Hi everyone, today I’m making a Portuguese Christmas dish in my own twist. Let’s try something new this Christmas. This is a perfect meal to share with your friends and family and is easy to prepare.
Cooking and preparation time: 1h20 minutes
Serves: 4
Ingredients:
To Roast Potatoes:
800g small potatoes
1.5 tsp salt
1 tbsp olive oil
To Roast Cod Fillets:
2 large fillets (850g) of cod
2 medium onions, circular slices
4 garlic cloves, crushed
5 stems of parsley
Black pepper to taste
0.5 tsp smoked paprika
100ml olive oil
To Stir-fry Turnip Greens / Grelos de Nabo:
400g Turnip greens
1.5 liters of water
0.5 tsp of sea salt
150g Presunto
4 cloves of garlic, crushed
A few pinches of sweet paprika and chili flakes
0.5 tbsp olive oil
To Stir-fry Prawn:
12 to 13 Tiger Prawn
4 to 5 Shallots, thinly sliced
Handful of garlic, crushed
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp butter
Salt to taste
A few pinches of paprika & chili flakes
1 tsp lime or lemon juice.
Instructions:
First, start with roasting potatoes. On a tray, put 800g small potatoes, 1.5 tsp salt & 1 tbsp olive oil. Coat the potatoes very well. Roast them in the preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes at 180°C or until the potatoes are cooked well.
Now, prepare to roast the cod fillets. Cut across the 2 medium onions to make large circular slices. Crush 4 garlic cloves. In an oven dish, place half of the sliced onion, parsley, garlic, a generous amount of black pepper, a few pinches of smoked paprika, and place the cod fillets. Repeat the rest of the spices and the aromatic and generous amount of olive oil then in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes at 180°C.
Grelos de nabo / Turnip greens. Find the soft ones and trim them around 400g. Boil 1.5 liters of water with 0.5 tsp of sea salt. Place all the prepared greens & boil for 5 to 6 minutes. Remove & transfer in the iced water which stops overcooking.
Now, chop up 150g of presunto and crush 4 cloves of garlic to stir fry greens and thinly slice 4 to 5 shallots then crush a handful of garlic again to stir fry Prawn and reserve it.
By this time potatoes are done. Remove them from the oven. Smash them while they're hot & reserve them. Strain the water from the greens. Remove the excess water and reserve it.
Tiger prawns. Remove the head & the shell of the prawns, devein the prawns and set aside. By this time the cod is cooked perfectly, remove it from the oven and reserve it.
Now, stir fry the greens. Heat a pan on high heat. Add 0.5 tbsp olive oil. Put smashed garlic and the presunto. Fry them for a minute & add a few pinches of sweet paprika & chili flakes. The presunto is already salty so no need to add salt. Now, fry it stirring until the presunto becomes slightly crispy and add in the greens. Combine them well evenly on high heat. Ensure that the excess sauce dries and the dish is done, set aside.
Finally, stir fry the prawns. Heat a pan, add 2 tbsp olive oil & the same amount of butter. Add the sliced shallots and the crusted garlic. Fry it until it's lightly golden. Add the prawns and stir well. Add in a few pinches of salt, paprika & chili flakes. Stir well & cook it for 3 minutes. Sprinkle some lime or lemon juice. Combine it well again and the dish is ready.
Now all the dishes are ready, let's dish out: In a large serving plate, first put the roasted potatoes. Then the roasted onions from the roasted cod along with some sauce. Which gives a lot of flavors to the potatoes. Next, the layer of stir fry presunto & the greens. And the roasted cod fillets. Finally, the stir fry prawn over the cod with all the sauce. It looks amazing. Bring this layer of flavors to your dining table and enjoy it with your family and friends as a Christmas or New Year meal. This is a Portuguese dish that has been eaten over the years but I made it rather, especially adding the prawns to enjoy on special occasions. Oh, by the way, I made it a bit spicy for my palate, where in Portugal this dish is not spicy yet, so the chili flakes are optional.
