Bacalhau is The Portuguese word for codfish, but in Portuguese cooking this means dried and salted cod, which is usually soaked in milk or water before cooking. The Portuguese have been eating it since the 16th century when their fishing boats brought it back from Newfoundland. It’s so popular that bacalhau has earned the nickname fiel amigo or ‘faithful friend’, the locals sing about it in folk songs, and it’s become the national dish of Portugal. Most people in Portugal eat it in some form at least once a week. Each region has its own version; some say there are 365 different recipes, one for every day of the year, while others say there are more than a thousand different ways to cook it. Here are just a few of them: baked with cream (bacalhau com natas),cooked with potatoes.
