Name: Morue à la Provençale (Gratin of Salt Cod)
Yield: 4
Cuisine: France
Ingredients: 1 large red pepper, cored & sliced; 6 leeks, trimmed & sliced lengthwise; 1 clove garlic, finely chopped; 2 shallots, finely chopped; 2-3 tbsp/30-45 ml olive oil; 1 lb/500 g (before soaking) dried salt cod; fine breadcrumbs; 1 lemon, peeled & finely sliced; freshly ground black pepper; 3 tbsp/45 ml chopped fresh parsley

Preparation info

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

A Table in Provence

By Leslie Forbes

Published 1987

About

Brandade de morue, with its high proportion of oil & milk (about 8 fl oz/¼ litre oil & 8 fl oz/¼ litre milk beaten in to every 2 lb/1 kg of salt cod), can sit heavily on uninitiated stomachs. This 19th century dish of cod gratinéd with fresh lemon & sweet red pepper is a lighter alternative.

Ingredients

1 lb/500 g (before soaking) dried salt cod
6 leeks, trimmed & sliced lengthwise

Method

First prepare salt cod: soak it in cold water (changing the water frequently) for 24-36 hrs. Drain, cover with more cold water and cook briskly below boiling point-salt cod must never boil-for 8-10 mins, until just tender. (This is the point when the cod would be used for Aïoli or Brandade.) Preheat the oven to 175°C