Dried and salted cod, a staple protein across the cuisines of Spain, Portugal, Italy, and Latin America, where it is also called bacalhau. The preservation is ancient: split codfish are heavily salted and air-dried until hard as boards, a process that concentrates flavor and allows the fish to keep for months without refrigeration. Before cooking, the salt must be drawn out through repeated soakings in fresh water over a day or more, transforming the stiff fillets into tender, flavorful flesh. Classic dishes include Spanish bacalao al pil-pil, Portuguese bacalhau a bras, and Italian baccala mantecato. Nutritionally it is lean, protein-rich fish, though the residual sodium demands attention. Its history is intertwined with Atlantic trade routes that carried it from northern waters to southern tables.