Paella

[hitmanoo]

Would anyone care to share a recipe or two with a novice cook such as myself? Or perhaps a link to a recipe or two.

I searched high and wide on the internet and came up with such a dizzying array of paella recipes that my head began to spin.

[Abra]

Inspired by my new side firebox cooker and a dinner visit from Chefpeon, I decided that we would make paella over an open fire. It was the first time for either of us, and it really turned out beautifully (photos mostly courtesy of Mr. Chefpeon).

I decided that we would make two paellas, one with seafood and pork, and one with rabbit and chicken. I don't have a proper paella pan, so we used two cast iron skillets. There's sure a lot of mise en place with paella!

Here's Chefpeon browning the rabbit while I work on the sofrito

Our work in close-up

The seafood paella was made with a halibut and shrimp broth that I made, with a little added pimenton. The land paella was done with a homemade chicken broth with saffron. Here it is, going into the rice. By the way, I did find Bomba, which is, as advertised, an awesome rice. Hideously expensive here, but still awesome.

Here we've added the seafood, now that the rice is nearly done, and the fava beans and piquillo peppers, which are too delicate to get a lot of cooking.

The seafood paella is just about done, but the rabbit and chicken one is still soupy. We tried to wait for them both to be done, but ended up having a seafood course, then a meat course.

We decided to really go for it on getting a crunchy crust. Unfortunately, although delicious, it was mostly inseparable from the bottom of the pan. In fact, I can hear my husband in the kitchen right now, scraping away at it with vigor.

The seafood paella, however, was the essence of delicacy. Real food porn alert here!

We finished off with this cake

which is the Olive Oil and Rosemary Cake from the Babbo cookbook, and a real treat. We had some homemade blueberry ice cream with blueberries from my garden with it, but by then we were eating under the stars, and no flash disturbed our bliss.

[Chufi]

that seafood paella looks so good!

Did you just put the seafood on top and let it cook in the heat from the pan, or did you cover the pan (with the barbecue lid) to steam them? The prawns look so moist and delicious.

I wouldn't mind a slice of that cake, too.

[Abra]

We did close the grill lid to help the seafood cook, and to get more smoke flavor into the rice. The seafood did come out to be moist and tender - it didn't need to spend too long on the heat and there was so much seafood flavor in the stock that the rice was already very flavorful.

[hitmanoo]

That is some absolutely gorgeous looking paella!

It's still one of my goals to prepare a paella along the caliber of those.

[M.G. Apicius]

The pictures are beautiful. The food looked scrumptious, the paella perfect and the cake to so pretty that you you'll make Fred jealous when he sees it!

You do so many great food things, I think we need to live downstairs at your place so we don't miss anything!

[Chufi]

Yesterday I watched a friend cook paella for 20 on his birthdayparty. (Well, there were 15 of us, but it easily would have fed 20 )

chicken, sausage, beans, squid, onions and garlic frying. He is adding peppers and stewed pork.

the rice is added to the pan, along with 3 liquids: tomatosauce, chickenstock (with saffron) and shellfish stock.

Almost ready, the shellfish gets added to the pan. As you can see this is a giant pan.. large enough to fit over the 4 burners of the stove:

Here's the birthday-boy dishing it up:

It was delicious. We had a bit of trouble getting the rice evenly cooked, because of the way the pan was positioned over the burners, the rim cooked faster than the center. But this was solved by stirring gently and turning the pan around . There was a good crust.. just nicely charred and crispy!

[SuzySushi]

Just noticed this thread. Some seriously beautiful food here!

I'm not a paella traditionalist... I cook it in my (gasp!) wok, using high-quality Japanese sushi rice. What goes into it depends on what's available in my market at the time. Usually some combination of chicken or rabbit, seafood (shrimp, clams, mussels), ad chorizo, but I've also made vegetarian paella for vegetarian guests.

The best paella I've ever had was at a party at someone's home in Paris. I swear that paella pan must've been 24" across. Impressive!

