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Bacalhau a Bras is one of Portugal’s most popular dishes. It is simple and delightful and even landed on our personal list of “top 100 authentic food experiences to have before I die.”
Table of Contents
First, What is Bacalhau or Portuguese Cod Fish?
Bacalhau is dried salted codfish in English. It is a staple in Portuguese cooking and surprisingly, not native to Portugal.
Bacalhau is imported from Newfoundland or Norway. In the 16th century, Portuguese fishermen brought it back from Newfoundland and has since been integral to Portuguese cooking.
In Portugal, bacalhau usually refers to the cod fish that is dried and salted. While fresh cod fish, or bacalhau fresco exists, most recipes call for dried and salted cod fish.
To cook with bacalhau cod fish it must be prepared in advance. The fish soaked in freshwater and changed frequently for at least 24 hours to reduce the levels of salt.
You can have bacalhau delivered to you by Amazon and be sure to follow the de-salting instructions.
Authentic Food Quest Tip: For more about the history of cod fish, make sure to check out the fascinating James Beard award winning book; Cod: A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World
Discovering Bacalhau in Portugal
While exploring the local food in Portugal, we could not miss bacalhau, Portugal’s national obsession. Bacalhau or Portuguese cod fish is available on every Portuguese restaurant’s menu.
The Portuguese are so obsessed with cod fish, that there are over 365 ways of preparing bacalhau – one for each day of the year.
Everywhere we went, we tried different preparation styles of bacalhau. From grilled, baked, canned, and fried the options were endless.
After eating several bacalhau dishes, our favorite one was Bacalhau à brás, or stir fried cod fish and eggs.
We learned how to make it in Portugal and we’re excited for you to make it at home.
READ MORE: 10 Surprising Facts You Need to Know About Food in Portugal
Bacalhau a Bras – Stir Fried Cod Fish & Eggs
Bacalhau à Brás is one of Portugal’s most popular dishes with origins in Lisbon. It is said to have originated in the Bairro Alto neighborhood of Lisbon, by a tavern owner named Braz.
Due to the spelling of the name, the dish is also sometimes referred to as Bacalhau à Braz.
Bacalhau à Brás recipe is a simple cod fish recipe that you can easily make. It consists of shredded cod, fried string potatoes, and onions, all scrambled up with eggs.
Black olives and chopped parsley top off the dish at the end.
READ MORE: 5 Authentic Ways You Want to Eat Bacalhau in Portugal
How To Make Bacalhau a Bras at Home
While in Porto, Portugal, staying with locals through Airbnb, we started talking about local Portuguese food specialties.
Seeing our deep interest, Fátima, the housekeeper, taught us how to make bacalhau à brás, also her favorite Portuguese dish.
With a list of ingredients in hand from Fatima’s bacalhau a bras recipe, we were off to the grocery store.
Bacalhau a Bras Recipe – Shopping List
- Bacalhau
Dry salted cod fish is the foundation of this Portuguese dish. Order bacalhau salted codfish from Amazon and follow the de-salting instructions.
Instead of salted codfish which needs to be desalted, you can substitute with ready to cook codfish pieces.
- Potatoes
You can use russet potatoes, peeled and then cut into matchstick-size strips and then cooked. Alternatively, for ease and convenience you can also use already cooked matchstick (shoestring) potatoes.
- Tomatoes
- Onions
- Olives
- Portuguese Olive Oil
- Parsley
- Garlic
- Cheese (optional)
- Salt & Pepper to Taste
Bacalhau a Bras Preparation
You can have bacalhau a bras by itself or add a side salad to make it a complete meal. When we made it with Fátima, we enjoyed it with oven baked frozen french fries.
- Follow the instructions and soak salted bacalhau in water for 24 – 48 hours depending on size. Be sure to change water constantly during this time
- Cover the bottom of a wide saucepan with sliced tomatoes, garlic and onions.
- Cook until golden and then add cut up pieces of cod fish and drizzle with good quality Portuguese olive oil.
- On medium heat, let everything cook for about 20 minutes
- Once everything has cooked, add in already cooked shoestring potatoes and stir for a few minutes
- Add in lightly beaten eggs with salt and pepper to taste
- Stir everything together keeping the eggs soft and creamy
- Add a few olives, grated cheese (optional) and garnish with parsley
- Drizzle a little more of Portuguese olive oil before serving (optional)
- Transfer to a plate and serve hot
Bacalhau a Bras Cooking Tips
We learned that it is important to turn off the heat before the eggs solidify. This is to avoid the eggs fully cooking and becoming like an omelette.
One other tip we learned is to only mix in about half of the shoestring potatoes first. Then save the rest for near the end. This ensures a lovely crunchy texture in the final dish, avoiding the possibility of it becoming mushy.
This delightful meal is simple and easy to prepare. Enjoy it as the Portuguese do with a glass of Portuguese white wine.
Bacalhau a Bras
Bacalhau a bras is a tasty Portuguese traditional dish that is easy to make. It is packed with flavor and the ultimate comfort food.
