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Bacalaitos (Puerto Rican Salt Cod Fritters)

Crispy fried bacalaitos are a classic Puerto Rican street food made with a fried flour-based batter loaded with salt cod, sofrito, peppers, onions and spices.

Course Snack
Cuisine Puerto Rican
Keyword bacalaitos, fish fritters
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings 6
Author Delish D'Lites

Ingredients

  • ½ pound salted codfish desalinated
  • ½ cup bacalao cooking water reserved
  • ¼ cup diced onion
  • ¼ cup diced bell pepper
  • 1 tbsp sofrito
  • 1 tsp white vinegar
  • ½ cup all-purpose flour
  • ½ tbsp cornstarch
  • 1 tsp baking powder optional, don't use if you want flat bacalaitos
  • 1 tsp sazón con culantro y achiote
  • ¼ tsp oregano
  • pinch black pepper
  • ½ cup cold water plus more as needed
  • neutral oil for frying

Instructions

  1. In a wide frying pan, preheat 2 inches of cooking oil to 350°F over medium-high heat.

  2. Set a cooling rack set over a sheetpan to drain the fried bacalaitos on later.

Prepare the Bacalaito Batter

  1. Rinse the excess salt off the codfish and place into a stock pot. Add enough water to fully submerge the fish, and cook on a simmer for 20-30 minutes. Don't boil it, or your pot will bubble over.

  2. Once the fish is tender, reserve 1/2 cup in a measuring cup, then drain the fish and rinse it off with cold water. Pull the cooked codfish apart into smaller chunks, and make sure to remove any bones.

  3. In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, cornstarch, baking powder (if using) sazón, oregano, and black pepper. Stir the ingredients together with a whisk to distribute them evenly.

  4. Add the sofrito, peppers, onions into the flour mixture.

  5. Combine the cold water with the reserved cooking water from the bacalao. Add anywhere from 1/2 to 2/3 cup of this water to the flour mixture, whisking slowly until a batter forms. The more water you add, the thinner the fritters will be once they're fried.

  6. Using a rubber spatula, fold the fish into the batter just until evenly combined. You want it to be the consistency of loose pancake batter. Don't overmix.

Fry the Bacalaitos

  1. Once the oil reaches 350°F (182°C), scoop a spoonful of the batter up with your kitchen spoon. Bring the spoon to the surface of the hot oil and "lay" it into the oil, spreading the batter with the back of your spoon.

  2. Fry the first "test" bacalaito for 3 minutes, then use a pair of tongs to flip it to the other side.
  3. Fry it for another 3-4 minutes or until it is a deep golden brown and crisp. Taste this bacalaito. Adjust the seasoning/consistency of the rest of the batter as needed.

  4. Once your bacalaito batter tastes how you like, continue frying the batter until you've used it all up.

  5. Transfer the fried bacalaitos to the cooling rack. Serve hot.

Recipe Video