[Paul B]

As promised, here are the pictures of our paella. The party was last night and it was a great success. This paella contained 48 chicken thighs, 12 large sausages, 4 pork tenderloins, salmon, white fish, mussels, clams, octopus, squid, home-made stock, brandy, saffron, peppers, green beans, peas, and other stuff I can't remember because of the, uh, sangria. We fed 40+ people and had enough left over for two meals, one of which I had for lunch today. The pan itself is 31 inches, ordered from paellapan.com, and sits on a dedicated three-ring propane burner. It took my buddy-in-paella Ian and myself about 90 from the lighting of the burner to being ready to serve. All the food had been pre-chopped, etc. Guests helped themselves straight from the pan.

The chicken has just gone into the pan (I'm the shorter of the two cooks). It's been marinating overnight in paprika. We used a lot of olive oil.

The fish has just been added. We got all the seafood at the downtown T&T in the morning.

The finished creation. I've just taken off the sheets of newspaper that we lay over the rice for the final 20 minutes as things steam. Nb. my t-shirt: Paellapocalypse Now.

Our friends dig in. After dinner we had a Flamenco show. We hired this group that we had seen at La Zuppa restaurant on Lonsdale. Great musicians, and very happy to get paella and sangria.

All in all, a great meal and a fun night.

Edited July 24, 2005 by Paul B (log)

[*Deborah*]

Wow!

*tips hat*

[canucklehead]

Paul - thanks for the great pic's. I waited by the phone, but alas to no avail.

I would be greedily scraping up the crunchy bits on the bottom of the pan.

[butter]

the t-shirt. That must have been a very delicious meal as most of your guests in the photo are very focused on eating it instead of talking. Were there any crusty bottom bits? What kind of saffron did you use?

[little ms foodie]

We just went camping this last weekend and made an outstanding paella on the campfire. I used my normal paella pan, no problems cleaning it up or anything- it's good to go again so I wouldn't worry about trying to find a cheap one. the good heavy bottom one is better.

this was definately the best paella I have made, the added smokey flavor was excellent. Not as huge as Paul B's this one was made in a 4 to 6 person sized pan. The picture was taken after the foil was lifted but before the scallions were added ( I brought peas too but forgot as we were drinking a bit of rioja while cooking!)

edited to add photo

Edited July 26, 2005 by little ms foodie (log)

[Paul B]

the t-shirt. That must have been a very delicious meal as most of your guests in the photo are very focused on eating it instead of talking. Were there any crusty bottom bits? What kind of saffron did you use?

←

Real Spanish saffron that my buddy got from a friend just back from Europe. And yes, there was a serious crust at the bottom. Said crust is apparently famed for its Viagara-like powers. No comment on whether or not this is true.

[Bonny]

I wrote a piece for National Public Radio's web-only food page today (Aug. 17, 2005) about authentic paella. You can view it by going to my blog at www.bonnywolf.com. I had made paella without a paella pan in the past but it really was easier with the right pan. And cooking it outdoors was great. It was a fun party.

What makes an authentic paella?

Does a paella have to be cooked in a special pan?  (There is one, but I can't remember the name of it at the moment.)

How varied are paellas compared to risotto?

What kind of image is conjured up for you when you think about or hear about paella?

For me, there is paella valenciana (the traditional kind incorporating chicken, pork, shellfish and vegetables) and a vegetarian paella.  I have made recipes which were a blurring of lines between paella and risotto.  What are your favorite kinds and recipes?

Discuss...

←

[Bonny]

I wrote a piece for National Public Radio's web-only food page today (Aug. 17, 2005) about authentic paella. You can view it by going to my blog at www.bonnywolf.com. I had made paella without a paella pan in the past but it really was easier with the right pan. And cooking it outdoors was great. It was a fun party.

What makes an authentic paella?

Does a paella have to be cooked in a special pan?  (There is one, but I can't remember the name of it at the moment.)

How varied are paellas compared to risotto?

What kind of image is conjured up for you when you think about or hear about paella?

For me, there is paella valenciana (the traditional kind incorporating chicken, pork, shellfish and vegetables) and a vegetarian paella.  I have made recipes which were a blurring of lines between paella and risotto.  What are your favorite kinds and recipes?

Discuss...

