Salted Cod in Coconut Milk

This is not a same-day dinner, and it is fair to feel a flicker of resistance at that. Salted cod needs a soak that starts the night before, at least 4 to 6 hours, before you ever turn on the stove. On a week where you are already stretched thin, remembering to start something the evening before, for a meal you will not eat until tomorrow, is its own small discipline. It is also exactly the kind of forward planning that keeps this way of eating sustainable instead of something you white-knuckle through meal by meal.

Coconut milk is where this dish does quiet, real work. It is a source of medium-chain triglycerides, a type of fat thought to be more readily used for energy than longer-chain fats and generally easier on digestion, which matters when the gut is already working hard to settle. Cod itself is a lean, easily digested protein - a good choice on the days digestion feels unpredictable.

This is one of the oldest ways people preserved what the sea gave them, so it would last through lean months, and there is something worth pausing on in that before it becomes just another Tuesday meal. Let the smell of thyme and coconut milk simmering together do some of that work for you. Serve it over cauliflower rice or plantains, and eat it while it is still warm enough to fog a spoon.

Ingredients

• 1 pack de-boned salted cod (300 to 340 g), or fresh cod
• 1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
• 4 to 6 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2 tablespoons cilantro, chopped
• 1/4 cup butternut squash (fresh or frozen), cubed
• 1 cup full-fat coconut milk, additive-free
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil
• Water, for soaking and boiling the salted cod

Method

Begin the night before, or at least 4 to 6 hours ahead. Place the salted cod in a large bowl and cover completely with cold water. Let it soak to draw out the excess salt, changing the water at least once or twice during the soaking time. Taste a small piece - it should be pleasantly seasoned rather than intensely salty.

When you are ready to cook, drain the soaking water. Place the cod in a pot, cover with fresh cold water, and bring to a boil. Let it boil for 10 minutes. Drain, rinse the fish gently, and break it into large flakes with your hands or a fork, removing any remaining bones as you go.

If using fresh cod instead of salted, skip the soaking and boiling steps. Simply cut the fish into large chunks and proceed directly to the stew.

In a wide pan or skillet, melt the coconut oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and beginning to go golden - about 8 minutes. Add the thyme sprigs and stir for a minute to release their fragrance.

Add the butternut squash and stir to combine with the onion. Pour in the coconut milk and bring to a gentle simmer. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes until the squash is tender.

Gently nestle the flaked cod into the coconut milk broth. Reduce the heat to low and let everything simmer together for 5 minutes, enough for the fish to warm through and absorb the flavors of the broth without breaking down further.

Scatter the chopped cilantro over the top and serve immediately, ladled over a side of rice-substitute such as cauliflower rice or with plantains alongside.

*Adapted from Heal Me Delicious*