Bacalhau à brás

There are so many ways to prepare Portuguese codfish. You can eat it grilled, baked, or fried.

A very delicious codfish preparation is the Bacalhau à brás. This is a codfish and egg combo that is very popular. It is made with thin strips of codfish mixed together with potatoes, eggs, onions, garlic and olives and topped with chopped parsley.

We’ve also seen large cuts of cod used as well.

Regardless, it’s a simple and uncomplicated dish, absolutely fabulous.

We aren’t experts and we are still trying to perfect the dish, but here’s what we do...

INGREDIENTS

Ingredients (for 4 persons)

• 4 garlic clove
• 2 onions
• 3 Tbs of good quality. olive oil
• Around 1lb (400g) of salted cod
• Around 1 1/2 lbs (500g) of potatoes
• 6 eggs
• parsley
• black olives
• pinch of salt and pepper

Preparation

• Depending on the size of the cod you will need to immerse it in water, for 24 hours, the water must be changed at least 3 times.
• When the cod is unsalted drain it removing all the water and shred the cod removing all the fish bones and the skin.
• Cut the potatoes in small matchsticks and deep fry them until golden and crispy, you want the chips very crispy, 7 to 10 min. When done let the chips rest on a paper towel to soak the oil.
• Make a stir fry with chopped onion and garlic with the 5 Tps of good olive oil until golden then join the shredded cod and cook for for several minutes.
• Add the fried potatoes and mix everything together
• Whisk the eggs and season with salt and pepper. Join the eggs to the potatoes and cod and combine the mixture in low heat. Before the eggs start to solidify take them off the heat, you don’t want scrambled eggs. (someone told us to use hard boiled eggs, but that’s your choice)
• Garnish with a handful of parsley and black olives.

Bacalhau à Brás is a signature dish from Portugal, it is one of those dishes that Portuguese families  cook and eat regularly.

We really enjoyed it, so delicious and easy to do. 

The Almendres Cromlech is a Spiritual Place

To get a better look: Watch

The cromlech of Portugal today is very Pagan.

In the surrounding area you'll find candles, offerings, and campfires.

Almendres’ location in an olive grove atop an east-facing hillside gives one a wonderful view of the eastern horizon and suggestive sight lines to rising planets and stars. 

Almendres was a place where people gathered on important days; it allowed for precise astronomical observations, in particular the risings and settings of the sun and moon during their annual and 19-year cycles, respectively; it was a place where religious worship occurred.

It is believed that around 3000 BC, many of the stones were repositioned to align with the celestial bodies – the sun, moon, and stars. So perhaps, Almendres Cromlech may have functioned as a sort of astronomical observatory. 

The Almendres Cromlech is a spiritual place to spend time and explore the the treasures of the site. Some of the monoliths show their carved secrets of ancient Portugal that maybe we'll never fully understand. 

Regardless, Almendres Cromlech is a sacred place full of history and energy that still stands.