←

[shacke]

I checked the search function and recipe gullet to no avail, surprisingly. I am interested in making a paella and am looking for a gulleteer worthy recipe. I have a paella pan already. Tips and tricks are also welcome.

Thanks

Evan

[shacke]

I checked the search function and recipe gullet to no avail, surprisingly.  I am interested in making a paella and am looking for a gulleteer worthy recipe.  I have a paella pan already.  Tips and tricks are also welcome. 

Thanks

Evan

←

After several days of looking in vain, I can come up with no recipe for paella on egullet or recipe gullet. Seems bizarre... If someone has a tried and true one, please post it here for posterity. I am forced to switch gears to Louisiana for my dinner guests tomorrow. I would hate to trust my paella to a blind google search.

[hitmanoo]

I checked the search function and recipe gullet to no avail, surprisingly.  I am interested in making a paella and am looking for a gulleteer worthy recipe.  I have a paella pan already.  Tips and tricks are also welcome. 

Thanks

Evan

←

After several days of looking in vain, I can come up with no recipe for paella on egullet or recipe gullet. Seems bizarre... If someone has a tried and true one, please post it here for posterity. I am forced to switch gears to Louisiana for my dinner guests tomorrow. I would hate to trust my paella to a blind google search.

←

I'd love a paella recipe or two myself. My friend lent me his paella pan rather than put it in storage, and thus far it has gone unused...

[Chufi]

there are 2 recipes for paella by Penelope Casas on this site http://www.tienda.com/recipes/mains.html

[Paul B]

It's almost time for our annual paella party so I was looking over this forum for ideas and I noticed that no one has offered a recipe. Here is the master recipe that Ian and I put beside us when we're cooking paella for 40 people. I'll post pictures of this year's party later in July. . .

Paella master recipe

Pre-make Soffrito: tomatoes, garlic, onions, reduced to a paste. Before starting the paella, add 11 cups of Arborio rice to the Soffrito, heat and stir.

Heat olive in paella pan.

1. Brown chicken (40 thighs with bone, marinated in paprika for 12 hours) in olive oil

2. Add pork (4 boneless loin, cubed )

3. Add sausage (3 lbs. pre-boiled, cut up)

4. Add squid (4 lbs)

5. Add shrimp, lobster, 6 chopped peppers, 2 lbs asparagus green beans

6. Add mussels (40), clams (40)

7. Add 4 cups stock, 1 cup brandy

8. Add 11 cups soffrito-prepared rice

9. Add scallops, 4 cups frozen peas

10. Add stock as necessary (lots)

11. Cover with newspaper and allow to steam until done

12. Sprinkle with fresh lemon

[Paul B]

Pictures from this year's paella party. The theme this year was The Paella Code. Guests were randomly paired up and given a set of questions about paella. The winner received two small paella pans.

[hitmanoo]

Wow! That looks absolutely incredible!

What apparatus did you use to cook your paella?

[JBN]

Last year when I was visiting friends in Guatemala, they decided to make paella for a dinner party one night. I was flabbergasted when I saw them haul a “box” of “paella” out of the pantry. The box contained some Spanish rice, a can of chopped chicken, a can of pimientos, and I’ve forgotten what else. The cook had to add broth and shrimp. Voila! Paella.

I hadn’t made paella in decades, and when I had it was in a Le Creuset French oven with Uncle Ben’s Converted Rice, pepperoni, and frozen rock lobsterettes. I decided it was time to buy myself a real paellera start experimenting.

I wasn’t looking for “authentic.” I wasn’t going to be serving my friends snails or eels. I wanted a chicken and shellfish paella that would be a wonderfully tasty, one-dish, mostly do-ahead fun meal for company. After four or five tries I ended up with a recipe I’m quite pleased with. It’s based on Penelope Casas, but I’ve decreased the amount of chicken, upped the amount of shrimp, and added squid. The procedure is a bit of Casas, a bit of the new Gourmet, and a bit of “this is what worked for me.”

