Recipe: Take a Dip with a Local Fish Brandade

It’s Local Fish Week here on the BAMCO blog, in honor of our first-ever Eat Local (Fish) Challenge!

According to a new report from NOAA, Americans eat only about 15 pounds of seafood per capita annually, and of that, 91% is imported. Time to tip the scales in a healthy, homeward location! We’ll be running a tasty seafood recipe each day this week from our chefs.

BrandadeLocal Fish Brandade

From David Anderson, Bon Appétit Management Company Executive Chef at Cisco Systems in San Jose, CA

Traditionally, brandade is made with salt cod that has been soaked overnight to temper the saltiness, then cooked and folded into a creamy, garlicky mashed-potato mixture and served with bread for dipping. This version substitutes sustainably caught Bay Area ling cod or halibut (both a robust-fleshed, white fish) for the main ingredient.

Serves 8

  • 1 lb. Ling Cod or Halibut filets
  • ½ cup white wine
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 2 shallots, minced
  • 6 cloves garlic, roasted
  • 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped
  • 12 ounces Yukon Gold potatoes
  • 4-10 tablespoons unsalted butter (depending on desired consistency*)
  • 3 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Roast the garlic. (One method: Preheat oven to 400. Rub cloves with olive oil and salt, drop all six into one well of a muffin tin and cover it with tinfoil, then roast for 30 minutes in oven or until tender. Cool slightly and slip off skins.)

Combine the wine, cream, shallots, garlic, and thyme in a heavy saucepan.  Bring to a gentle simmer and add the fish. Cover and poach the fish until it flakes apart.

While the fish is poaching, simmer the potatoes in salted water until fork-tender. Drain and rub the potatoes with a towel to remove the skins. Return to warm pot  and cover to keep hot.

When the fish is ready, carefully smash the garlic and fish with a potato masher or heavy wooden spoon. Pour the creamy fish mixture over the potatoes.

Combine in the same way as mashed potatoes, adding the butter and olive oil until you have a smooth mixture.

Season with salt and pepper and serve warm.

*More butter means a looser consistency, better for use as a dip with crostini. Using less butter, you can form the mixture into cakes and pan-fry as an appetizer or component of a finished entrée.