Bacalao a la Veracruzana (salted cod Veracruz style)
A traditional dish for Christmas dinner in México

INGREDIENTS

2 lbs. of dried and salted cod
2 tomatoes peeled, chopped without seeds
2 medium onions peeled, finely chopped Garlic finely chopped
5 oz. almonds chopped
Olive oil
Parsley finely chopped
Yellow chilies (chiles güeros "where-os")
Olives
cloves
Thyme

Preparation

A few days before Christmas Eve, you will need to soak cod in a large bowl of cold water for 6-8 hours, changing water several times. Drain and then soak the cod with cold water again, break cod apart into flakes while picking through to remove any skin and bones. Drain it again.

Put cod into a medium pot, cover with cold water, and boil over high heat until tender, about 5 minutes. Drain and set aside.

In a large clay pot heat oil with medium heat. Add the onions and garlic, tomatoes and half of the almonds while stirring often, do this for 10 minutes. In case it gets dry, then put a bit of the cod broth.

Add the 2 pounds of cod, increase heat to medium-high, and cook, breaking fish up further with a wooden spoon, until mixture begins to fry, this for 7-10 minutes. Add cloves, parsley and thyme and cook for 5 minutes. Add almonds and olives and cook until heated through, this will take about 1-2 minutes.

Remove the clay pot from heat and stir in the yellow chiles. Set aside to cool to room temperature before serving. Serve with bread.

Enjoy!