Potaje de vigilia

The story

Potaje de vigilia is the stew many Spanish households serve on the Fridays of Lent and on Good Friday, which in 2027 falls on March 26. On those days, and on Ash Wednesday, Catholic practice asks people to give up meat while allowing vegetables, fish, eggs, milk and honey. Cooks built a filling meal around that rule by pairing chickpeas with salt cod, often called the leading fish of Holy Week in Spain. In 18th-century Madrid, where fresh fish could not easily be brought in from the coast, salt cod was almost the only fish in local dishes. The basic stew combines chickpeas, spinach and flaked bacalao, bound with a sofrito of onion, garlic, olive oil and paprika and seasoned with a bay leaf, and many cooks still prefer an iron pot for it. The usual presentation tops each plate with hard-boiled egg and parsley. Traditionally the pot went to the middle of the table so everyone could serve themselves and come back for seconds; today a soup tureen often takes its place. Start soaking the cod on Wednesday for a Friday supper, and serve the stew with crusty bread and a simple green salad.