Salted, dried, and legendary – in Portugal, Bacalhau is more than just a fish dish. With over 1000 recipes, this iconic cod has come to stand for tradition, and culinary creativity. How did a fish that doesn’t even swim in Portuguese waters become the national dish? Join us in Olhão – a coastal town in the Algarve – where we learn how Bacalhau is prepared for festivities, and as an everyday meal. From crispy croquettes, to rich Xerém with chorizo and mussels; we dive into the flavors and history that come together in Portugal’s cod obsession.

#dweuromaxx #portugal #fish

CHAPTERS
00:00 Intro: Portugal’s love of seafood
00:24 Bacalhau on every menu
01:37 Where Portugal gets its cod
02:05 Soaking and preparing Bacalhau
02:42 Cooking croquettes: Pataniscas
03:27 Making the main dish: Xerém
04:42 Modern takes on Bacalhau

CREDITS
Report: Jörg Hinners
Camera: Ana Medeira
Edit: Ana Medeira

Supervising editor: Ruben Kalus

THUMBNAIL
IMAGO/Dreamstime / IMAGO/Depositphotos
IMAGO/Shotshop
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30 Comments

  1. Can someone reach out to the chef and let him know that the desalting process can be significantly sped up by pouring hot water on the saltfish and letting that soak till the water cools? Once the water cools, a second soaking in cold water for another couple hours and it's ready to be cooked with almost all the salt gone.

  2. Codfish is very meaty. The Portuguese made it very versatile. It is an odd obsession of Portugal.

  3. I really, really do not like the Portuguese who came to steal Greenland's fish and rape our girls. Those a…. caused so many deaths of young girls in Greenland when I grew up. I hate those guys! Bad people!

  4. In Canada it's well known that the Portuguese and Spanish love cod, they nearly fished all the cold out of Eastern Canada

  5. Why do you pronounce bacalhau incorrectly throughout the entire video!?! You add an “ee” sound that IS NOT THERE. No one else in the video says “bah-cah-lee-ow.” NO ONE. What is wrong with you? This is sooooo annoying! 😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫

  6. You know what you are doing, Olhão is our best market and my best friend works at Cestaria 😅 DW has never been so close to me 😂

  7. I was born and grew up in St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada. Portuguese fishing boats were a common site in our harbour during the '70s and '80s. The Portuguese Consul's office was on one of the streets where I lived as a child. Salted, dried cod is a staple of Newfoundland cuisine.

  8. If Columbused was u.s.a. then this dish is magellaned. Taking resources out of other countries without making them a "valid citizen".