Confit cod with watercress velouté
- Published: 9 Apr 25
- Updated: 26 May 25
Top chef Adam Byatt shares his culinary know-how in this recipe for confit cod served with silky watercress velouté. Here’s why this recipe gives you Michelin-worthy results…
- Brining fish: Brining the cod removes moisture, increases flavour, imparts seasoning from the inside out and firms up the flesh.
- How to confit: Adam uses olive oil in this recipe, to confit the fish at a low temperature for a short period of time. This process gives you real control over the cooking temperature. Confiting gives the fish a fantastic texture, keeping the flesh rich and moist.
- Next-level sauce: Start by slowly cooking the onions and potatoes with salt. Go gently and this base will yield a velvety sauce packed full of flavour.
Learn more Michelin-level skills from chef Adam on our YouTube channel.
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Serves 4 -
Prep time 30 min, plus cooling and chilling. Cook time 1 hour, plus dehydrating (optional)
Nutrition
- Calories
- 508kcals
- Fat
- 32g (19g saturated)
- Protein
- 38g
- Carbohydrates
- 14g (4.3g sugars)
- Fibre
- 3.2g
- Salt
- 1.8g
delicious. tips
Adam’s keys to success:
Cook the onions for long enough to bring out their sweetness.
Reduce the wine until there’s no liquid left in the pan.
Work your blender hard to really break down the watercress and create a harmonised texture.
To take this recipe to yet another level, I like to shuck a couple of oysters and whizz them up in the sauce to give it a bit of salinity and extra depth, but that’s up to you – it’s still a great sauce without them.
It really is worth chilling the sauce over a bowl of ice, straight after cooking – even if you’re intending to serve it right away. It means the sauce will retain its bright green colour and freshness.
Next time You can flavour the oil you’re using to confit the cod with garlic, herbs and lemon zest – they’ll all impart subtle flavour to the fish.
Easy swaps You could make this with halibut, sea bass or another white fish – just avoid oily fish such as trout, salmon, sardines and tuna.
Don’t waste it Keep the oil for confiting more fish this way, or use it to fry fish or fishcakes – the mixture of oils should have a smoke point of over 180°C so you can use it for gentle frying.
The herb powder can be made up to a week before using – just keep it in an airtight container.
The sauce can be made up to 24 hours before serving, as long as it’s chilled quickly over ice before going in the fridge.
Olive pomace oil is made from the leftovers of olive oil production. After the olives have been pressed, the olive pulp is chemically treated to remove the last bits of oil – it’s a similar method used for most other vegetable oils that aren’t cold pressed. Olive pomace oil blend is mixed with other oil such as sunflower oil.