Esqueixada
Photo: diluvi · CC BY 2.0

History

Esqueixada (Catalan for 'torn') belongs to the wider Mediterranean cooking-without-fire summer tradition: the salt-cod is desalted in cold water for 24 hours, then shredded by hand rather than knifed. The dish belongs to the inland Catalan kitchens where salt-preserved bacallà was the working-class fish; Barcelona refined it into a sit-down summer starter by the 1900s. The canonical version layers shredded cod over halved cherry tomatoes, ribbons of sweet white onion, oil-cured black olives, and a few drops of olive oil and Pedro Ximenez vinegar. Casa Amalia and Can Vilaro both run the textbook plate; modern Catalan rooms like Mont Bar plate it with heirloom tomatoes.

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Common allergens: Fish

Make it at home

Yield 4Hands-on 15 minTotal PT25M (after 24h desalting)Difficulty Easy

Ingredients

  • 300g salt cod (bacallà), thick centre cut, desalted in cold water for 24 hours, water changed 4 times
  • 400g ripe cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 1 sweet white onion, very thinly sliced
  • 80g oil-cured black olives, pitted
  • 8 tbsp Catalan extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 tbsp red wine or Pedro Ximenez vinegar
  • Salt and pepper
  • Country bread to serve

Method

  1. Drain the desalted cod and pat dry. Remove skin and bones; shred the flesh by hand into thin strands.
  2. Layer the cod, tomatoes, sliced onion and olives in a flat serving bowl.
  3. Whisk the olive oil with the vinegar, salt and pepper. Pour over the salad.
  4. Toss very gently to combine. Rest 10 minutes for the flavours to settle. Serve with bread.

Tip from the editors. Salt cod must be desalted for at least 24 hours; under-desalted cod ruins the dish. Buy desalted cod fresh from the Boqueria if you can.

Where to eat esqueixada

Esqueixada in Barcelona

Casa Amalia ★ 4.2

€€ Catalan ClassicEixample

Casa Amalia in Barcelona's Eixample is a 1950s neighbourhood dining room where bacallà a la llauna and esqueixada sit on the carte every weekday lunch.

OrderThe esqueixada starter and the bacallà a la llauna oven dish.

TipClosed Sunday and Monday. The 19 euro menu del dia at lunch is the value pick.

Directions

Can Vilaro ★ 4.1

€€ Catalan ClassicSant Antoni

Can Vilaro in Barcelona's Sant Antoni has cooked Catalan working-class plates since 1948: cap i pota, botifarra amb mongetes, daily off-the-bone fish stew.

OrderThe botifarra amb mongetes and a glass of house red.

TipClosed Sundays. Cash easier than card. Lunch menu del dia is 13 euros.

Directions

Cerveseria Catalana ★ 4.3

€€ Catalan TapasEixample

Cerveseria Catalana in Barcelona's Eixample is the all-day tapas counter where every plate sits on the bar in glass cases. Order by pointing at sight.

OrderThe patatas bravas, the pulpo, the seared foie montadito.

TipNo reservations; queue forms at 13:00. Get there at 12:30 for a counter seat or skip to 16:30 service.

Directions

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