As I sometimes do, we took a break from tradition this Christmas Eve dinner. We feasted on an as-authentic-as-I could-get-it Spanish Paella!
Santa brought me this real-deal pan, large enough to feed a crowd ya think?
Since this was the pans maiden voyage, I had my hands full so the demo photo-shoot is a little lacking. I will do a full demo next time I make it. But you will get the idea...
I started by ordering and gathering Saffron and Spanish bittersweet smoked paprika- both essential flavors for paella. I seasoned the chicken with paprika, rosemary, thyme, salt & pepper...wait the saffron comes later!
This is all dark meat chicken thighs and Mexican chorizo sausage. I wasn't able to locate any "Spanish cooking chorizo" but plan to hunt some down next time. The Mexican had good flavor, wasn't hot at all and was even a little sweet. Good but not what I expected.
You need twice as much tomato as onion and chopped garlic to taste.
Slice the tomato and onions in half and grate on a box grater. Some online demos I looked at used a food processor- I think this is a better technique. The tomato skin could get tough during cooking if you used a processor.
By grating the onion and tomato you get an amazing texture especially for the tomato. I plan to try this technique on a tomato bisque soup soon! Grate it all the way down to the skin and discard the skin. Keep the onion and tomato separate for the time being.
Ok here is where the demo gets a little spotty! My heat source is a work in process, this is a "fire pit" propane burner. It worked pretty good, but I have a couple ideas to make it better next time but it will involve some welding-- Linda, I'm talking to you!
Then we cook the meat, I wanted it all the way done before moving on because once the rice goes in it actually goes pretty quick. Next time I will not use bone-in chicken, too hard to cook evenly in this vessel. Also- I wound up cutting up the chorizo with scissors. Loose meat next time.
Somehow we missed a picture of the Sofrito. Once the chicken and sausage were nearly done, I moved them to the outside edge of the pan. In the center, in the remaining cooking liquid and olive oil, I added the grated onion and garlic. Slowly cook down the onion caramelizing it, then add the grated tomato. Cook gently to get the Sofrito to brown a bit in color from the caramelizing.
Now the rice... At the end of the day it's all about the rice. The meats, seafood and vegetables are all well and good but it's the rice that makes it Paella.
Paella rice is a medium grained little fat white rice. "Bomba" rice. It looks like risotto rice but it is different. In risotto, you have to stir constantly. In Paella, once the stock goes in you don't touch it again. Use the right rice.
The rice is added in the shape of a cross. I'm sure this is significant, I will report more on that next time. You can barely see the Sofrito beneath the rice.
I used the stock from the clams and mussels I cooked off earlier, it was warming on the BBQ grill burner. A tea was made with a cup of stock and a pinch of carefully toasted Saffron. First the rice was stirred into the Sofrito until well coated and evenly spread over the bottom of the pan. Then I added the Saffron and stock "tea' and gradually added more of the stock until the rice was just covered.
The rice cooked around 10-15 minutes before it started to come up to the top and the stock was absorbed, remember, NO stirring!
In goes the clams and mussels. These can go in uncooked (which is typical) but since I wanted the stock, I cooked mine ahead.
Don't forget the prawns and a few king crab leg pieces for looks!
Turn the prawns over. Sprinkle in some frozen peas.
Let rest under foil, heat off for about 10 minutes. I never did quit get to the ideal toasted rice bottom called "socarrat" . That is going to take some practice!
Add some lemons. Paella is traditionally eaten right out of the pan. I served it with some tortillas and salad. Everyone loved it!
Merry Christmas!
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