78. Bacalaito (Puerto Rican Fried Salted Codfish)

INGREDIENTS (Makes approximately 30, I cut this recipe in a quarter)

1 pound Goya salted codfish (bacalao) You can use frozen tilapia fillets like I did
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp Goya Adobo Seasoning with pepper 2 tsp extra if you are using the tilapia
2 cups water
1 tsp minced garlic
2 tsp fresh cilantro
Oil for frying

DIRECTIONS
1. Soak fish in cold water for three hours or overnight in refrigerator.
2. Drain; rinse with cold water several times
3. In a saucepan, cover codfish with water, bring to a boil and simmer for 1 minute. For tilapia, thaw and boil for about 15 minutes or until cooked.  Shred apart with fork and mix in a generous amount (about 2 teaspoons of adobo) in order to make salty like cod. 
4. Cool, remove skin and bones.  Shred the fish.  In bowl, make a batter by whisking together the flour, baking powder, adobo, and water.  When smooth, mix in the garlic, cilantro, and fish.
5. In a skillet, heat 1/4 inch of oil on medium heat.  Drop the batter by spoonful into the hot oil and cook until golden brown.  Drain on paper towl.
*Note: I had to add a lot more adobo in order to make this like the salted cod, and using the Fry Daddy caused them to come out poofy rather than flat.