Esperanza, my mother’s housekeeper in Mexico City, came from a village in the Guadalajara region, where there was a tradition of eating the Catholic fasting food on the Day of the Dead.
Ingredients
1lb/450gsalt cod, soaked and cleaned, skinned and deboned
Choose middle-cut salt-cod and give it no more than 18 hours soaking, or you’ll lose all the flavor. If it is still too tough to flake, simmer in water for 5 minutes first. Heat 4 tablespoons of the oil in a heavy pan, and add the chopped onion (reserving the sliced) and garlic. Allow to gild lightly before adding the red pepper, chili, and tomatoes. Bubble gently for 20