Pimenton | culinary flights of fancy

Salt Cod combined with potatoes, onion, and parsley

Fritters are fried at 350 degrees in safflower oil. Use a thermometer to monitor the temperature of the oil.

Salt cod is a rare treat around here. In fact, I don’t think I had cooked with it since culinary school. Salt cod, as the name implies, is simply cod that has been heavily salted and dried. It can then be rehydrated and used in a number of dishes including traditional fritters from both Portugal and Spain. Another favorite is a salt cod and potato dip or sorts called brandade that is also extremely good. Anyway, you can find salt cod on the Internet available for order or I’m sure you can ask your local butcher shop to order it if you prefer to go that route. Either way, I would definitely recommend giving this a try at some point. It’s great for a Saturday night with the family or a few friends.

One thing of note: when frying, use a pan big enough to accommodate the amount of oil called for in the recipe while still having plenty of room left in the pan because the oil will bubble up. That’s a good thing. It’s a bad thing if it bubbles up and the pan isn’t big enough because it will bubble over and, best case, cause a mess and, worse, cause a really bad burn.

Another note and this is sort of a pain, but you have to plan ahead with this as the rehyrdation process involves soaking it for a 12-48 hours depending on just how salty it is. Plan on a full 48 hours just to be safe!

Pimenton is simply a smoked paprika from Spain. It really is something special and definitely worth getting. it imparts a really unique flavor that isn’t captured by other smoked paprikas. Of course, if you need to, feel free to substitute smoked paprika or regular paprika in the aioli. It will be tasty either way. Trust me, though…get the pimenton. You won’t be disappointed!

The recipe for the salt cod fritters can be found here.

The aioli can be made by making a basic mayonnaise. I used a whole egg and one egg yolk as the whole egg gives it a creaminess that is better suited for dips. Otherwise, it’s pretty straight forward. The recipe for the aioli follows after the jump… Continue reading →

I think I might have mentioned it here before but I can’t exactly remember. Of late, I have definitely enjoyed delving into cooking Spanish food and exploring that cuisine. My last recipe I did for Alternative Press, which I also posted here on the blog, featured a Spanish pepper stuffed with a white bean and fennel sofrito. The one spice featured in the sofrito was Pimenton, Spanish paprika. It can be sweet (Dulce, pictured above) or it can be spicy/hot (pictured below). The best Pimenton generally is “De La Vera” which comes from a specific region in Spain, so if you buy it, look for that on the label. I have a tin of sweet and a tin of spicy. They last quite a while as the spice is quite strong and pungent. I love it…it imparts a ton of flavor and color to anything I add it to. I’ve used it in everything from slow cooked beans to roasted chicken to simply adding a dash or two to veggies. I have looked high and low for Pimenton locally and have come up empty. So, my advice, if you are interested in buying some is to either look in NYC or order it on-line. Amazon sells it. There’s also a great little website called La Tienda, which features all sorts of Spanish specialty food items and recipes and they sell it as well. At any rate, you’ll have to do some digging beyond simply picking it up at the grocery store. However, in my opinion, it’s definitely worth the effort!

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