In that latter category, I found that unless I was going to Chinatown to get my shellfish and could buy shrimp with heads and other scraps to make a very hearty fish broth, I was better off using chicken stock. I just couldn’t get enough flavor into the broth using only shrimp shells. I also found that the clams and mussels didn’t always open fully and that if I gave them a bit of help in the microwave they looked better, tasted better, and I could add the juices to the fish broth. Finally, Casas doesn’t explain, Gourmet does, that if you’re using a 15-inch paellera on a regular home burner, you’re going to have to place the pan over two burners and keep rotating it to avoid hotspots. This was really awkward the first couple of times I tried it, but soon enough I just got into a rhythm.

I’m new here, and just came across this thread with people saying that they had found very few actual recipes for paella on the board so I thought I'd pass along this one. But it seems from a few posts I’ve read that people put commentary in one place and the actual recipe somewhere else. Is that true? If I’m doing something wrong here, I’d appreciate help, advice, or even initiation rites.

Joan

To serve 8 to 10

Paella a la Valenciana

(adapted from Penelope Casas)

18 small clams

18 small mussels

1 tablespoon of cornmeal

6 cups of very strong chicken broth or fish broth

½ teaspoon of saffron

1 small onion, peeled

1 small chicken, about 2½ to 3 lbs

½ cup olive oil

½ pound chorizo cut into ¼ inch slices

1 large pork chop, boned and diced

¼ pound chunk domestic prosciutto, diced

1 medium onion, chopped

4 scallions, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 roasted red peppers chopped or cut into strips

1 to 1½ pounds medium shrimp, shelled

½ pound squid

2 live lobsters, split and divided into tail sections and claws

3 cups Montsia or Calasparra rice

5 tablespoons chopped parsley

2 bay leaves, crumbled

½ cup dry white wine

1 tablespoon lemon juice

¼ pound frozen peas

Lemon wedges and parsely for garnish

1. If mussels are uncultivated, put in a bowl of salted water (½ cup salt to 1 cup water), sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of cornmeal, and refrigerate several hours or overnight. If cultivated, just scrub clams and mussels, put in a bowl, and refrigerate, coverered with a damp cloth, until needed.

2. Heat broth with the saffron and whole onion. Cover and simmer 15 minutes. Remove the onion and measure the broth--you need exactly 5½ cups.

3. Cut the chickens into small pieces -- breasts and thighs cut in half, wings into two pieces. Dry well and sprinkle with plenty of salt.

4. Heat the oil in a 15-inch paellera. Fry chicken over high heat until golden and set aside. Add chorizo, pork, and ham to the pan; stir fry about 10 minutes and set aside. Add the shrimp and squid and sauté 3 minutes. Add to reserved chorizo mixture. Add the lobster and sauté 3 minutes until barely red. Remove to the platter with the chicken. Add the chopped onion, scallions, garlic, and peppers and sauté until onion is wilted. Add the rice to the pan and stir to coat it well with the oil. Add 5 tablespoons chopped parsley and the crumbled bay leaves. (Can make 2 to 3 hours in advance up to this point.)

5. Cook clams and mussels in the microwave for about 1½ minutes on high or until just beginning to open and release their liquid. Strain liquid into broth and bring broth to a boil.

6. Add hot broth, wine, lemon juice, and peas to the rice in the paelleria. Bring to a boil and cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, over medium high heat for 10 minutes. Bury the shrimp and the chicken in the rice. Add the clams and the mussels, pushing them into the rice, with the open edge facing up. Arrange lobster pieces on top and then bake, uncovered, at 325 F. for 20 minutes.

7. Remove from the oven, cover tightly with foil, and let sit on top of the stove for about 10 minutes. Decorate with lemon wedges and chopped parsley.

[Paul B]

Wow!  That looks absolutely incredible!

What apparatus did you use to cook your paella?

←

The paella pan is sitting on top of a dedicated three-ring propane burner that has its own legs. It's a great invention. The first time we made used the pan we built a temporary stand out of cinder blocks and used charcoal. We almost set the yard on fire. The next year we got the burner (from paellapan.com) and it has made all the difference.

If you look closely at our t-shirts you can see a picture of the burner when it is lit. It became the symbol of the paella code this year.