I know what your thinking, this is a rather improbable food combination. Well it actually isn't! The Portuguese have been combining cured pork meats with fish for centuries. And while you may not know it, it is delicious. Like chouriço and scallops or the very famous pork and clams dish from Algarve called, Carne de Porco à Alentejana, the possibilities are endless. Morcela is Portuguese blood sausage. You can find it online or at any good Portuguese deli in London. If you can't source the salt cod, fresh cod works perfectly too. This dish came about as an experiment and turned into one of the most delicious risottos I have ever had. Do not skip the poached egg topping, once you break into it, stir it through the rice to make it even creamier. It is super easy and I have included a link to a great youtube video below.
I use Carnaroli rice for all my risottos. It really is the caviar of risotto rice. The grains cook up beautifully and hold their shape. Here's a little secret, this risotto was virtually no stir! Yup...no slaving over the pot, laboriously stirring. All the stock is added at once and I only came back to it a few times over 15-18 minutes, start to finish. At the end I added a knob of butter and stirred it in vigorously to get that perfect risotto creaminess.
Risotto de Bacalhau com Morcela e Feijão Branco❦Salt Cod Black Pudding Risotto with Cannellini Beans
Serves 4
25 minutes
Click on the link Perfect Poached Eggs
200 g. Salt cod, desalted and rehydrated*
175 g. Morcela, casing removed and crumbled
250 g. Carnaroli Rice
400 g. Cannellini Beans tinned/canned, undrained
750 ml. Chicken stock
150 ml. Dry white wine
60 ml. Extra virgin olive oil
60 ml. Red or white wine vinegar
1/4 tsp. Coarse sea salt
2 Echalion Shallots, (a cross between an onion and a shallot: sweeter than an onion, but less aromatic than a shallot), finely minced. If you can't find this variety, just use a medium white onion.
4 Cloves of garlic, minced
1 Bay leaf
1 Carrot, peeled and diced
1 Bunch of fresh coriander/cilantro to finish, finely chopped
2 tbsp. Butter, unsalted, divided
Salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste
Chilli infused olive oil to drizzle, optional
For the poached eggs:
4 Free range eggs, I only ever use these
1. In a shallow casserole pan heat the olive oil and 1 tbsp. of butter on a medium high heat. Add morcela, bay leaf and shallot. Fry until shallot is translucent and morcela is fragrant, about 3 minutes.
2. Add rice and stir to coat the grains. Let cook 1 minute, stirring every few seconds.
3. Add garlic, salt cod and wine. Pan will sizzle. Let wine evaporate completely. Stir.
4. Add hot chicken stock, carrots, and beans. Stir.
5. Cover pot and let rice cook for 18 mins. I gave it a stir every 6 minutes or so. Three times in total.
6. Meanwhile poach your eggs. Place poached eggs in a bowl of ice cold water to stop the cooking process. Just before topping each plate to serve, drop them in a pan of hot water for 1 minute to heat through.
7. Rice should be perfectly cooked. Adjust salt and add pepper to taste. Add remaining tablespoon of butter and stir vigorously on a low heat for about 1 minute. Stir in coriander.
8. Divide risotto among 4 deep bowls and top with poached egg. Drizzle each with a bit of chilli infused olive oil and some freshly cracked black pepper.