Cod Fritters, Tartare Sauce
A perfect snack pairing for drinks, this classic Portuguese staple brings back memories of lazy, sunny, sandy days on a beachside shack with friends.
Ingredients
For the Cod Fritters:
300g Salted dry cod
3 cups potatoes
3 eggs
2 tbsp Parsley, finely chopped
1 tbsp plain flour
Vegetable oil
Salt & Pepper to taste)
For the Tartare Sauce:
200g Mayonnaise
1 tbsp finely chopped parsley
2 tbsp finely chopped cornichons
2 tbsp finely chopped capers
1 shallot, very finely chopped
Squeeze of fresh lemon juice
Method
For the Tartare Sauce:
In a bowl, put all the finely chopped ingredients. Add Mayonnaise and a squeeze of lemon, stir thoroughly to combine and refrigerate until ready to serve.
For the Cod Fritters:
12 hours before starting, place the salted cod pieces in a large bowl, and fill with cold water, ensuring the fish are fully submerged, with the level of water reaching over 2 inches above the top of the fish. Place bowl in refrigerator.
Change water completely every 3 hours, always refilling with fresh cold water.
Once the fish has been soaked and de-salted for the 12 hours, with a fork, begin to flake the meat, placing it onto a medium bowl.
In a medium heavy bottomed pan on medium heat, boil the peeled potatoes for about 20 minutes, or until very soft and crumbling.
With a potato ricer, mash the potatoes until very smooth. Add to the bowl with the flaked fish. Add flour, eggs and parsley, mixing thoroughly.
In a large heavy bottomed pan, heat the vegetable oil until a droplet pf cold water sprinkled in sizzles and sings, which will signal the oil is hot enough .
In between two tablespoons,, scoop the fritter mixture, and shape into even quenelles. Drop into the hot oil, and fry each one for between 7/8 minutes, or until they are golden brown (but not dark). Remove from oil with a slotted spoon and place on kitchen roll to take off excess oil. Fry as many at a time as your pan will take ensuring that there is at least 1 inch between each fritter so that they don’t stick to each other.
Serve warm with a generous squeeze of fresh lemon juice and the tartare sauce on the side.