Cod Tongues Tempura with Green Tapenade & White Rice

Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 60 minutes
Servings: 6

About

Cod tongue is a delicacy in Nordic countries, Portugal, and the coastal regions of Atlantic Canada. It can be found fresh (ask your fishmonger), salted and dried, or frozen (usually already skinned and boneless).

For this recipe, we use salted and dried tongues. If you choose fresh or frozen, simply skip the desalting step.

DIRECTION:

For the Cod Tongues Tempura

3 ½ to 4 cups (about 2 lbs) salted/dried cod tongues

1 fresh bay leaf

1 cup all-purpose flour (preferably non-GMO)

1 Tbsp cornstarch

1 tsp baking powder

1 whole egg

½ Tbsp pale lager beer

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp Herbes de Provence

½ tsp Espelette pepper (or finely ground red chili flakes)

1 tsp kosher salt

1 cup bacon fat, chicken fat, or duck fat (for frying)

For the Green Tapenade

4 salt-cured anchovy fillets, rinsed

2 Tbsp salt-packed capers, rinsed

3 cups flat-leaf parsley leaves, loosely packed

1 ½ cups fresh mint leaves

½ cup fresh tarragon leaves

½ cup chopped fresh chives

1 medium shallot, roughly chopped

1 large garlic clove, crushed

2 tsp finely grated lemon zest*

1 tsp fresh lemon juice

⅛ tsp crushed pink peppercorns

½ cup extra-virgin olive oil

Kosher salt, to taste

Tip: Blanch the whole lemon in boiling water for 30 seconds, dry it, then zest.

For the Tempura Batter preparation

For a good tempura, the batter should be thinner than pancake batter and always kept very cold. Ideally, let it rest in the fridge in a large ceramic or glass bowl for 30 minutes, placed over a bed of ice.

Pour the flour into a bowl. In another bowl, beat the egg with the beer, then add this mixture to the flour. Mix gently with a whisk or chopsticks, just enough to combine. A few lumps are fine. Keep the batter chilled until ready to use.

For the Green Tapenade preparation

Traditionally made with a mortar and pestle, but a food processor on “Pulse” also works.

In a mortar, crush the anchovies with a drizzle of olive oil to form a coarse paste. Add the capers, parsley, mint, tarragon, shallot, and garlic, then pound again. Mix in the lemon zest, juice, pink peppercorns, and the remaining olive oil. Stir until slightly loose in texture.

RECIPE:

Preparing the Cod Tongues

Soak the cod tongues in cold water for 12 hours, changing the water once. Drain, rinse, and pat dry with paper towels.

Place them in a pot of water with the bay leaf. Bring to a simmer, then remove from the heat. Drain, peel off the gelatinous skin, and keep warm.

Frying

Heat the frying fat to 350°F. If you don’t have a thermometer, test with a drop of batter: it should sink, then quickly rise to the surface and sizzle without burning.

Take the batter from the fridge. Using long chopsticks, dip each tongue into the batter and drop them one by one into the hot oil. Fry for 1-2 minutes, turning 2-3 times, until light golden brown. Drain on paper towels.

Plating

On each plate, place a bed of white rice and make a small well in the center. Spoon a little green tapenade at the bottom, then arrange 3-4 cod tongues (depending on size). Sprinkle with a pinch of Espelette pepper and serve hot.