Conger eel escudella (soup) for lent

Escudella is a traditional dish for all social classes, be they those with simple tastes or those in search of a more exquisite fair, as it can be made from a variety of ingredients. These are often basic products that are not exclusive to Andorra, except for the words we use to describe them. Carrota is term we use for carrot, and trumfa is our word for the potato.

According to tradition, the origin of this dish goes back to the middle of the last century, when, during carnival and in the spring, the Galicians and Basques came to the Pyrenees to sell preserved fish such as dried conger eel and salt cod.

It should be noted that the word escudella does not just refer to broth recipes with pasta or rice, vegetables and other ingredients like those we have just described, but is also the name of the cup or soup dish in which the dishes are traditionally served.

Preparation for 4 people:

The day before your prepare the escudella, put 10 litres of water in a pot and let the conger eel soak, add 1 raw chopped onion and 5 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil.

After 24 hours, cook for 2 hours, remove the conger eel and set it aside.

Add 4 garlic cloves and half a chopped onion, diced potatoes and rice to the saucepan and cook for 10 minutes.

Add the cooked white beans and chopped hazelnuts, almonds, fried bread, parsley, 2 roasted garlic cloves and sprigs of saffron.

Season with salt and pepper and simmer for 15 minutes.

Separately, roast the red peppers and peel them.

Prepare the vinaigrette by mixing the oil, vinegar, salt and black pepper in a bowl, and add chopped raw garlic and diced roast peppers.

To finish, take slices of conger eel, after first removing the largest bones, and place them on a plate, where you season them with vinaigrette. Serve and enjoy.

Ingredients for preparing conger eel escudella for Lent:

1 piece of dry conger eel
-1 kg of potatoes
-500 g of dry white beans
-250 g of rice
-150 g of onion
-1 clove of garlic
-1 handful of parsley
-50 g of toasted almonds
-50 g of toasted hazelnuts
-2 slices of bread
-Saffron powder
-Virgin olive oil
-Salt
-Black pepper

For the vinaigrette:

-250 ml of extra virgin olive oil
-2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
-3 cloves of garlic
-2 red peppers
-Salt
-Black pepper