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Orelletes (Andorran Fried Sugar Pastries)
A soft dough of flour, milk, egg and a little sugar, rested, then stretched paper-thin by hand, fried until crisp and blistered and dusted with sugar.
Andorran · medium · serves 6
prep 30 min · cook 25 min · plus 1 h hands-off time
~423 cal · 8g protein · 65g carbs · 14g fat · 2g fiber · 14g sugars · 2g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Orelletes, little ears, are crisp, thin fried pastries dusted with sugar, and they are one of the traditional sweets of Andorra. The name comes from their shape: stretched by hand, the dough ruffles in the hot oil like an ear. Related pastries are made across the Catalan and Occitan lands under names such as crespells and aurelhetas, and Andorra's tourism ministry notes that they appear in the Llibre de Sent Soví, a Catalan cookbook of the fourteenth century.
They were traditionally made for Easter, and in the old days, the official Andorran recipe book says, the dough was stretched over the knees with oiled hands so it would not stick. Bakeries in the old quarter of Andorra la Vella made them too, and children bought them on the way home from school.
The dough is simple: flour, milk, water, an egg, a little sugar and leavening, kneaded and left to rest for an hour. Small pieces are pulled thin with the fingers and fried quickly in very hot oil. The Andorran recipe book calls them a simple dessert that is also ideal for berenar, the afternoon snack.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally vegetarian and nut- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 6
- 400 g plain flour, plus a little for the work surface
- 125 ml whole milk
- 100 ml water
- 1 egg
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 2 tbsp sugar (for the dough)
- a pinch salt
- 500 ml olive oil or sunflower oil, for frying
- 4 tbsp sugar, for dusting
Instructions
- 1Heap the flour on the work surface or in a wide bowl and make a well in the middle. Put the salt, egg, sugar and baking powder in the well and add the water and milk little by little, working the flour in with your fingers.
- 2Knead for about 10 minutes, until the dough is smooth, soft and elastic. Cover it with a warm, damp cloth and leave it to rest for 1 hour.
- 3Pinch off pieces of dough the size of a walnut. Lightly oil your hands and stretch each piece with your fingers, working from the middle outwards, into a very thin round about 12 cm across, as thin as you can get it without tearing.✎ Chef’s noteThin is the whole point. A thick orelleta turns out bready instead of crisp.
- 4Heat the oil in a deep frying pan until very hot, about 180C (350F). Fry the orelletes one or two at a time for about 1 minute, turning once when the underside is pale golden and blistered, until crisp on both sides. The whole batch takes about 25 minutes.
- 5Lift them out onto paper towels and dust with sugar while still warm. They are best eaten the same day.
Andorran and Catalan tradition, as published in the Andorran government tourism recipe collection.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Andorra la Vella. Andorra is a country of high valleys with no coast and a short growing season, so the pantry is whatever keeps: cured mountain charcuterie, cheese off the summer pastures, mushrooms gathered in autumn, and escudella, the Catalan stew of meat and vegetables tied to the January festivals.
🗺️
Andorra. Andorra's mountain cuisine draws on Catalan and French Pyrenean traditions, trinxat (cabbage and potato with pork), hearty stews, and grilled meats. Cured sausage, mushrooms, and Alpine cheese define the table.
🌍
Europe. Europe has written a great deal of its food into law. A regulation of 1992 created the protected designation of origin and the protected geographical indication, tying a name to a place and a method, and an EU evaluation published in 2021 counted more than three thousand registered names across those schemes, from cheeses and hams down to particular shapes of bread.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Andorra
TrinxatMountain cabbage and potato mashed together, then crisped in a pan with bacon like a rustic Pyrenean rösti.
Pa amb TomàquetRustic bread rubbed with ripe tomato and garlic, drizzled with olive oil and salt.
EscudellaA mountain stew of meats, beans, and pasta with a big pilota meatball, the winter soul-food of Andorra.
Browse all Andorra recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Skillet or frying pan.
Storing it: Store in an airtight container. Most keep 2 to 3 days at room temperature, and longer refrigerated.
Make it an Andorra meal
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Frequently asked questions
What is Orelletes (Andorran Fried Sugar Pastries)?
A soft dough of flour, milk, egg and a little sugar, rested, then stretched paper-thin by hand, fried until crisp and blistered and dusted with sugar.
Where does Orelletes (Andorran Fried Sugar Pastries) come from?
Orelletes (Andorran Fried Sugar Pastries) is an Andorran dish from Andorra la Vella, Andorra.
Can Orelletes (Andorran Fried Sugar Pastries) be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Orelletes (Andorran Fried Sugar Pastries) recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions. Treat the substitutions as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Orelletes (Andorran Fried Sugar Pastries) safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we still count coconut as a tree nut to be cautious, although the FDA stopped listing it as one in 2025), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Orelletes (Andorran Fried Sugar Pastries) take to make?
About 1 h 55 min in all: 30 minutes prep and 25 minutes cooking, plus 1 h of hands-off waiting the method needs, serving 6.
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