An important part of our virtual visit to Andorra is enjoying a traditional Andorran meal together! Today, we enjoyed one of the most traditional Andorran dishes - Escudella. Yummy!
In the Winter, especially, Escudella is a beloved meal - a meat stew that can be dressed up with more extravagant meats for special occasions, or can be made from pantry staples on any chilly weeknight. In the end the exact ingredients are somewhat up to the cook.
Since my attempt at this meal represented my virtual visit to Andorra, I splurged a bit to make this a celebratory dish!
I was making this meal from Berlin, Germany (with a rudimentary understanding of German!), so I was beholden to the ingredients that I could find. One significant creative adjustment I made was related to the bone marrow typically included in this dish. I visited three butcher shops and none of them had bone marrow, but after brainstorming with one of the shop owners, I decided to instead substitute some spare ribs, and to cook the bones in the stew. I can't say whether it would have been more tasty using the more traditional ingredient, but I imagine it would be, since everything I read about this meal raved about the impact of the marrow. Try what you can find, and let me know in the comments how it tasted for you!
The one important suggestion I have for you after making this dish is... don't underestimate the importance of using the largest pot you have! I used the largest pot we have in our temporary, furnished apartment, and could have probably used a pot double the size, but I made it work.
Let me know what you think! Share your photos below. Enjoy!
ANDORRAN ESCUDELLA
Meat Stew
Serves 4-8; Approximately 3.5 Hours
Ingredients:
*1 Onion - chopped
*2 or 3 Carrots - Chopped
*1 Celery Stalk - Chopped
*15 ounces of Dried White Beans
*7.5 ounces of Soaked Chickpeas
*1/4 head White Cabbage - Chopped
*2 or 3 potatoes - Pealed and Chopped
*1/2 inch Ham Steak - Cubed
*2 Bone Marrow Bones (or Spare Ribs - including Meat and Bones)
*1 Piece of Bacon or Pork Lard - Cubed
*2 Boneless Breasts of Chicken - Uncut
*1 Piece of Lamb - Cubed
*1 Piece of Prociutto Steak - Cubed
*1 Beef Steak
*3/4 Ground Pork
*1/4 Cup Long Grain Rice
*1/2 Cup Small Shell Pasta
*9 Cups of Water
*Salt
*1 Tspn Cumin
*1/2 Tbspn Garlic
Directions:
Roll Ground Pork into Meatballs, and cook in the Olive Oil for 5 minutes.
Fill pot with water and put over heat.
As water begins boiling, add onion, celery carrots, chickpeas, and beans to the water.
Add all meats and bones to the boiling water.
Let simmer for 2 hours.
Remove the Bone Marrow bones.
Add Salt, Cumin, White Cabbage to the water and continue boiling for 20 minutes.
Add the Potatoes and continue boiling for 30 more minutes.
Add Noodles and Rice and continue boiling for 20 more minutes.
Remove from heat, let rest 5 minutes, serve, and enjoy!
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