Baccalá salad along with eel may be the two most common and traditional dishes in the Christmas Eve fish dinner (Feast of the Seven Fishes). Unfortunately, both dishes have vanished from many Italian American kitchens. The younger generations have replaced the baccalá and the eel with things like shrimp and flounder. Baccalá salad merits more than a second look. Mixed with olives, capers, celery and dressed with lemon juice and olive oil, baccalá prepared this way not only satisfies the modern taste for a crisp and fresh salad but meets all the requirements of a nutritious and light food. A wonderful fusion approach to this salad is to serve it with pita bread. Another baccalá dish that merits a place at the Christmas Eve fish dinner is Sicilian cod fritters.

 For historical salted fish recipes consult Clifford A. Wrights “A Meditteranean Feast.” For a fascinating look at cod in world history Mark Kurlansky’s “Cod” is a work not only for cooks but for those interested world culture.

More Christmas Eve Fish Dinner Recipes

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Getting Started - What you need
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Equipment

Large bowl

Ingredients

Baccala' - salt cod, that has been soaked for three days
Olive oil
Lemon
Parsley
Capers
Celery
Olives
Marinated mushrooms
Marinated roast peppers
Other inclusions of your choice

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Boil the already soaked baccala'

Even though it has already been soaked for three days, the baccala' needs to be boiled for about 15 - 20 minutes.

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Hand crumble

When the baccala' has cooled, crumble it lightly. Do not crush it into mush.
You want nice chunks.

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Fold in the rest

In a good size bowl, fold in the other ingredients.
Turn them with a very liberal dose of olive oil and the juice of at least one lemon.
DO NOT SALT

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Baccalá Salad

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