Baccalà alla vicentina

1. Soak the stockfish in cold water for 2-3 days, changing the water twice a day, until the flesh is soft and well rehydrated.
2. Open the stockfish, remove the central spine and main bones, then cut it into regular pieces of approximately 6-8 cm. Dry each piece with paper towels and lightly flour all sides.
3. Slice the onions finely and soften them over low heat in half of the extra virgin olive oil for about 20 minutes, until they are golden and translucent. Add the anchovy fillets and dissolve them into the soffritto, stirring for 2-3 minutes.
4. In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, arrange a layer of onion soffritto, place the floured stockfish pieces in a single layer, then cover with the remaining soffritto.
5. Pour the milk and remaining extra virgin olive oil until almost completely covering the fish. Season with salt and pepper.
6. Cook over very low heat, without ever stirring but gently shaking the saucepan from time to time, for at least 4 and a half to 5 hours, until the fish is melt-in-the-mouth tender and the sauce has thickened and become creamy.
7. Meanwhile, bring salted water to a boil for the polenta, pour the flour in a thin stream while stirring continuously and cook for 40-45 minutes until reaching a soft consistency.
8. Serve the stockfish on a bed of hot polenta, coating with abundant cooking sauce and a sprinkle of fresh chopped parsley.

Stockfish alla vicentina is one of the most iconic dishes of Venetian cuisine, rooted in the territory of the province of Vicenza with an almost proud precision. The name can be misleading: the authentic recipe does not use salted cod, but stockfish, the stockfish air-dried from the Norwegian Lofoten islands. It is a distinction that the people of Vicenza have held firm for centuries, and which the Venerabile Confraternita del Bacalà alla Vicentina, founded in Sandrigo in 1987, safeguards and promotes with an official codified recipe.

The dish originates as poor land cuisine, yet it reveals a complexity built through slow time: the stockfish soaked for days, then cooked in a prolonged braise with onion, anchovies, milk and olive oil until reaching a creamy and almost melting consistency. The flavor profile is intense but rounded, with the saltiness of the anchovies that dialogues with the sweetness of the milk and the richness of the oil. Tradition dictates that it is served on white or yellow polenta, an accompaniment that absorbs the dense sauce and completes the dish in an essential way. It is a preparation for a festive day or for Sunday with family, but also a protagonist of the village festivals of the Vicenza plain every autumn.

Baccalà alla vicentina admits few structural variations, given the recipe codified by the Confraternity, but in the territory circulate some local interpretations.

• Variant with cream: in some families of the Vicenza plain, part of the milk is replaced with fresh cream, obtaining a richer and smoother sauce.
• Variant with garlic: some homemade recipes add a clove of garlic to the soffritto of onion, even though the official version does not include it.
• Gratinéed variant: in some trattorias the dish is finished in the oven at 200 degrees with a dusting of breadcrumbs, creating a superficial crust that contrasts with the internal softness.
• Variant with white polenta: in areas near Venice and Treviso, the accompanying polenta is almost always white, prepared with white corn, considered more delicate and less invasive compared to the yellow variety.

• Garganega dei Colli Berici DOC: white wine native to the Vicenza territory, with balanced acidity and almond notes that cleanse the palate from the fat of the oil and milk.
• Soave Classico DOC: mineral and floral structure that integrates well with the saltiness of the anchovies without overpowering it.
• Tai Bianco dei Colli Euganei: light and dry, ideal for those seeking a less demanding territorial pairing.
• Birra artigianale di frumento: an unfiltered weizen, with its yeast and citrus notes, balances the richness of the dish in an informal and functional pairing.
• Acqua frizzante naturale: for those who prefer not to pair wine, the effervescence effectively cleanses the palate between bites.

• Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container for a maximum of 2-3 days.
• Keep the baccalà immersed in its cooking sauce to prevent the flesh from drying out.
• To freeze: portion into single-use containers with the sauce, freeze for up to 2 months.
• To reheat: warm in a saucepan over low heat with a tablespoon of milk, or in the oven at 160 degrees Celsius covered with aluminum foil for 15-20 minutes.
• Do not reheat in the microwave: the flesh loses the creamy consistency characteristic of the dish.

Vicenza does not overlook the sea, yet the dried fish from the Norwegian Lofoten Islands has entered its cuisine through a medieval commercial route that passed through Venice. It was the merchants of the Serenissima who brought stockfish to the mainland, durable and nutritious merchandise, suitable for long journeys and conservation that did not require salt. The Vicenza plain adopted it and reinterpreted it with ingredients from its own territory: the olive oil from Colli Berici, milk from countryside farms, white onions cultivated along the Bacchiglione.

A turning point in the documented history of the dish is owed to the Venetian nobleman Pietro Querini, who in 1432, after a shipwreck on the Norwegian coast, stayed among the fishermen of the Lofoten Islands and upon his return brought stockfish back with him as travel provisions. The account from his diary is considered the first Italian document that describes this fish. In the centuries that followed, the dish became established as lean cuisine for days of abstinence, then as a festive tradition. The Confraternity founded in Sandrigo in 1987 has set the recipe and organizes a festival every year that brings together enthusiasts from throughout the region.