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Paella Me!
Paella (pi-AY-yuh) A Spanish dish of saffron-flavored rice combined with a variety of meats and shellfish (such as shrimp, lobster, clams, chicken, pork, ham and chorizo), garlic onions, peas, artichoke hearts and tomatoes. It is named after the special two-handled paella pan in which it is prepared and served. The pan is wide, shallow and 13 to 14 inches in diameter.
John Yager has mastered the art of “paellaing.” John is a brilliant mechanic, husband, father, and, more recently, chef extraordinaire. I love talking food with him. He really knows his stuff. Below is an article he recently wrote about Paella. I hope that he doesn’t mind my sharing his fabulous recipe. Thanks, John. Can’t wait for you to come back to Gourmet Gallery to conduct another Paella class!
The Legend of Paella
by John Yager
According to Spanish legend, if you ask a man from Andalucia for his paella receipe, he will be obliged to provide at least three recipes: his own, his wife’s and his mother’s.
I am now convinced there is magic at work in the preparation of this bounteous feast. The cook should be warned, therefore, that while he or she can set the course, the final destination revealing the exotic tastes, textures and colors of this most celebratory dish is determined by forces in the universe over which cooks have scant control.
The name paella derives from the pan, called paellera, and does not refer to any ingredient. As best I can determine, the only requirements for authentic paella are the pan, rice, olive oil, and saffron. The remainder is determined by the cook.
The paellera has a circular configuration, about two inches deep, with two handles. It is made of metal which rusts easily so it must be dried completely after washing. You may also find pans with the same general appearance but made from more fashionable materials, sometimes brightly colored. These are just fine for cooking paella, but no pan is more efficient than a cast iron frying pan because of its heat distribution properties and capacity to retain heat for extended time after cooking is completed. Paella looks great in whatever you cook it, and nothing tastes better.
The paella described here is based on the Valencia model which includes shellfish and meat and begins with a potent base of flavor called sofrito.
This recipe has evolved over the years, but the technique for preparation has remained constant.
Paella Espania
14” Paella pan
6 chicken thighs
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
Salt and black pepper
Pinch of sweet paprika
1 teaspoon saffron threads
1/4 cup olive oil
2 chorizo sausages
1/3 yellow onion minced
3 tablespoons roasted garlic
1 can tomato paste
1 1/2 cups medium grain rice
3 cups chicken broth
3 small lobster tails, split
1/4 lb calamari rings
1/2 lb jumbo shrimp
1/2 lb scallops
1/4 cup frozen sweet peas
Lemon wedges
Red peppers cut into strips
Rinse chicken pieces and pat dry. Season with salt, black pepper and oregano. Heat oil in the paella pan. Brown chicken on all sides, when nearly cooked through, add the chorizo links, and brown.
Remove the chicken and the sausage from the pan. Cut the sausages into slices and set aside. Drain excess oil, but don’t clean the pan! Make a “sofrito” by sauteing the onions, add the tomato paste and cook until the mixture caramalizes a bit and the flavors meld. Add the roasted garlic, season with salt, black pepper and paprika.
Add the chicken stock and simmer for 10 minutes, gently moving the pan around so the rice cooks and absorbs evenly. DO NOT COVER or constantly stir.
Add the chicken and sausage, simmer without stirring until the rice is al dente. Add the shrimp and lobster tails and let cook for five to seven minutes. Add scallops and calamari. Scatter peas and let cook until the liquid is absorbed. Allow to rest off the heat for five minutes. Garnish with lemon wedges and pepper strips. The ideal paella has a toasted rice bottom called “socarrat.”
Additional notes from Karyn:
You really don’t need to serve anything else with a paella except maybe a simple salad and a dry Rose. You might even encourage guests to eat straight from the pan, the traditional way to eat paella. This is a labor-intensive dish probably best for special occasions, but the making of paella is an occasion by itself. It is rumored that the soccarat has aphrodisiac powers; so choose your guests wisely!
Happy Cooking!
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Comments
By Karyn Miller
October 24, 2008 6:00 PM | Link to this | Report comment abuse
WHAT IS SOCCARAT?
By Karyn Miller
October 25, 2008 9:32 AM | Link to this | Report comment abuse
The ideal paella has a toasted rice bottom called “socarrat.”
By Dewana
October 28, 2008 8:00 AM | Link to this | Report comment abuse
I cannot find the saffron at the grocery store.I asked an employee and they had no clue.Any suggestions? Love the blog!
