Salt cod stuffed piquillo peppers are comfort food in tapas form - the potato and salt cod filling is smooth and packed with flavor. They make a great appetizer or serve as part of a tapas meal.

dish of salt cod stuffed piquillo peppers with orange avocado salad and cheese with membrillo in background.

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Salt cod is a bit of an unusual ingredient. Or maybe I should say often overlooked.

It's one of those things that unless you were brought up eating it, it might seem intimidating or easy to get wrong. It takes a bit of preparation, can go a bit rubbery if you're not careful and the taste can be strong. It's quite different from fresh cod.

So why, you might think, would anyone cook with it? Well it does work well in a number of dishes and gives a lovely flavor to otherwise relatively plain ingredients. It can be tasty in things like this salt cod and orange salad (remojón) though it's maybe better known in more comforting stews and bakes like Portuguese bacalhau à Gomes de Sá.

close view of dish of salt cod stuffed piquillo peppers.

These salt cod stuffed piquillo peppers are a great introduction as they are relatively mellow in flavor. They are a delicious combination of soft, creamy but flavorful salt cod and potato filling inside slightly piquant roasted piquillo peppers. It's kind of Spanish comfort food in tapas-sized portions. (New to tapas? Learn more in what are tapas).

In days gone by, these would have been a pretty economical dish although salt cod is no longer a cheap option as it was, unfortunately. You can find piquillo peppers in jars, ready roasted, alongside olives in the supermarket or online (affiliate link above) - just drain before using.

plates with salt cod, piquillo peppers, potatoes, milk and sprig of parsley to side.

What is salt cod?

Salt cod (bacalao/bacalhau and various other names) is cod that has been dried and preserved in salt, probably one of the oldest ways of preserving fish around. It's particularly popular in Portugal but you'll find it in many countries particularly in that region.

You can buy it in blocks, either whole fillets or smaller offcuts. It's very obviously salted and doesn't need refrigerated when you buy it.

To use it, you will always soak at least for a day if not a couple days, with a few changes of water to get most of the salt off. Exactly how long depends in part on how thick the piece of fish is, as well as the end flavor you want to have.

pieces of salt cod in pot with milk and bay leaf to side.

If you soak it longer, you can get pretty much all the salt out but it will be a bit more plain in flavor. Sometimes that's fine, while on other dishes you want a little more salty depth. Just not too much, of course.

You can test a little of the fish as it's soaking to see how salty it tastes, to give you a sense if it has the right level of saltiness. For these, I'd say gently salted is best.

How to make these stuffed peppers

After you've soaked the fish, you poach it to gently cook it and make it easy to flake. Meanwhile cook and mash potatoes. Mix the two together along with some olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper then stuff the peppers. Bake until gently warm and just starting to brown.

Some versions poach in milk, others in water. Milk gives a slightly sweeter, milder flavor and so for me I feel works better for this since you are making a smoother filling with the potato.

salt cod stuffed piquillo peppers in baking dish before going in the oven.

I remember having salt cod stuffed piquillo peppers when I lived in Spain and they were always a favorite tapas dish. They weren't found as widely as some dishes, since they do take a little more preparation, I suspect, but they are still not difficult to make yourself. And definitely worth it.

Simple ingredients, lots of flavor - it's what comfort foods should be.

dish of salt cod stuffed piquillo peppers with salad, cheese and olives blurred in background.

Try these other tapas recipes alongside:

Spanish tortilla (tortilla Española)
Blistered Padron peppers (pimientos de Padrón)
Spanish garlic shrimp (gambas al ajillo)
Plus get more Spanish recipes in the archives.

terracotta dish of salt cod stuffed piquillo peppers.

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