flipDried Salt Cod Malouin Style, with Vinegar and Onion
Dried Salt Cod Malouin Style, with Vinegar and Onion
Why this dish? Even before Cartier's voyages, Breton and Malouin fishermen already frequented the Newfoundland banks for cod. Salting-drying of cod is the emblematic maritime technique of Saint-Malo, which made possible the long campaigns off Canada.
Salt cod, dried, then rehydrated and served shredded with raw onion, vinegar, and a dash of oil. A simple, tangy, iodized preserved dish that traveled in the holds and was rehydrated upon arrival.
You see, in Saint-Malo, there is no sailor who does not know cod: we catch it on the great banks, split it, salt it, and dry it in the salt wind until it is hard as a plank. To eat it, you must soak it in several waters, then shred it into fine filaments. With a little raw onion, vinegar, and oil, here is a dish that revives the weary sailor. It is the silver of the sea, my friend: it keeps for a whole year.
- •Salt cod, dried — a nice fillet (central ingredient)
- •Atlantic salt — for preservation (salting)
- •Onion — one (raw bite)
- •Cider vinegar — a dash (acidity)
- •Oil — a drizzle (binder)
Dried Salt Cod Malouin Style, with Vinegar and Onion
Salt cod, dried, then rehydrated and served shredded with raw onion, vinegar, and a dash of oil. A simple, tangy, iodized preserved dish that traveled in the holds and was rehydrated upon arrival.
Why this dish? Even before Cartier's voyages, Breton and Malouin fishermen already frequented the Newfoundland banks for cod. Salting-drying of cod is the emblematic maritime technique of Saint-Malo, which made possible the long campaigns off Canada.
You see, in Saint-Malo, there is no sailor who does not know cod: we catch it on the great banks, split it, salt it, and dry it in the salt wind until it is hard as a plank. To eat it, you must soak it in several waters, then shred it into fine filaments. With a little raw onion, vinegar, and oil, here is a dish that revives the weary sailor. It is the silver of the sea, my friend: it keeps for a whole year.
Ingredients (period version)
- Salt cod, dried — a nice fillet (central ingredient)
- Atlantic salt — for preservation (salting)
- Onion — one (raw bite)
- Cider vinegar — a dash (acidity)
- Oil — a drizzle (binder)
Ingredients
- Dried salt cod — 400 g (central ingredient)
- Red or white onion — 1, finely sliced (raw bite)
- Cider vinegar — 2 tbsp (acidity)
- Olive or rapeseed oil — 4 tbsp (binder)
- Flat-leaf parsley — a few sprigs (freshness)
- Black pepper — to taste (spice (imported, common among sailors))
Method
- Desalt the cod for 24 to 36 hours in the refrigerator in a large volume of cold water, changing the water 4 to 5 times.
- Poach it for 8 to 10 minutes in simmering water (do not boil), then drain and let cool slightly.
- Remove skin and bones, then flake the flesh into coarse shreds.
- Mix with the sliced onion, vinegar, oil, and parsley.
- Season with pepper, taste, and let rest for 30 minutes in the refrigerator before serving to allow flavors to meld.
How it was made : Two methods coexisted: 'green' cod (salted on board, moist) and 'dry' cod (salted then dried on land on racks, in the wind). Dry cod, lighter, kept for months and fed crews and coastal populations. Saint-Malo made it one of the pillars of its prosperity.
The contemporary twist : Served as a quenelle on a thin slice of grilled rye bread, Nordic-style tartine, with a few capers.
Jacques Cartier · Charactorium
