Cod meatballs with almond sauce, a vigil recipe
Total: 55 min Diners: 4
For all those who, whether religious or not, dream of all those typical recipes of the vigil season in Spain of which we keep such good memories, today we bring a preparation that is a little out of the ordinary: cod meatballs in almond sauce. This is an elaboration that, most likely, you have never prepared before, but that you will love and will make you leave the typical recurring dishes of these dates.
They are like small and juicy heavenly morsels that explode in your mouth and fill it with flavor and an exquisite almond sauce. Weird? Not at all, there are not only meatballs from Ikea or with tomato sauce, but also vegan or, as in this case, fish. They are a dish that, in all its forms, everyone likes because it usually brings back beautiful childhood memories and because they often involve the use of a good amount of bread to dip in the sauce (well, some people even make sandwiches).
The seasoning for cod meatballs is the same or similar to what would be a good and juicy grandmother’s meatballs: garlic, parsley, egg and a piece of bread soaked in milk. Then, and from here on, the field is wide. Anything goes, although we have opted for a sauce of onion and almonds that make the dish a real treat, literally.
Fish meatballs are not just limited to Lent and cod, but are an ideal way to take advantage of the pieces of meat that remain between the bones of a large fish (even if you are a real samurai of the knife, it is impossible to scrape everything) or the pieces that we do not really know what to do with them.
Another ideal recipe to succeed at Easter and leave everyone speechless with this spectacular dish that can be ready in less than 30 minutes. As the only tip to know is that if we see that the fish dough is too liquid (the fish releases water), it can become denser with a little breadcrumbs or by adding, as strange as it may seem, only half an egg (just the yolk for example).
How to make cod meatballs in almond sauce
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Ingredients
For the meatballs<
Sliced bread, 1 slice Milk, 50 ml Chopped parsley, 2 tablespoons Country egg, 1 pc Breadcrumbs, 1 tablespoon Desalted cod crumbs, 300 g Garlic cloves, 1 pc Flour, 250 g Olive oil for frying, abundant
For the sauce
For the sauce
. Sliced bread, 2 slices Garlic cloves, 2 pc Onion, 1 pc Toasted almonds, 60 g White wine, 1/2 glass Fish stock, 400 ml Salt, c/s Ground black pepper, 1/4 tsp Olive oil, 4 tbsp
Step 1
Soak the sliced bread in the milk for a couple of minutes
Step 2
In a food processor (if not available, it can be done directly with a knife by chopping all the ingredients very well) arrange the desalted cod, the bread soaked in milk, the parsley, 1 clove of garlic, 1 egg and a tablespoon of breadcrumbs. Process until it becomes a homogeneous and malleable mixture. (Be careful with the salt; do not forget that this is desalted cod)
Step 3
Shape the meatballs in the size you like, dredge in flour (shake off the excess) and fry in plenty of very, very hot oil. Do not touch until they are golden brown on the outside. This is the key, that they are very golden on the outside and very juicy inside. Remove to absorbent paper.
Step 4
In a frying pan, pour a little oil and, over low heat, toast the bread very well on both sides. Set aside.
Step 5
Peel and chop one onion and the remaining three cloves of garlic. Sauté in a pan with a little oil and a pinch of salt for 5 – 8 minutes. We want it to brown, not slowly poach.
Step 6
While the garlic and onion are cooking, add the diced bread and almonds to a food processor. Grind very well until everything is a powder.
Step 7
Once the onion and garlic are golden brown, turn up the heat and add the almond and bread mixture. Stir well and pour in the white wine. Evaporate the alcohol and pour in the fish stock. Cook for a couple of minutes.
Step 8
Crush the sauce, season with salt, add pepper and pour it into another tall, narrow saucepan so that it covers the meatballs completely. Turn the heat to the minimum and add the meatballs. Mix stirring the saucepan and never using a spoon to avoid breaking the meatballs.