature or cold.
If you’re not crazy about salt cod, this is the dish that is sure to win you over! It’s hard to resist any type of fish when it’s layered with potatoes, golden sautéd onions and topped with slices of hard boiled eggs and black olives when served. It’s simply an amazing combination of flavors!
This dish is not Italian in origin but it is fhe first salt cod dish that I really enjoyed. I first sampled this dish, which is called bacalhao à gomes de sa in Portuguese, from a local take out place. I decided I had to recreate it at home. In fact it’s a great addition to our traditional Italian Christmas Eve fish and seafood only menu. And I was right, my Italian family loves it!
Speaking of Christmas Eve, here are a two other favorite seafood recipe suggestions for your menu:
It’s really not lengthy nor complicated to make, but since the salt cod requires at 2 days of soaking you do need to plan ahead to make this dish. Let me show you the steps. You’ll find the complete printable recipe at the bottom of this post.
How to make Portuguese Salt Cod and Potato Casserole
Soak your salt cod:
This is a step that can not be skipped nor rushed. I must share with you what happened to me on Christmas Eve a few years ago.
The fish monger sold us salt cod which he told us was “lightly salted” and only required a few hours of soaking. Of course we found out that he was totally wrong! On Christmas Eve with 14 guests coming over for dinner, I took the casserole out of the oven only to find that it was unbearably salty. The whole thing had to be tossed out!
So, the moral of the story is soak your cod! Rinse the cod under cold water, place in a large dish and cover with water. Cover and place in the refrigerator. Rinse the fish and change the soaking water twice a day. Soak for 2 days. I have also soaked it up to 3 days following the above mentioned disaster!
On the day you are preparing the casserole:
- Sauté thinly sliced onions in olive oil until golden. Add a pinch of red pepper flakes, if desired.
- Boil peeled potatoes, cool slightly and slice into thin rounds.
- Blanch the soaked cod in boiling water for 3-5 minutes, until the cod easily falls apart when poked with a fork or knife. Drain and set aside in a bowl to cool slightly.
To assemble the casserole:
Grease a rectangular casserole dish with olive oil. Layer sliced potatoes on the bottom. The slices do not need to overlap. Cover with half the salt cod which you have torn into bite size pieces with your fingers. Top with half of the sautéd onions.
Repeat with the remaining ingredients. Drizzle with olive oil. Bake in a 350F preheated oven for 30 minutes until heated through.
Serve topped with freshly chopped parsley, sliced hard boiled eggs and black olives.
Tips and suggestions for the perfect Portuguese Salt Cod and Potato Casserole:
- You can make this dish with fresh cod instead of salt cod. Skip the soaking process and proceed with the rest of the recipe. Your casserole will be delicious but will not have the same depth of flavor as with salt cod.
- Be sure to soak your cod for 2-3 days and change the water twice daily.
- Instead of layering the ingredients separately, you may stir them all together, place them in the casserole dish and bake.
- This dish is perfect for a pot luck dinner.
- Serve hot, at room temperature or cold.
- If you have any leftovers, toss in a can of chickpeas, an extra splash of olive oil and salt and pepper to make a delicious salad.
If you try out this dish, please tag me with your photos with #mangiabedda or @mangiabedda on Facebook or Instagram. Feel free to Pin the recipe for later. Buon appetito!
Ingredients
- 2 pounds salt cod
- 2 pounds potatoes about 5 large
- 4 tablespoons olive oil plus extra for drizzling on top
- 2 large onions thinly sliced
- pinch red pepper flakes optional
For serving:
- 3 large eggs hard boiled and thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup black olives
- handful freshly chopped parsley
Instructions
Soak the cod:
- To prepare the cod, rinse well under cold water, place in a large bowl covered with water and soak for 2-3 days replacing the water at least twice daily.
Prepare the casserole:
- Peel the potatoes and boil in salted water until tender. Allow to cool and slice thinly, about 1/4 inch thick slices. Set aside.
- Meanwhile blanch the salt cod in boiling water (not salted) for 3-5 minutes, or until it breaks apart easily when pierced with a fork or knife. Drain well and set aside to cool. Tear into bite sized pieces using your fingers.
- In a large pan, heat olive oil and sauté sliced onions until golden, do not brown. Stir in hot pepper flakes.
To assemble:
- Preheat oven to 350F.
- Grease a rectangular casserole dish (mine is 12 x 10 inches) and cover the bottom with potato slices. Top with half of the cod pieces and half of the sautéed onions. Repeat with remaining potatoes, cod and onions. Drizzle with olive oil.
- Bake for half an hour. Before serving, top with freshly chopped parsley, sliced hard boiled eggs and black olives.
- Serve hot, at room temperature or cold as a salad.
Notes
- You can make this dish with fresh cod instead of salt cod. Skip the soaking process and proceed with the rest of the recipe. Your casserole will be delicious but not have the same depth of flavor as with salt cod.
- Be sure to soak your cod for 2-3 days and change the water twice daily.
- Instead of layering the ingredients separately, you may stir them all together, place them in the casserole dish and bake.
- This dish is perfect for a pot luck dinner.
- Serve hot, at room temperature or cold.
- If you have any leftovers, add a can of chickpeas, an extra splash of olive oil and salt and pepper to make a delicious salad.
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