Traditional Albanian paçe — the warming soup with lamb’s head and trotters

Paçe is one of the most beloved soups of traditional Albanian cuisine: a rich, warming broth, slow-cooked with lamb’s head and trotters, served with garlic, vinegar and hot pepper.

INGREDIENTS (for 6 people)
– 1 well-cleaned lamb’s head (or 1 kg lamb trotters)
– 2–3 extra lamb trotters (optional)
– 3 liters of water
– 1 large onion
– 2 carrots
– 1 celery stalk
– 2–3 bay leaves
– 10 black peppercorns
– Salt to taste

To serve:
– 5–6 crushed garlic cloves
– 100 ml apple vinegar
– 1 teaspoon hot red pepper

PREPARATION
1. Clean the lamb’s head and trotters well: wash them with cold water, remove any remaining hairs and cut the trotters into pieces.
2. Place them in a large pot, cover with cold water and bring to a boil. Carefully skim off the foam that forms on the surface.
3. Add the onion, carrots, celery, bay leaves, black pepper and salt. Lower the heat and simmer slowly for 2.5–3 hours, until the meat falls easily off the bone.
4. Remove the vegetables, strain the broth and separate the meat from the bones. Return the meat to the broth and simmer for another 10 minutes.
5. For the serving sauce: crush the garlic and mix it with the vinegar and a little salt.
6. Serve the paçe hot, with the garlic-vinegar sauce and hot pepper on top, as desired.

Prep time: 30 minutes. Cooking time: about 3 hours. Servings: 6.