Ingredients
- 400 g salted cod fish
- 500g shoestring potato sticks
- Or russet potatoes, 4, peeled and cut julienne
- 1 large onion, cut in thin circles
- 3 tomatoes, cut in thin slices
- 1 garlic clove
- 4 large eggs
- 50 grams of cheese (cow milk, optional)
- 1 cup of Portuguese olive oil
- 10 -15 pitted black olives
- Salt, pepper, parsley to taste
Instructions
- Prepare bacalhau or cod fish and cut it up into pieces
- In a deep pan heat about 4 tablespoons of olive oil and cook onions, tomatoes and garlic until golden.
- Add pieces of salt cod, and over medium heat cook everything for about 20 minutes
- Add the shoestring potatoes and stir while adding the lightly beaten eggs with salt and pepper.
- Stir for about 3 minutes, turning off the heat before the eggs solidify and become an omelette
- Add a few olives and grated cheese (optional) and drizzle a little bit of olive oil
- Transfer to a plate and serve hot with black olives and parsley
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 1200Total Fat: 74gSaturated Fat: 16gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 55gCholesterol: 250mgSodium: 5515mgCarbohydrates: 73gFiber: 6gSugar: 3gProtein: 65g
If you’ve had bacalhau before, please tell us in the comments below your favorite way of eating it.
When you make this recipe, take a pic and Tag @authenticfoodquest on Instagram (Or hashtag #authenticfoodquest ). We’d love to see what you cook up. Don’t forget to give a Star Rating on the recipe and let us know your comments.
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Rosemary, ex-marketing and advertising strategist, is a digital nomad and content creator at Authentic Food Quest. Since 2015, with her partner, Claire, they travel the world in search of the best local food experiences. Their mission is to help you enjoy the best local specialties on your travels or via recipes in your home kitchen. Favorite country for food: Peru. Favorite local dish: Bacalhau. Favorite way to keep fit: Running. Rosemary is the chief content writer and strategist on Authentic Food Quest. She is also co-author of Authentic Food Quest Argentina and Authentic Food Quest Peru, available on Amazon.
Hi! Welcome to Authentic Food Quest. We are Claire and Rosemary. Our goal is to help you explore local culture through food. As digital nomads, we travel to share authentic food recipes and food guides from around the world so you can savor them during your travels or in your home kitchen.
That fish dish does sound good and it is good to know you can get this here in the states. My son loves fish so i will try and make this for him soon.
Great to hear Melissa. Please do let us know what you son thought of the dish. Cheers.
Yummmmm! I was married to a Portuguese man for years and I miss the food so much! I’ll have to make this!
Awesome to hear Robin. Please do let us know how it turns out. Cheers.
I’ve never tried this before! It looks pretty tasty. I can bet my husband and kids would eat it. I don’t like seafood, sadly.
Ahhh, that’s too bad you don’t like seafood. Yes, try it for the rest of the family and see what they think. Cheers.
This looks like a really yummy dish to make. Looking forward to making this dish for my family. It looks really savory.
Great to hear Tasheena. Do let us know how it turns out. Cheers.
I love trying new foods and recipes! We would have to do this without the salt but otherwise looks good!
You are right, Heather, you can adjust the dish to meet your preferences. Let us know what you think. Cheers.
I love trying new dishes from other cultures. This recipe sounds delicious and looks easy enough. I’d love to give it a try!
Great to hear. Can’t wait to hear what you think about it. Cheers.
My first introduction into Bacula was in Vicenza, Italy. I was told it was their regional dish.I have only had it the way they make it and would love to try this recipe. ❤️
That’s interesting that bacalhau is the regional dish for Vicenza. We should swop recipes. Cheers.
While I haven’t tried this, I have seen this on some menus recently. Now I want to try it for myself.
It’s easy enough to make Terri. Give it a go and let us know what you think. Cheers.
I’ve never heard of this dish before. It sure does look amazing though. Now I want to try it.
I love to try new local dishes. I need to try this Portuguese dish.
I have never had Portuguese food before. This dish sounds amazing. I love all the main ingredients.
Great to hear Monica. Try it and let us know what you think. Cheers.
This sounds like such an interesting dish to prepare at home! I don’t think I’ve tried anything quite like it before, I must change that!
Sure looks like a delicious dish. I don’t know if I can get dried salted cod here, but I will still check. It is always nice to try a new dish every once in a while and this Portuguese cod fish recipe is a must try!
You’ll be surprised at the availability of Portuguese codfish. Look for it at international supermarkets. Worst case scenario, use fresh codfish instead. Do let us know what you think once you make it. Cheers.
My family loves to travel and our adventure will never complete without trying the local cuisine. Im asian any dried or salted fish is something i grow up with I bet I would love this dish.
So true, Farrah, traveling without tasting the local food is a missed opportunity. Do give this recipe a shot and let us know what you think. Thanks for stopping by.