Cremige Lagunencreme: Mantecato von Kabeljau auf Polenta-Crostini

La storia di questo piatto

Den Namen „Crema di laguna“ kennt keine überlieferte Tradition – er ist eine Neudeutung, die sich vor der Lagune verneigt, ohne ihr ein altes Rezept zuzuschreiben. Baccalà mantecato und Polenta gehören seit Langem zur venetischen Küche; hier finden sie sich zu einem kleinen Gericht zusammen, das ich als Interpretation erzähle, nicht als Erbe.

Ingredienti

• 450 g soaked and desalted salt cod (skin-on fillets)
• 600 ml cold water for cooking the cod (150 ml set aside for the mantecato)
• 1 piece bay leaf
• 100 ml mild extra virgin olive oil for the mantecato
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 piece untreated lemon (half for the mantecato, half to finish)
• 10 g fresh parsley (7 g in the mantecato, 3 g to finish)
• 2 pinch ground white pepper (1 pinch in the mantecato, 1 to finish)
• 1 pinch fine salt for the mantecato (only if needed, after tasting)
• 125 g coarse yellow cornmeal (bramata) for the polenta
• 500 ml water for the polenta
• 5 g fine salt for the polenta
• 4 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil for frying the croutons (2 tablespoons per batch)
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, raw, to finish

Preparazione

1. Start with the polenta, since it needs time to firm up. Bring the 500 ml of water to a boil with 5 g of fine salt: this is where you season it, because cornmeal salted afterwards never tastes quite the same. Rain the 125 g of coarse cornmeal into the water with one hand while whisking with the other: this is the gesture that keeps lumps away. Lower the heat and stir with a wooden spoon for 35-40 minutes, until the polenta pulls away from the sides of the pot and the spoon leaves a groove that holds. If you start from dried salt cod, remember it must soak 48 hours in cold water, changed every 8-12 hours; here we use the ready-prepared one.
2. Pour the hot polenta onto a board or into a baking tray rinsed with cold water: the water prevents it from sticking. Spread it with a wet spatula into a rectangle about 15 x 20 cm and roughly 2 cm thick. Then let it rest for 60 minutes, until it is cold all the way through: only then does it become firm, cut cleanly, and form a crisp crust in the pan. If you touch it and still feel a hint of warmth, give it more time. Meanwhile, prepare the flavored oil and the cod (steps 3-7).
3. While the polenta rests, prepare the oil: in a small saucepan warm the 100 ml of mild extra virgin olive oil with the crushed garlic clove over very low heat for about 4 minutes. You'll know it's time to stop when the oil smells of garlic but the garlic hasn't taken on color. Remove the garlic and let the oil cool slightly while you cook the cod: if it's too hot it will cook the fish and break the emulsion, if too cold it won't bind. It should be lukewarm, like something you'd rest on your wrist.
4. Place the cod in a saucepan with the 600 ml of cold water and the bay leaf, skin side down. Bring it almost to a boil and, as soon as the first tremors appear on the surface, lower the heat and cook for 10 minutes. A strong boil would toughen the flesh, so the water should barely simmer. The fish is ready when the flesh flakes into large pearly flakes at the sides of the fork. Do not salt the water: the cod already brings its own salt.
5. Drain the cod and set aside 150 ml of its cooking liquid in a small saucepan: the gelatin released from the skin and flesh will help the emulsion of the mantecato. If it has cooled in the meantime, warm it gently until lukewarm. Work the fish while it is still lukewarm, because when cold the flesh hardens and is difficult to work. Remove the skin and bones with your fingers, flaking the flesh into a wide bowl. Run your fingertips calmly over all the flesh: the fine bones are felt more than they are seen.
6. Now comes the best part: the mantecatura. Work the cod with a wooden spoon, pressing it against the sides of the bowl, or use the paddle attachment of a stand mixer at medium speed. Pour in the 100 ml of lukewarm oil in a very thin stream, alternating with spoonfuls of the lukewarm cooking liquid set aside (up to 150 ml, as much as the mixture absorbs), and always stir in the same direction for 8-10 minutes. Add each spoonful only once the previous one has been absorbed. The right sign is a white, fluffy, creamy mixture like freshly whipped cream, that holds its shape on the spoon. If it becomes oily and separates, don't worry: add a spoonful of lukewarm liquid and keep stirring patiently.
7. Flavor the mantecato with the grated zest of half the lemon (only the yellow part, the white is bitter), a teaspoon of juice squeezed from that same half, 1 pinch of ground white pepper, and 7 g of finely chopped parsley. Set aside the other half of the lemon for the final step. Then taste, always. If needed, add up to 1 pinch of fine salt, but carefully, since the cod is already salty. The lemon should be barely noticeable: its job is to lighten the richness of the oil and bring out the flavor of the fish. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 90 °C: it will keep the croutons warm.
8. When the polenta is completely cold, cut it into 12 rectangles of about 5 x 5 cm (3 rows of 4). Heat 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil in a nonstick pan over medium heat and fry 6 croutons for 3-4 minutes per side; transfer them to a baking tray in the 90 °C oven to keep warm, then repeat with another 2 tablespoons of oil and the remaining 6 croutons, for 4 tablespoons in total. The trick is not to touch or move them: leave them until a golden crust forms and you hear the slight crackle when you nudge them with the spatula. Drain on kitchen paper before returning them to the oven.
9. Now assemble: 4 servings of 3 croutons each. On the still-warm croutons place a quenelle, that is a generous, well-rounded spoonful, of mantecato at room temperature. The contrast between warm and cool, crisp and creamy is the heart of this dish. Finish with 1 tablespoon of raw extra virgin olive oil drizzled over the 12 croutons, 1 pinch of white pepper, and the leaves from the remaining 3 g of parsley. Before serving, taste one crouton: if it lacks brightness, squeeze a few drops from the other half of the lemon; if it lacks flavor, a touch of salt on the edge of the crouton.