Putting a Freeze on Tradition

When I think about codfish, my thought process goes like this: How healthy are the populations? Where is it ranked on the ocean-friendly fish cards from Chefs partners and friends like the Blue Ocean Institute? And finally, how does it taste?

But I rarely consider the culture surrounding the preparation of cod. A recent New York Times article reminds us that as industrialization progresses and artisanal food preparation methods decline, we stand to lose something equally as important: tradition.

In Portugal, salt cod, known as bacalhau, is the foundation of the cuisine, with over 1,000 recipes for its use. Preparing it is a time-intensive process that depends on knowledge accumulated or handed down over time. Today, this culinary tradition is eroding as dietary habits are changing, cod is becoming more scarce and more expensive–and the method is being replaced by something some traditions can’t touch: convenience.

The frozen bacalhau industry is on the rise in Portugal, and according to at least one industry executive, “traditional cod will soon be a thing of the past.”

Framed as progress, this is troubling. What do we have to lose from freezing bacalhau? For one thing, energy. Salting as a preservation method is a sustainable technique that doesn’t require massive amounts of energy. Just salt.

We also stand to lose flavor, amibiance (imagine tapas spots replacing those attractive hanging strips of cod with dangling boxes of frozen fish?)–and the sense of fulfillment we experience when engaging in a rich culinary tradition. On the other hand, we’ll still have convenience.