Easter is just a few days away, and dishes made with cod fish– such as this Fresh Cod with Onions, Garlic, Potatoes, and Broccolini (Bacalhau à Lagareira)– are a must at any Easter Brazilian table. This recipe is from Chef Leticia Morenos Schwartz, author of The Brazilian Kitchen and My Rio de Janeiro. If you’re looking for an easy, healthy, complete dish, this is it.
As Chef Leticia explains in her last cookbook My Rio de Janeiro, “Lagareiro is the Portuguese word for a person who owns an olive oil press, and indeed, olive oil is an important ingredient in this recipe. This recipe is incredibly simple, yet it delivers flavors in a brilliant way. At the restaurant Adegão Português, the recipe is prepared using salt cod, but here I make it with fresh cod since it is widely available in the United States. Every time I make this dish, without fail I am asked for the recipe. It is healthy and very easy to put together — everything can be prepared ahead of time and refrigerated for up to 2 days, with the dish assembled just before baking. “
Another advantage is that all the ingredients of this dish — fresh cod, new potatoes, onion, garlic, broccolini, extra virgin olive oil, white wine, salt, and pepper — are available at any local supermarket.
It is literally Easter made easy — and quite flavorful!
For more options, visit our Easter recipe index — which includes a delicious Codfish Shepherd’s Pie (Bacalhau a Zé do Pipo), as well as many Easter desserts such as Easter Chocolate Cake, Chocolate Braid, and cookies bars, among others.
As a Christian, I celebrate the resurrection of my Lord, Jesus Christ — and His gift of eternal life. If you do also — Happy Easter!!! If you don’t, I wish you a great time as well… may love and hope rise anew in your heart.
P.S.: Thank you to Chef Leticia for allowing us to feature her amazing recipe here. These gorgeous photos are from the talented photographer Kate Sears.
Cod with Onions, Garlic, Potatoes, and Broccolini (Bacalhau à Lagareira)
Ingredients
- 1½ pounds small new potatoes
- Kosher salt
- 1 pound broccolini thick lower stems removed
- 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 medium onions thinly sliced
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1¼ pounds fresh cod cut into 4 equal pieces
- 1/4 cup white wine water, or fish stock
- freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
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"Place the potatoes in a large heavy saucepan and cover with cold water by at least 1 inch. Add a large pinch of salt and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the potatoes are fork-tender, 12 to 15 minutes. Drain in a colander and spread onto a plate. When cool enough to handle, peel and quarter the potatoes. Set aside in a bowl.
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Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly coat a large shallow baking dish with cooking spray.
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Place broccolini in a steamer or pot fitted with a steaming basket over simmering water. Season with salt, cover the pot, and steam until stalks are just tender, about 5 minutes. Transfer the broccolini to a plate and set aside.
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Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large skillet over low heat, add the onions, and cook, stirring occasionally, with a wooden spoon, until softened and translucent, about 10 minutes. (resist the temperature to turn the heat to high, or onions will brown; the slower you cook the onions, the sweeter they get.) Transfer to the bowl with potatoes and toss together; season lightly with salt and pepper.
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In a small skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the remaining olive oil over low heat and add the garlic. Cook until it just starts to turn golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Immediately transfer to a plate lined with double thickness of paper towels.
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Arrange the potato-onion mixture on the bottom of the baking dish and place the broccolini on top.
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Season the cod with salt and pepper and arrange on top of the vegetables. Sprinkle the garlic on top, drizzle the remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil all over, and bake until fish is just cooked, 12 to 15 minutes.
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Remove the baking dish from the oven; spoon the cod onto warm plates and serve immediately."
Recipe Notes
FBTY NOTE: The author of the recipe omitted to mention the wine, water, or fish stock in the instructions. Since the ingredients are listed in their exact order of use, I believe the wine, water, or fish stock to be added on top of the cod right before it is seasoned with salt and pepper. Then, the cod is sprinkled with the cooked garlic on top, drizzled with the remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil all over, and baked. I also believe that once cod is baked and removed from the oven, extra freshly ground peeper can be sprinkled on top of the dish.
What a healthy, light, delicious sounding dinner! We all need more recipes like this!
This is my favourite fish at the same time it is deadly to me, I have that weird allergy to it and not on other fish or seafood. I love it but when I eat them I make sure I have antihistamine on the side.
So sorry you’re allergic to cod, Raymund!
Adore the make ahead plan for this tasty recipe. Some days prepping for dinner is next to impossible! All the great flavor and so many healthy ingredients in this recipe! Happy easter Denise!
Bravo to Chef Leticia for an old school, hearty and healthy recipe! And bravo to you Denise for introducing the dish to us and lettings us know of the Brazilian Easter customs!
We also have one day during Lent (the 25th of March) where fish is allowed and it’s usually fried cod with a garlic dip called skordalia. It’s amazing how many things are in common among different nations isn’t it?:)
And the quality of the olive oil (since this is a recipe with simple ingredients) does make all the difference. Living here we are blessed with affordable organic cold-pressed olive oil which smells amazing, especially the moment you start to heat it up. A smell like fresh olives dominates the air and makes you smile immediately.
Thank you for the yummy dish dear Denise!
Sending you lots of love,
xoxoxo
Thank you for taking time to read the post. Chef Leticia is a wonderful professional and makes delicious dishes. I wish we had access to such great olive oil as you guys have easily there in Greece. Wishing you both a very Happy Easter! xx
Wish the outrageous shipping costs were different, so we could send you a bottle of premium quality olive oil straight from a producer dear Denise! Perhaps it’ll change over time and we’ll be able to do so:)
Happy Easter dear! xoxoxo
Love cod! Such nice texture. And really like a dish like this that’s a complete meal in itself. This is brilliant — thanks.
Wine is listed but mentioned in recipe instructions?
It is true, Maria! I do apologize for that — although I typed exactly how the recipe was written in her cookbook. She missed to mention the wine, water, or fish stock in the instructions. Because this is copyrighted, I cannot fix the recipe itself.
But here is the note that I have just placed at the bottom of the recipe: “The author of the recipe omitted to mention the wine, water, or fish stock in the instructions. Since the ingredients are listed in their exact order of use, I believe the wine, water, or fish stock to be added on top of the cod right before it is seasoned with salt and pepper. Then, the cod is sprinkled with the cooked garlic on top, drizzled with the remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil all over, and baked. I also believe that once cod is baked and removed from the oven, extra freshly ground peeper can be sprinkled on top of the dish.” I hope this helps!
Thank you for stopping by and for letting me about this issue. Wishing you a very Happy Easter!
Lovely recipe as always! So much flavour, simple to make and looks fabulous. Ticks all the boxes. You just want to dig right in!
What a gorgeous dish, Denise! I love cod and am always looking for new ways to prepare it. And I love how all the ingredients come together in one dish. And your gorgeous photos are as tempting as ever! Hope you have a wonderful Easter.
So simple and delicious, I am pinning this for later.
Thank you for sharing it, Adina!