By Ronny Pike
October 28, 2008 9:35 AM | Link to this | Report comment abuse
Karen, In the Paella recipe I don’t see when the rice is to be added. Is it put in at the same time as the chicken stock?? Recipe sounds great.
Do kitchen shops like yours generally sell Paella pans? I live in Baton Rouge, LA and would like to know where to start looking for one. I don’t think I have seen one in any department type stores. I enjoy reading your column online. Thanks.
By Karyn Miller
October 28, 2008 2:45 PM | Link to this | Report comment abuse
Ronnie: Thanks for the note - and thanks for reading the blog. That rice is a pretty integral part of Paella! Add the rice just before the chicken stock. Stir it around with all the carmelized stuff. After you add the broth, DON’T STIR!
By Kim
October 29, 2008 12:40 PM | Link to this | Report comment abuse
This is a great discussion of paella, which I grew up eating often. Dewana, you can buy saffron at the HEB in Hewitt. It’s going to set you back about $12 for jar with 3-4 small vials of the threads, but it’s well worth it.
My question has to do with the link chorizo mentioned in the recipe … where can that be found locally? I have purchased chorizo here in Texas and it’s always the greasy, crumbly kind found in Mexican cooking. The chorizo I grew up with was more like a hard pepperoni that you would slice and saute. Sounds like this is what Mr. Yager’s recipe calls for and I would like to know where to find it. thanks!
By the way … socarrat was one of my favorite treats when I was a kid!! I didn’t know it had a name. It’s delicious!
By chris
October 31, 2008 8:50 AM | Link to this | Report comment abuse
I love paella and Spanish cookery in general here’s couple of great web resources for you interested folks.
for outstanding Spanish ingredients including dry cured chorizo and jamons serrano y iberico (they’ll change your life) check out www.tienda.com
also one of the best resources I’ve found for hard to find spices online is www.worldspice.com
both of these places probably have great high quality saffron, and I can vouch for their chile powders as well including delicious traditionally Spanish smoked paprikas
By Karyn Miller
November 1, 2008 2:22 PM | Link to this | Report comment abuse
Chris: Thanks for the tips! Chef Shien at HEB said that they DO carry a couple of different types of saffron there. And, yes, it is expensive - in fact, it’s the world’s MOST expensive spice - but it is so versatile that it is worth the price. And, a little goes a long way.
By Karyn Miller
November 1, 2008 2:27 PM | Link to this | Report comment abuse
Ronny Pike: I forgot to let you know that we DO carry paella pans. I would suspect that most specialty food stores could at least order one for you. It seems like a long trip to Waco from Louisana for a paella pan, but I assure you that we at Gourmet Gallery would be most hospitable if you made that trip!
By michael osborne
November 2, 2008 10:46 PM | Link to this | Report comment abuse
Here’s a quick treatise on saffron, the world’s most expensive spice. You might ask, why is it so danged expensive? Well, saffron comes from a flower, the safron crocus. Inside each flower blossom are three tiny strands the color of smoked paprika. These strands are part of the flower’s sex organs. The strands must be harvested by hand. It takes an acre of flowers to make one pound of saffron. It’s a little labor intensive—hence the expense. In case you ever wondered where those Tibetan monks get their yellow/orange robes, they shop at saffron-mart. Their robes are dyed in saffron. What puts that brilliant color and ephemeral flavor in dishes like spanish rice, bouillabaise, paealla, and chiopinno? Saffron. What’s it comparable to? It’s not really like anything else. Aside from the color it imparts, there’s a wonderful aroma and a subtle flavor. In that way I guess it is like foie gras or truffles—it’s a true one-of-a-kind ingredient. Accept no substitutes. Bite the bullet, spend the bucks, and get the real deal. The best saffron comes from Spain. Just like wine, saffron comes from highly regulated and controlled apellations, grown according to rigorous standards. Oh, and it’s been really expensive throughout history. In the days of the spice caravans between Europe and the far east (a la Marco Polo), travelers used saffron for currency because it was so much lighter and easier to conceal than coin of the realm. I’ve heard of some recipes that ask you to fold the saffron threads in newspaper and toast them over a gas flame before adding to the recipe. Most of the time I’ll crush them a little with a mortar and pestle and rehydrate with some stock before adding to the dish.