Portuguese Cod Fritters

These little salty, deep fried balls of awesomeness are fully packed with cod flavor. Cod is one of those fishes that if you have had it you know it. The flavor of the fish is unlike any other fish I have ever tasted. Not as fishy as salmon but not as mild as tilapia. Not as fatty as sea bass, but able to hold its own in any method I have tried so far.
The following recipe is done with salt cod, which is cod fillets preserved in salt. This adds to the already beautiful flavors of the fish. Do not worry, we will leave the cod in water for sometime, to get the excess salt out of the fish. You can find cod in pretty much any supermarket these days, salt cod might be a little rarer. I have been able to find it at every Whole Foods, Central Market, and every Asian grocery store I have been to.

This is what the package looks like. I got this one from the Asian Food store, and it is already skinned and boned.

Now, this recipe is very simple to make but there are a couple steps extra than most recipes do, still very simple. Every time you are messing with salt meat, you have to desalt the item. We can do this very simply, take the filets out of the bag, rinse with cold water,and place in a container. Cover the filets with water and leave in your fridge overnight. That will get all the excess salt out of the fish, after 24 hours, it will look like this.

Now we are ready to start.

Step 1. Shred the fish, it is very easy to do with cod, just pull with your hands and it should come apart.

This is what it will look like after you are done. Now place this back in the fridge until we are ready to use.

Step 2. Chop up some veggies. I use red bell peppers, onions, green peppers, tomatoes, and garlic. Chop the bigger veggies into chunks, and mince the garlic. Add the onions, and peppers to a pan with olive oil over medium high heat, and let it saute and caramelize. After about 5 - 7 minutes your peppers should be much softer, now add your garlic, wait one minute then add your tomatoes and the shredded cod. Let it soak up all flavors for about 5 minutes, then add about 1/4 cup of chopped cilantro, 2 tblsp of tomato paste, and 1/2 cup of water.

Add salt and pepper to taste, mix well, and cover with a lid to let the cod cook through and liquid to absorb. This should take about 20 minutes, but come by and mix the mixture every 5 minutes or so just to make sure it is not sticking to the bottom of the pan.

Step 3. Peel about 3-4 potatoes and boil until softened. We need about 3 cups of mashed potatoes per 1 lbs of cod. I use a ricer to mash my potatoes, makes the process much easier.

As you can see, I really let the cod mixture dry out. We can not have any liquid because we are making balls with these and the liquid will not let the balls come together. 

Step 4. Combine cod mixture with the potatoes. I usually start with about 2 cups of potatoes, and taste as I go. Usually takes about 3 cups, but it may take a little more or a little less.

This is what the mixture looks like after mixing. At this point taste for seasoning and adjust. You may add cayenne if you would like a little spicy kick, but usually I just dash a little hot sauce after they have been fried.

Step 5. Now grab about 1 tblsp of mixture, form into a ball and roll through some breadcrumbs. I like to use Panko (Japanese breadcrumbs) because they are extra crispy, but any unseasoned breadcrumbs will do.

Now we are ready to fry. Bring canola oil to a temp of 350' over medium high heat. (I have a trick to this if you do not have a heat thermometer. It is stated in my fried calamari post)

Fry until golden brown and drain on paper towels. Serve with lime or lemon wedges and hot sauce if preferred.

Enjoy!!!!!