CATALAN CASSEROLE NOODLES - FIDEUS A LA CASSOLA

Today I wanted to make a dish that I haven't eaten for many, many years. My mother is a very good cook, but I have never really liked her casserole noodles.... I looked up several noodle recipes in my cookbooks and also recipes on the web... and I have tweaked them a little to suit my own style. They came out great, and I'll make them again for sure, especially in the winter time.

Ingredients

200g of pork belly bacon, diced, or smoked speck

2 small chorizo sausages, cut into slices

2 pork sausages, sliced or pork loin, cut into small cubes

2 onions, finely chopped or grated

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 good splash of sherry

2 bay leaves

400g canned chopped tomatoes

1 tablespoon smoked paprika

a few saffron threads

1 good splash of brandy

500g short noodles

1 1/2 litres chicken stock or water

black pepper

salt

oil

1 picada (6 almonds, 1 clove of garlic and parsley)

Method
1. Put a little oil in a oven-proof casserole and cook the bacon and chorizo until well browned. Remove the bacon from the casserole and leave only half of the oil.

2. In the same casserole put the garlic and the finely chopped onion and cook until well browned. Add a good splash of the sherry and scrape the bottom of the pan, stirring with a wooden spoon.

3. Add the tomato and bay leaf with a pinch of salt and black pepper. Cover the casserole and cook over a low heat until the sauce has a jam-like consistency. Stir from time to time to prevent it from sticking.

4. Add a teaspoon of paprika, the saffron and a good splash of brandy to the casserole, stir for a minute or two and add the reserved cooked meat (I also added some pork sausages which I cooked separately in a frying pan). Stir everything together and remove the bay leaves.

5. Have the noodles ready. I had to use broken spaghetti, as I couldn't find any of the traditional short noodles used in Catalonia, where we live. Turn the oven to 200C.

6. Add the noodles to the casserole and keep stirring so that the noodles get a little browned. Add the boiling stock (I made chicken stock from a stock cube) and stir well. When it starts to boil, lower the heat and stir for about 6 minutes. Put in the oven for about three minutes.

7. Meanwhile, make a picada with garlic, parsley and almonds. Add a little stock or water and add to the casserole dish in the oven and cook for 3 minutes more.

8. Check that the noodles are al dente (according to the time indicated on the packet) and serve.

Serves 4

They turned out absolutely scrumptious!

Comments

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