La Massana Confraria Prepares 2,800 Portions for Sant Antoni Escudellada

The Confraria de Sant Antoni in La Massana is gearing up for its annual escudellada popular, with plans to serve around 2,800 portions of the traditional stew this year.

Josep Maria Troguet, head of the confraria, highlighted recent professionalization efforts, including a team of professional chefs and volunteers—about a dozen children and more than 20 adults—who have completed food handling training. Starting tomorrow, they will prepare the dish, a slow and meticulous process that involves degreasing the broths beforehand. "We make a high-quality escudella that's full of flavour yet light and easy to digest," Troguet said.

The event, marking the feast day of La Massana's patron saint, falls on a Saturday this year, prompting expectations of higher turnout than usual. The menu features the classic escudella with noodles, legumes, and meats, alongside options for those with gluten, lactose, or celery intolerances, plus a vegan version introduced last year that proved popular. Counsellor Mònica Solé emphasized inclusivity: the goal is for everyone to join in, allowing whole families to celebrate La Massana's most popular festival.

Festivities kick off at 11am with a mass at the Sant Antoni de la Grella chapel, featuring the Coral Sant Antoni. A free shuttle service departs at 10:45am from the Centre Vila bus stop. At noon, the traditional Encants market will be hosted for the first time by local youth Marc Martos. Performances include the Esbart Valls del Nord—honoured with this edition's escudella dish—and the Grossband, with additional Pyrenean folk music during the meal.