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Scorched Salt Fish

Scorched Salt Fish is a dish of salt cod flakes browned in butter.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 2 ingredients
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Scorched Salt Fish

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare

  1. Soak the salt cod overnight.

  2. Cut the cod into long flakes and dry with a napkin.

Cook and serve

  1. In a chafing dish, heat 2 tablespoons of butter until very hot.

  2. Add the fish flakes and brown on both sides.

  3. Serve very hot.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.

Explore the science

What each ingredient does

Salt cod
Provides the main protein; soaking removes salt so the flesh becomes mild and tender.
Butter
Conducts heat and carries browning, giving the fish a golden surface and rich flavor.

The step that matters

Browning the fish flakes in very hot butter. The butter must be very hot and the flakes dry, so the surface browns quickly rather than steaming. Wet fish in cooler fat releases moisture, which prevents browning and leaves the flakes pale and soft.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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