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Spanish Paella

We were in San Diego last week and while strolling through Balboa Park, a lady from one of the stalls calls us to taste Paella. We had just eaten a late lunch and since she said taste, we decided why not. She hands us a plate of paella and casually asked for $5. Though we felt duped, the aroma wafting the air and of course being on vacation makes us very forgiving. The paella was absolutely delicious.

Our friend Paul Somerhausen, who heads the  Sacramento Epicurean group is from Ibiza, Spain. We asked him for the recipe and he sent it to us right away and we then sent another email asking if we can blog this recipe and he said YES.  The recipe is easily adaptable to make either a chicken version, sea food version or vegetarian version. We omitted seafood in the this recipe and used a le creuset skillet and it worked perfectly.

In Paul’s words about Paella, “Paella is a very popular dish both in Spain and now around the world.  As you probably have found, there are dozens of versions of this dish.   But rest assured that there is no wrong way to prepare it; whether you want to make it mixed with meat and seafood like this in this recipe, or you prefer just vegetables, just white meat or just seafood, it will turn out just as tasty.

Paella is named after the pan it is prepared in, it is wide and shallow and usually has two loop handles, and has a unique dimpled surface to help distribute the heat.  There are many sizes depending on need. This recipe is based on a 16” pan that feeds up to 15 people, and also so it will fit in the oven.  Oven? You may ask, yes! Most people do not have a BBQ or fire pit big enough to cook it the more authentic way, plus the oven offers the advantage of controlled even temperatures.  If you do not have a paella pan yet, you could use an oven proof large frying pan to try this recipe, and adjust the measurements depending on the size of the pan you will be using.”

For a Seafood version include along with the rest of the ingredients1 lb. each of medium to large fresh clams in the shell,medium/large unpeeled shrimp, medium/large fresh (or frozen) mussels and calamari steak, cut into large bite sizes.

We used chicken and Andouille chicken sausages.

4 Chicken Andouille Sausages, sliced into think rounds

2 lb. boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite size pieces

Veggies:

1 cup frozen green peas

1 red bell pepper, cut into long strips

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

1 16 ounce can of diced tomatoes or 2 cups of fresh diced tomatoes

4-6 garlic cloves, minced

2 cups uncooked Spanish rice (calasparra or bomba, although arborio works too)

1 ½ quart of chicken or seafood broth

2 pinches of saffron

½ of a bunch of fresh parsley, minced

4-5 sprigs of fresh rosemary, whole

2 lemons, quartered

Extra virgin olive oil

Preheat the oven to 450F.

In large pot slowly heat up the broth until it barely simmers, do not let it boil, but keep it barely simmering.

Heat up paella pan/ skillet over medium heat and add a generous amount of extra virgin olive oil to coat bottom of pan.  Once the oil is heated add the onion and garlic and sauté them for 5 minutes or until they start to turn golden brown.  Then add the tomatoes, bell pepper, chicken, and sausages.  Sauté the mixture for another 5 to 7 minutes to ensure even heat exposure.

Sprinkle the rice evenly around the pan, and add the green peas .  Mix the ingredients thoroughly for 2 minutes to make sure the rice is throughout the mixture.  Crush the saffron finely and spread evenly over mixture. Pour over 4 cups of the preheated broth and turn the heat up until the liquid boils.   Carefully lift paella pan and transfer it to the oven and cook for 15 minutes.

Open the oven and taste the rice at this point; it should be slightly undercooked and a little crunchy.  Check the level of the broth and add another cup evenly over mixture if none is visible anymore.  Close the oven and let the paella cook for another 5 minutes.  Remove from the oven and sprinkle parsley on top and spread the branches of rosemary evenly.  Cover the pan with 2-3 clean kitchen towels.  Let the paella rest for 10-15 minutes to finish cooking and to let the herbs infuse.  Serve the paella surrounded by the lemon wedges and enjoy!

For a vegetarian version, you can use tofu sausages and vegetables like carrot, Zucchini and mushroom along with green peas and bell pepper.

Verdict: It was flavorful and tasted very good. We will probably add a little seafood next time. This will be a regular in our kitchen! Saffron gives it that flavor which simply makes it heavenly.

This dish goes to the event JFI- Saffron. Sorry it is not vegetarian, but a dish that truly crown saffron the queen!

Stay tuned for some wonderful pictures this Sunday!