Cod Fish with cream sauce from Norway

Cod fish is flaky and good poached, steamed, broiled, baked, grilled or even fried. Norway exports large amounts of fresh as well as salted and dried (Baccalao) cod fish throughout Europe, America and Asia. It’s becoming increasingly popular, due to its mild flavour, low fat content and its dense, flaky white flesh. Traditionally, it is served with lemon wedges and a light sauce composed of parsley or you can easily add it to stews, risottos and soups. One simple pan-fried recipe calls for lightly frying the cod in oil and serving it with a creamy mix of potatoes, green onions and butter.
Learning how to cook it the Norwegian way is simple, especially if you have an expert guiding you the first time. We have one in my sisters’ family, and when he made the most wonderful cod fish dish the other day, I was there through the whole process and of course had my Nokia mobile phone to document the process. So sit in with us and enjoy the table setting while I tell the story – next Sunday, it’s your turn you know ; -)

Boiled or poached fresh Cod:
The best thing is of course to fish it yourself and bring it right to the kitchen, but if you have to buy it, make sure it is rinsed for an hour or so in fresh water. This makes it whiter and firmer when boiled. Have water in a pot with plenty of salt (4 palm of salt in this one) and don’t put the cod in before the water comes to full boil – some bay leaf is nice in the water too (click pick to bigify & enjoy):

No matter how you decide to prepare your fish by poaching, broiling, grilling, stewing, etc; make sure not to overcook it – think 8-10 minutes per inch of thickness.

Butter sauce is the top of the cream:
One of our chef’s speciality is this sauce called Sandefjorsmør (named after the city Sandefjord) It combines butter and cream with parsley and lemon. Simple to make, but makes all the difference. Melt (for 6 persons) ½ Kg butter and add ¾ litre of cream. Don’t boil to hard, just let it simmer for almost an hour:

Crumbled bacon is a must:
To add a bit of an extra flavour taste to the fish cuisine add crumbled bacon – sliced and fried, as simple as can be & just before you are ready to serve; you add the lemon to the sauce:

Cod fish is readily available all year long. It is also extremely healthy-being both low in fat and high in protein. Cod fish goes well with creamy sauces and fragrant pottages.

It has been said that cod has mattered more in human history than any other fish and since readily available all year long, why don’t you give it a try soon. I mean Cod fish is extremely versatile and healthy and now, since you’ve learnt how to cook it; the sky is the limit – so why not incorporate it into your diet for a healthier lifestyle?

If not convinced after learning how easy it is – ohh I forgot: add some veggies to the recipe (my favourite is carrots and broccoli) – maybe you can’t resist after seeing the final result: