Our family festive dish for the first day of the New Year. The Japanese presbyterians from the state of Hawaii,- salt codfish a la mode Tokio as in 1908.
Salt Codfish Tokio
1 1/2 pounds of salt codfish
1 quart of water
3 ounces of fresh unsalted butter
2 Tablespoons of white wheat all purpose flour
1 1/4 of fresh sweet milk
1 teaspoon of ground cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon of ground nutmeg
Soak your cod fish in the cold water for an hour. Rub between your hands one and a half pounds of this salt codfish and plunge it into one quart of the boiling water for five minutes. Drain the fish in collander on sieve and press out the water from this fish. Heat one ounce of a sweet unsalted fresh butter in a deep cast iron saucepan and add two tablespoonfuls of flour into this butter, stir well. While heating your sauce for a minute or so, pour in a cup and a quarter of hot milk into the sauce and mix well until it comes to a boil. Add the codfish into the sauce, season the codfish with a spoonful of the ground cayenne pepper and the ground nutmeg. Mix the spices well and let the fish cook in this sauce for several minutes longer. Pour it into a baking dish, dredge with two tablespoonfuls of grated cheese- Monterey Jack works fine, drop the cheese over the fish, divide a half a tablespoonful of butter in very small bits, sprinkle your fish with it, and set it into an oven for several minutes and serve .