Andorra - Escudella

I headed back north over the Mediterranean to the little principality of Andorra. I arrived in the capital of Andorra la Vella and was served a hearty dish called Escudella.




Escudella


Ingredients
2 litres water
4 veal bones
1 ham bone
3 tablespoons olive oil
100g bacon, diced
100g onions peeled & chopped
1/2 chicken for stewing
450g veal chopped into chunks
450g potatoes
1 medium leek
140g carrots
100g green cabbage
100g cannellini beans
140g pasta: try to get big shells, the bigger the better.

Put the water and meat bones in a large pot and slowly simmer to make a broth. Add seasoning to taste as you go, adding a pinch of saffron.
While the broth is simmering, blanch the bacon in a separate pan and then chop into cubes. Put the oil into a large frying pan then add the bacon and onions. Just when they are starting to brown add the remaining meat and let it cook slowly.
In the meantime, prepare the vegetables (not beans) by peeling and chopping them quite finely then adding to the pan of meat.
When the broth has been simmering a while and has developed a good flavour (taste to check) add in the contents of the frying pan and leave to simmer for 5 minutes. Add the pasta shells and beans and simmer gently until they are cooked, this should take about a further 10 minutes.
This dish can then be served in different ways. Sometimes it is served as a hearty stew, with everything in one bowl. Or, you can separate out the meat and vegetables again and serve the soup as a starter and the meat and vegetables on a separate tray afterwards.

It was as good as any stew I'd had before. Next week back to Africa.