Poached Cod in the Oven

Poached cod in the oven © kvalifood.com

Oven-poached cod is the classic Danish way of cooking a whole cod: it is placed in a baking dish with lemon juice, covered, and slowly steamed in the oven. The method is gentle and gives a moist result. Serve with potatoes, butter sauce, and horseradish.

Ingredients

Yields 4 servings

  • 1–1½ kg whole cod
  • salt
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice

Accompaniments

  • potatoes
  • butter sauce
  • fresh horseradish, shaved
  • fish mustard

Directions

Prepare the cod

Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Clean, rinse, and dry the cod thoroughly. Make two cuts along the back. Place it in a greased baking dish with the back facing up and the belly flaps spread out to the sides. Season with salt and drizzle over the lemon juice.

Bake in the oven

Cover the dish with a tight-fitting lid or foil. Place the dish in the middle of the oven for 30–45 minutes. Check at the backbone whether the fish is cooked through — the flesh should come away easily from the bone.

Make the sauce

Carefully pour off a little of the cooking liquid from the dish and stir it together with fish mustard to make a simple sauce.

Serving

Serve the cod with potatoes, butter sauce, shaved horseradish, and fish mustard.

Notes

  • All whole white fish can be cooked this way: haddock, pollock, hake, whiting, etc.
  • For extra flavour, place a crushed bay leaf, 6 lightly crushed peppercorns, and a finely chopped onion in the dish together with 100 ml (3½ fl oz) of water before putting the cod in the oven.
  • Chopped hard-boiled egg is a classic accompaniment to poached cod.
  • The cod is done when the flesh at the backbone is white and flakes easily. A meat thermometer should read 130–135°F (55–58°C) at the thickest point.
  • Foil or a lid is important — without it the fish dries out.