Baked cod with a chorizo crumb & lemon aïoli

Contains pork – recipe is for non-Muslims only
White fish and chorizo are a classic Spanish pairing. The spicy sausage adds a lovely rich smokiness to the meaty cod

Prep:5 mins
Cook:20 mins

Serves 6
Easy

Nutrition per serving

kcal 409
fat 25g
saturates 5g
carbs 8g
sugars 1g
fibre 1g
protein 39g
salt 1g

Ingredients

175g cooking chorizo, skin removed, cut into chunks
50g slightly stale breadcrumbs
25g blanched almonds, toasted and roughly chopped
zest ½ lemon
1½ tbsp olive oil, plus extra for greasing
6 boneless, skinless sustainable cod fillets (about 175g each)
6 tbsp good-quality mayonnaise
½ garlic clove, crushed
2 tsp lemon juice

Method

Tip the chorizo into a frying pan and cook over a medium heat until it releases its oil and becomes crisp in places. Meanwhile, make the aïoli: stir together the ingredients with some seasoning, then chill.
Put the chorizo and its oil in a food processor and pulse until broken into small chunks. Add the breadcrumbs, almonds, lemon zest, seasoning and half the olive oil, then blitz to a crumb.
Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Put the cod fillets on a lightly greased baking tray, then brush with the remaining oil. Heap the crumbs onto the fish and pat down so that the fillets are well covered. Let them firm up in the fridge for at least 20 mins.
When you’re ready to cook, pop the fish in the oven for 10-15 mins, depending on the thickness of your fillets, until the flesh has turned opaque and the chorizo crumb is golden.