Catalan Cannelloni Recipe

This recipe for typical cannelloni from Catalonia is very traditional and is customary to make on Saint Stephen’s Day (December 26) throughout this region. The authentic Catalan cannelloni have a mixture of meat and offal to make them very tasty; they also have a homemade béchamel sauce that makes them sweeter. If you don’t know how to make Catalan-style cannelloni to enjoy with the whole family at festive times, don’t miss this step-by-step.

Ingredients to make Catalan Cannelloni:

1. 750 grams of Veal
2. 750 grams of Chicken
3. 750 grams of pork or sausage
4. 4 units of chicken liver
5. 2 units of onion
6. 1 jet of Oil
7. 1 pinch of salt
8. 1 pinch of Pepper
9. 200 grams of grated mental cheese
10. 30 sheets of cannelloni
11. ½ glass of white wine
12. béchamel sauce
13. ½ liter of whole milk
14. 1 tablespoon of flour
15. 1 tablespoon of olive oil
16. 1 pinch of salt
17. 1 pinch of Nutmeg

How to make Catalan Cannelloni:

• The first thing we have to do to make these Catalan cannelloni is to roast all the meats together (except the chicken livers), that is, the veal, the chicken and the pork together with the onion cut into cubes. Season with salt, pepper and a good splash of olive oil. It is also preferable that the meats are cut into cubes or small pieces so that they are done before.
• When all the meat is well roasted; Add the chicken livers that we will roast for 2 or 3 more minutes with all the meats and also add 1/2 glass of white wine.
• Once the filling of the authentic Catalan cannelloni is ready, let it cool, bone all the meat and grind everything to obtain a homogeneous dough that we will let rest for approximately 24 hours in the fridge.
• The next day, cook the cannelloni sheets with plenty of boiling water and a pinch of salt (for as long as the manufacturer’s instructions indicate). Drain and fill the cannelloni with the rested dough and put them on a baking tray.
• Next, we make the béchamel sauce: for this we heat the oil in a frying pan and add the flour. Stirring constantly, cook the flour for a few minutes. Then we add the milk little by little and keep stirring non-stop until the sauce thickens so that it does not stick. Season with salt and a pinch of nutmeg and we will have the homemade béchamel Now we cover the Catalan cannelloni with the sauce and sprinkle the grated mental cheese on top.
• Tip: You can also use another type of grated cheese for the Catalan cannelloni.
• Bake the homemade cannelloni until the cheese has browned/gratin ¡i lentos! as they say in Catalan.