As we don't want traditions to be lost, today Luisa (author of Cocinando con mi Carmela) brings us the recipe for potaje de vigilia, a dish traditionally served on Good Friday and which, with the cold that still accompanies us this year, you'll surely appreciate having piping hot. Enjoy!
With Holy Week approaching we can't help thinking about the typical recipes that have always accompanied us at home during these dates. Among them, potaje de vigilia, which many of you will know as chickpea and cod stew.
To make the recipe you'll need salted cod, so it's best to plan to soak it a day before (and remember to change the water).
As for the chickpeas, of course you can cook them at home and make a 100% homemade recipe. Even so, if you want to use pre-cooked chickpeas (we all know how busy we are), I recommend buying good quality ones and rinsing them well before adding them to the stew.
You may remember this recipe with another magical ingredient, spinach. You won't be wrong if you want to include it in the ingredient list. Also note that many times the stew is made with an initial sauté of onion and garlic. My version is quicker but I assure you it is very tasty!
I can't finish without mentioning that this kind of recipe is well worth making in an iron pot: they retain heat very well and you're using a 100% natural material. All this lets you lower the heat and let the simmering do its work for a good while, worry-free and with a great flavor result! Happy Holy Week!
Cocotte redonda Evolution Le Creuset and Seigaiha porcelain bowls by Tokyo Design Studio.
Ingredients
- 500gr chickpeas, you can also use them cooked
- 400gr desalinated cod
- 1 onion
- 2 green peppers
- 1 head of garlic
- 2 red tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
- 1 pinch hot paprika (optional)
- 1/2 glass of extra virgin olive oil
- Salt
- 750-800ml water approx.
Preparation
- Soak the cod, along with the chickpeas*, for approximately 24 hours, changing the water every 8 hours.
- The next day, in a casserole put all the ingredients and cover with the water, everything must be covered: add the oil, the chickpeas, the flaked cod, the chopped tomatoes, the chopped peppers, add the paprika (if you want, in addition to the sweet you can add a bit of the hot); finally, the whole head of garlic. Salt carefully since the cod already adds some salt.
- Let cook about 30 minutes if using cooked chickpeas or 1 1/2 hours if using soaked chickpeas.
- After that time, remove from heat and let rest until serving time.
These stews are much better the next day, because the flavors have settled. Thus, it's a great dish to prepare in advance.
Seigaiha porcelain bowl by Tokyo Design Studio
Tips
- If using cooked chickpeas, we won't soak them in step 1, and we'll add them directly to the casserole along with the rest of the ingredients (in step 2).
- When cooking is finished, remove a few chickpeas, put them in a glass and blend with a little cooking broth. Add this purée so the stew thickens.
- It can be frozen without problems.
Comments
Elena said:
Hoy pruebo a vuestra manera; yo le solía hacer un sofrito, pero creo que así resultará más magro; menos “grasiento”. Eso sí: yo el bacalao y las espinacas se los pongo en el último momento. A ver si algún día puedo hacerlo en una cocotte tan maravillosa como la de la foto!!
Claudia said:
Ya nos cuenta qué tal sale, Yvette! :) Saludos!
Yvette said:
Tengo ganas de probar esta versión con bacalao. Teresa, qué buena opción la que cuentas. :-)
Claudia said:
Hola Teresa, tu modo de hacer potaje es un clásico también y tiene que resultar muy sabroso!! La versión de Luisa la verdad es que es muy rápida y si la pruebas verás que queda estupenda también. Ya nos cuentas!! Saludos!
Teresa said:
Facilísima la receta, la probaré. Yo hago un sofrito con pimentón cuando ya está todo cocido, y añado una yema de huevo cocido machacada con una rebanada de pan frito, despues pico la clara del huevo y tambien se la añado. Un saludo.