Fish Chowder

I was wondering about the timeliness of this post, as Fish Chowder is more of a wintery/cold, dreary-day type meal, but then I looked at the forecast for the coming week, and remembered where I live, and decided I was good to go. After all, I got married in August (typically one of the better months in Newfoundland) only to face rain, drizzle, wind and 5 degree temperatures... so really this hearty and oh-so-satisfying, soul-warming chowder is great any time of year.

It's also really easy, and pretty quick to make.

Cod au Gratin

Sorry it ain't prettier!

I've been going a little heavy on the sweets lately, both in life and on the blog. Soooo, it being the New Year and all, and time for a detox of sorts, I decided it best (for all of our sakes) that I post some savory dishes! At first, I considered Stewed Chicken with Dumplings, but thought better of it, knowing you're probably all still gagging at the thought of turkey or any of its relatives. Instead, I’ve opted to post a fish dish. 

Typically, my cod dishes tend to go one of two ways - fried with scrunchions and drawn butter, or mashed up in some fish and brewis. But a few weeks back, I found myself craving Cod au Gratin. Now, in all honesty, I had never made the dish myself and had not had it in several years, but I’m proud to say it came out tasting just as delicious and creamy as I remember from home.

Fish 'n' Brewis

It doesn't look like much, ladies and gentlemen, but don't let this picture fool you, behold the deliciousness that is Fish 'n' Brewis. 'What is this masterpiece?' you ask? Well my friends, it's a very simple, very delicious, combination of 3 ingredients: Codfish, Hard Bread, and Scrunchions a.k.a. tiny fried pieces of pork fat. Next to Jigs Dinner, this is the quintessential Newfoundland food.

Now, I will admit, like most Newfoundland dishes, there are a few varieties. Some people like to mash potato into the mix, or substitute the scrunchions with fried onions (a much healthier alternative). There's also some discrepancies in the naming, I like to call the above fish 'n' brewis, while my husband and his family refer to it as Fisherman's Brewis and call Fish 'n' brewis a decomposed version of the dish served with potatoes. Either way, this is what comes to mind when I hear the words fish 'n' brewis, it is the best, and my favourite way to eat it... not that I'd turn down the other stuff ;)