Name: Baccalà arracanato
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 50 min
Cuisine: Italian, Molise
Ingredients: 800 g desalted salt cod fillet, skin and pin bones removed; 200 g stale country bread crumb, coarsely pulsed; 40 g walnuts, roughly chopped; 40 g raisins, soaked 10 minutes and drained; 8 small dried figs, finely chopped; 1 garlic clove, finely chopped; 15 g flat-leaf parsley, chopped; 25 ml cooked grape must, mosto cotto, or use a small amount of reduced grape juice; 35 ml extra-virgin olive oil; 1 g black pepper

Wide view of baked baccalà arracanato in a rectangular dish under a golden coarse breadcrumb crust with dark raisins

Prep25 minutes

Cook25 minutes

Total50 minutes

Yield4 servings

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The dish

About Baccalà arracanato

La Cucina Italiana documents arracanato as a Molise Christmas Eve preparation built from desalted salt cod, stale breadcrumbs, walnuts, raisins, dried figs, parsley, garlic and cooked grape must.

The topping should remain coarse so it becomes crisp at the surface while absorbing some fish juices underneath.

Because the cod is already cured and desalted, the recipe needs little or no added salt until the fish itself is tasted.

A short 180°C bake is enough to cook the fish while preventing the lean flakes from drying.

Technique

Three things that matter

Desalt first. Start with properly soaked/desalted salt cod; raw salted fish is far too salty for direct baking.
Keep the crumb coarse. Fine powder turns pasty; rough stale-bread crumbs create the characteristic uneven crust.
Do not overbake. Pull the dish when the cod flakes and reaches safe temperature.

Cook the dish

Ingredients

Everything needed to prepare the dish, arranged for fast scanning before cooking.

Fish

800 gdesalted salt cod filletskin and pin bones removed

Arracanato topping

200 gstale country bread crumbcoarsely pulsed
40 gwalnutsroughly chopped
40 graisinssoaked 10 minutes and drained
8 smalldried figsfinely chopped
1garlic clovefinely chopped
15 gflat-leaf parsleychopped
25 mlcooked grape mustmosto cotto, or use a small amount of reduced grape juice
35 mlextra-virgin olive oil
1 gblack pepper

Step by step

Method

Prepare fish and topping

Check the cod. Pat desalted cod dry and remove all remaining pin bones.
The fish should smell clean and taste seasoned but not aggressively salty.
Make coarse crumbs. Pulse stale bread only until coarse, then combine with walnuts, raisins, figs, garlic, parsley and pepper.
The topping should show distinct crumbs and fruit pieces.
Arrange the fish. Place cod portions in a lightly oiled shallow baking dish in one layer.
Pieces should not overlap so they bake evenly.

Build the arracanato crust

Season with musto cotto. Drizzle the cod lightly with cooked grape must.
The fish should be streaked, not soaked in sweet liquid.
Pack on the topping. Cover each portion generously with the bread-fruit-nut mixture without compressing it hard.
A rough, aerated surface should remain visible.
Add olive oil. Drizzle olive oil evenly over the crumb topping.
Dry crumbs should be lightly moistened but not saturated.

Bake briefly

Preheat the oven. Heat to 180°C with a rack in the centre.
The oven should be fully hot before the fish goes in.
Bake until flaky. Bake 20–25 minutes, checking the thickest piece for at least 63°C.
Cod should separate into moist flakes and the crumb edges should be golden.
Rest and serve. Rest 5 minutes before serving from the baking dish.
The crust should remain crisp on top while the fish stays juicy below.

Practical guidance

Salt

Taste the desalted cod before seasoning; additional salt is usually unnecessary.

Musto cotto

Use it sparingly: the dish is savoury with a measured sweet-fruit accent, not a sweet glaze.

Make-ahead

Prepare the topping ahead, but assemble immediately before baking so crumbs do not become soggy.

Troubleshooting

Fish tastes too salty. The cod was insufficiently soaked; extend desalting in cold water with regular water changes before cooking.
Crust stays pale. Use coarse dry bread and a light oil drizzle; finish briefly under stronger top heat if necessary.
Cod becomes dry. The pieces were thin or overbaked; check temperature early.

Nutrition per serving

Serving size: 1 of 4
Calories: approximately 575 kcal
Carbohydrates: 55 g
Protein: 48 g
Fat: 19 g
Fibre: 5 g
Sodium: 980 mg

Approximate; sodium varies widely with desalting.

Allergens and food safety

Keep desalting cod refrigerated throughout soaking.

Fish should reach at least 63°C in the thickest part.

Cool leftovers within 2 hours and refrigerate up to 2 days.

FAQ

Is baccalà arracanato a Christmas dish?

Yes. It is strongly associated with the meatless Christmas Eve table in Molise.

Does the topping contain dried fruit?

A documented Molise version uses raisins and dried figs together with walnuts and stale bread.

What is mosto cotto?

Cooked grape must; only a light drizzle is needed to connect the savoury cod with the fruit-and-nut crust.

Final note

What matters most

Result: Moist flakes of salt cod under a rugged golden crust with walnuts, raisins, figs, garlic and parsley.
Key: Start with correctly desalted fish and keep the bake short.