Ofnbakaður saltfiskur

Oven baked salt fish

One day I made saltfish casserole for dinner for us. Salt fish is an important part of Icelandic cuisine, as the aim is to preserve fresh fish for as long as possible - in earlier times it was vitally important for the people here in Iceland.

Salt fish are so-called “hard-salted fish products” made from beheaded and gutted fish. Fish with a salt content of over 20% in the fish tissue water are called “hard salted”. Salting basically does not change the structure and color of the fish or fish fillet, nor does it change the basic taste - but it becomes very salty to very, very salty. It is therefore important to water the fish thoroughly before preparing it or, if necessary, to soak it in water overnight.

Nowadays you can often buy “lightly salted” salt fish. Although it has a shorter shelf life than “real” salt fish, it is often sold frozen so that its shelf life is ensured. The "lightly salted" fish still tastes salty and no additional salt is necessary for the dish, but you can use the fish directly without having to spend any time watering it first. I also used lightly salted frozen fish for this fish casserole.

Ingredients for 4 persons

500 g cooked salt fish

2 stalks of leeks

3 carrots

1 small cauliflower

2 Tbsp butter

3 Tbsp flour

200 ml milk

200 ml vegetable broth

2 eggs

1 pinch of pepper

1 pinch of ground nutmeg

2 Tbsp brauðmylsna / breadcrumbs

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 350 °F (180 °C) upper/lower heat.

Wash, clean, chop the vegetables...

... and place in boiling salted water for about 5 minutes.

Melt the butter in a saucepan, add the flour and stir, then add the vegetable stock in portions and then the milk and bring to the boil, stirring constantly, until a thick sauce forms.

Season with pepper and nutmeg.

Separate the eggs.

Add the egg yolks to the sauce and stir.

Beat the egg white until stiff and carefully fold it into the sauce.

Mince the fish.

Place the vegetables and fish in a greased, ovenproof dish...

...add the sauce...

... and mix everything thoroughly.

Sprinkle with the breadcrumbs and bake in a preheated oven at 350 °F (180 °C) for about 40 minutes.

Then serve with fresh salad, potatoes and/or Rúgbrauð.

[Translated from here.]