Loretta Sebastiani

Loretta Sebastiani
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Cod in sauce, agghiotta-style
( Baccalà agghiotta )

Typical recipe of Sicily

Cod in sauce, agghiotta-style is a typical preparation of Messina in Sicily. Agghiotta is a Sicilian word used in Italy to indicate a fish preparation. Rarely this word is used for vegetable recipes. Some fishermen call their fish soup agghiotta in particular coastal areas of Sicily. Practically, fish is cooked in tomato sauce enriched with onions, celery, green olives and capers. The most famous fish cooked in this way is swordfish. Swordfish, agghiotta-style is a very tasty recipe. Simplicity and goodness is the combination of Italian cuisine, right? Mediterranean diet recipe.

difficulty: easy

time: about 1 hour 40 minutes

calories: 365 (kCal)

Cod in sauce, Sicilian recipe. The image shows cod pieces in tomato sauce enriched with green olives, capers, pini nuts, sultanas, potatoes

Ingredients / Serves 4

  • 500g (1.1 pound) salt-dried cod
  • 100g (3 1/2 ounces) onion, finely chopped
  • 50g (1 3/4 ounce) celery stalk, chopped
  • 300g (10 1/2 ounces) ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
  • 300g (10 1/2 ounces) potatoes, peeled and cubed
  • 50g (1 3/4 ounce) stoned green olives, sliced
  • 20g (3/4 ounce) pine nuts
  • 20g (3/4 ounce) sultanas
  • 20g (3/4 ounce) capers in vinegar
  • 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • Salt
  • Pepper, if liked
Difficulty:
easy recipe
Time:
preparation: 20 minutes
plus soaking time for sultanas
cooking: 80 minutes
total: about 1 hour 40 minutes
How many calories in a serving?
Calories: 365 (kcal) 19 % - 1528 (kJ)
Protein: 31.8 (g) 64 % GDA
Total fat: 18.1 (g) 26 % GDA
Total carbohydrate: 20.1 (g) 8 % GDA
Sugars: 9.0 (g) 10 % GDA

Download free PDF version (334 download).

Recipe for salt cod in sauce, Sicily-style

Preparation and cooking

  • - Soak salt cod.
    Put salt cod in a bowl and cover with cold water.
    Chill for two days changing water often (at least every 8 hours).
    At this point drain salt cod and pat dry with abosrbent kitchen paper to absorb its water in excess.
    Cut salt cod into pieces.
  • - Prepare tomato sauce.
    Soak raisins in warm water for at least 20 minutes.
    Prepare a baking pan.
    Brown onion and celery in olive oil on low heat.
    Add tomatoes and stir to flavor.
    At this point add olives, pine nuts, capers, raisins (well squeezed from their soaking water) and cod pieces.
  • - The last step: baking salt cod.
    Preheat oven to 160°C (325°F).
    Meanwhile bring salt cod in sauce to a boil.
    Peel and cut potatoes.
    At this point add potatoes too.
    Season to taste with salt (only if necessary) and pepper.
    Stir carefully and with delicacy.
    Transfer salt cod into the oven and bake for about an hour.
    Increase to 180°C (350°F) in the last 15 minutes.

Just before serving

  • - Serve salt cod in sauce warm.

Note

Tips

  • - If you have no ripe tomatoes use canned whole peeled tomatoes.
  • - You can also use capers in salt.
  • - Remember: salt-dried cod or salt cod in Italy is called baccalà. Don't confuse it with unsalted-dried cod, stoccafisso in Italian.

Menu planning

  • - Accompany salt cod in sauce with boiled seasonal vegetables or serve a vegetable soup before.

Useful links for this recipe

Loretta

What's the right wine for " Cod in sauce, agghiotta-style "?

Match a red wine with low alcohol content, not aged, slightly tannic and velvety, for example Freisa d'Asti (Piedmont wine) or a wine from Sicily with the same features.