Ixta Belfrage’s Bolinhos de Bacalhau with Tangerine Hot Sauce
As seen on Sunday Brunch on Channel 4, Ixta Belfrage's Brazilian bolinhos de bacalhau (salt cod fritters) are served with a fresh and punchy tangerine hot sauce.
Ingredients
| For the bolinhos de bacalhau: | |
| 240g | skinless and boneless cod fillets, cut into 5cm pieces |
| 3 tbsp | olive oil |
| 1 | onion, finely chopped (150g) |
| 1 | large baking potato, peeled and roughly grated 250g |
| 2 | garlic cloves, crushed |
| 1 | large egg, beaten |
| 1 tbsp | potato flour |
| 15g | chives, finely chopped |
| 5g | coriander, finely chopped |
| 1 tsp | lime zest |
| sunflower oil, for frying (about 600ml) | |
| flaked sea salt and black pepper | |
| For the tangerine dipping sauce: | |
| 15g | coriander stalks, finely chopped |
| 1 tbsp | lime juice |
| 2 tbsp | tangerine juice |
| 1 | small garlic clove, finely chopped |
| ½ | scotch bonnet, deseeded and finely chopped |
Essential kit
You will need: a food processor.
Method
Mix the cod pieces with 2 tablespoons of flaked sea salt and set aside to cure for 1 hour. Rinse the cod well under cold water to remove all the salt, then pat dry with kitchen paper. Transfer to a food processor and blitz until finely chopped, or chop by hand into ½ centimeter pieces.
Preheat the oven to 170C fan.
Heat the olive oil in a large, non-stick sauté pan on a medium-high heat and then add the onion, potato and garlic and fry for 12 minutes, stirring occasionally until soft and golden. Turn the heat down if the potato is sticking to the pan or getting too dark Add to a large bowl and set aside to cool slightly.
For the dipping sauce, add the coriander stalks to a small bowl with the lime juice, tangerine juice, garlic, scotch bonnet and a pinch of salt and set aside, to serve.
Add the cod, egg, flour, chives, coriander, lime zest and a good grind of pepper to the bowl with the cooled potato and combine to form a sticky mixture.
Pour enough sunflower oil into a medium saucepan to come about 6 centimetres up the sides, and place on a medium-high heat. Once hot, use 2 dinner spoons to form egg-sized quenelles of the mixture.
Carefully lower them into the oil- you should be able to do 3 or 4 at a time – and fry for about 4 minutes, turning throughout until golden-brown. Reduce the temperature, if they’re colouring too quickly. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the fritters to a parchment-lined tray while you continue with the rest. Transfer to the oven for 5 minutes.
Sprinkle with flaked salt and serve hot with the dipping sauce alongside.
Ixta Belfrage is the co-author of Ottolenghi FLAVOUR.
