Provincetown Creamed Codfish Recipes

Steps:

• Cook bacon in a soup pot over medium heat until crisp and brown, about 10 minutes. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon, leaving drippings in the pot. Cook and stir onion and red bell pepper until softened, about 5 minutes; season with salt and pepper. Stir in garlic and seafood seasoning and cook and stir 2 more minutes.
• Pour in chicken broth and stir in potatoes and corn; add water if needed to cover vegetables. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to low; simmer until potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes. Stir in milk and butter until butter has melted; mix in reserved bacon. Bring the soup just to the boiling point and stir in cod and parsley; cook, stirring occasionally, until fish flakes easily, 5 to 8 minutes.

Steps:

• Flake codfish.
• Melt the butter, add flour and stir until well incorporated; add hot milk and pepper.
• Stir over medium heat until boiling.
• Add fish and beat well.
• Add beaten egg yolk and stir well.
• Serve at once.
• **Variation: Add 3 hard-cooked eggs, chopped, to the creamed fish before filling the potato shells. Add mashed potato, brush with melted butter and place under hot broiler until golden.

Steps:

• Soak the dried salted cod in cold water with the skin side up for 24 hours, changing the water about 4 times. Drain and discard the water.
• Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Place the cod in a pan with enough water to cover; bring to a boil and cook for 10 minutes. Remove the cod from the pan; remove and discard the skin and bones. Cut the cod into chunks and set aside.
• Heat 1/2 inch vegetable oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Working in batches if necessary, fry the potatoes in the hot oil until just cooked, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels to drain.
• Pour the olive oil into a Dutch oven or heat-proof casserole dish over medium heat. Cook the onion and garlic in the oil until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the cod and cook another 3 minutes; stir the potatoes into the mixture and cook another 1 to 2 minutes. Reduce heat to low.
• Melt the butter in a separate pan over medium-low heat; vigorously stir the flour into the melted butter. Slowly stream the hot milk into the mixture while stirring; cook and stir until thick. Season with the nutmeg. Pour into the casserole with 1 1/3 cups cream; stir to coat. Allow the mixture to simmer together for about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle remaining 2/3 cup cream over the mixture; sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese.
• Bake in the preheated oven until the top is browned, 30 to 40 minutes. Serve hot.

Steps:

• Fill a shallow, wide pan with high sides with about an inch of water, and set it over high heat. Add the peppercorns, bay leaf and 1 section of the lemon to the water, and allow it to come to a bare simmer. Place the fish into this poaching liquid, and cook, barely simmering, until the flesh has just begun to whiten all the way through, approximately 6 to 8 minutes. Using a wide spatula, carefully remove the fish from the water, and set aside to cool.
• Empty the pan, and return it to the stove, over medium-high heat. Add the butter, and allow it to melt, swirling it around the pan. When the butter foams, add the celery, onions and garlic, and sauté, stirring often, until the vegetables soften and the onions turn translucent, then transfer them to a large bowl.
• In a small bowl, mix together the mayonnaise, mustard, eggs, salt, pepper and seasoning salt (or paprika and hot-pepper flakes), then add this mixture to the bowl with the sautéed vegetables, pour the crushed saltines or bread crumbs over them and stir to combine. Add the parsley, and stir again.
• Flake the cooked fish into the binding sauce carefully, keeping the flakes as whole as you can manage, then gather them into small balls, and form them into patties, 4-6 for a main course, 6-8 for an appetizer. Place them on a sheet pan or platter, cover loosely with plastic wrap and transfer them to the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to set.
• Set a large sauté pan over high heat, and add to it the neutral oil. When the oil is shimmering, remove the fish cakes from the refrigerator, and carefully sauté the patties until they are golden brown, approximately 4 to 5 minutes a side. Work in batches if necessary. (A small smear of mayonnaise on the exterior of the patties will give them a crisp crust.) Serve them alone, or with greens dressed in a lemony vinaigrette, with the remaining wedges of lemon.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Place 2 tablespoons butter in a microwave-safe bowl; melt in microwave on high, about 30 seconds. Stir buttery round crackers into melted butter.
• Place remaining 2 tablespoons butter in a 7x11-inch baking dish. Melt in the preheated oven, 1 to 3 minutes. Remove dish from oven.
• Coat both sides of cod in melted butter in the baking dish.
• Bake cod in the preheated oven for 10 minutes. Remove from oven; top with lemon juice, wine, and cracker mixture. Place back in oven and bake until fish is opaque and flakes easily with a fork, about 10 more minutes.
• Garnish baked cod with parsley and green onion. Serve with lemon wedges.