Authentic Paella Food

AUTHENTIC PAELLA

Steps:

• Rinse the rice with cold water; drain; set aside. Bring the chicken stock to a boil in a saucepan over medium-high heat, reduce the heat to low, cover, and keep warm. Work the garlic, parsley, curry powder, saffron threads, salt, black pepper, and 1/2 cup of the hot chicken stock together with a mortar and pestle until a smooth liquid forms; set the seasoning liquid aside.
• Heat the olive oil in a paella pan over medium-high heat; cook and stir the onion until lightly browned. Stir in the chicken, shrimp, lobster, and clams; cook and stir until the chicken is no longer pink in the center, about 10 minutes. Pour in the seasoning liquid.
• Stir in the rice, pour in the hot chicken stock, and simmer until the rice is nearly tender, about 15 minutes. Add mushrooms, peas, and mussels; stir two times, and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat; cover and let stand until rice is soft and flaky, about 7 minutes.

AUTHENTIC SPANISH PAELLA

Steps:

• It's best to have all of your ingredients prepared before you start cooking.
• Prepare the rabbit by separating the legs, cutting remaining meat into small slices and lightly salting. (In my area rabbit is seasonal. During the summer and fall I substitute with chicken legs).
• I peel my shrimp, leaving only the tail and then salt them. In Spain they tend to leave the shrimp unshelled.
• I always try to make my chicken stock from scratch (time permitting), adding a bit of rosemary, a tiny pinch of saffron and a bit of thyme. If you're going to use bouillon, I'd recommend at least heating it up with these herbs and then straining before you start.
• Keep your stock hot but not boiling as you cook.
• Coat the bottom of your pallera/pan with olive oil.
• Brown your chorizo over high heat for 1-2 minutes. Do not fully cook, just get the outside well browned. Set aside. This should add a nice red color and a hell of a flavor to your oil.
• Brown the Rabbit for 2-3 minutes. It should not be fully cooked. Set aside.
• Brown garlic, onion and bell pepper until they're softened, adding plum tomatoes shortly before the mixture is finished.
• Push the vegetables to one side of the pan and on the other add the half can of tomato paste. Caramelize it, flipping it and spreading it until it begins to loosen (1-2 min over hight heat).
• Mix all of the vegetables and meats together with the caramelized tomato paste also adding the paprika, parsley and thyme.
• Add rice, mixing together and stirring as the rice browns (1-1 1/2) minutes. As the rice browns mix in the saffron. Make sure to break it between your fingers and stir it in to release all those tasty oils.
• When the rice is slightly translucent add enough chicken stock to cover the whole mixture. If it's been kept warm, it will begin to boil almost immediately. Lower to a medium heat but keep it at a steady boil.
• This is where paella is made and broken. I stir a few times in the first 5-10 minutes, adding broth as necessary to keep the rice fully covered. After this you must let the paella SIT! Let it cook another 10-20 minutes (I find that this step takes longer on a stovetop), adding broth bit by bit to keep the rice submerged until the rice on the top is al dente. Don't worry about rice burning to the bottom, this part (which actually has a name which escapes me at the moment, it's something like socarrat) is a tasty delicacy.
• Once you've stirred the paella for the last time and are letting cook, when you have about 8 minutes left to cook lay shrimp on top, turning over after 2-4 minutes to cook other side.
• When the rice on top is still quite al dente, take paella off of heat and cover. You must let it sit for 15-20 minutes. I've taken the lid off prematurely and ended up with a crunchy mess. Patience is the key.
• Once you're sure it's ready uncover, garnish with lemon wedges and enjoy!

AUTHENTIC PAELLA VALENCIANA

Steps:

• Heat a paella pan over medium-high heat, and coat with olive oil. Add the chicken, rabbit and garlic; cook and stir until nicely browned. Move the browned meat to the sides of the pan, and add the tomato, butter beans, peas, and green beans. Season with paprika, and mix well.
• Fill the paella pan almost to the top with water, measuring the water as you put it in. This is to help you to determine how much rice to add, as paella pans come in different sizes. Bring to a boil. Simmer for about 1 hour to make a nice broth.
• Season with a generous amount of salt, and just enough saffron to make a nice yellow color. Season with thyme and rosemary if desired. The goal is to make a rich tasting broth that will soak into the rice to make it delicious. Stir in half as much rice as the amount of water in the pan. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer until all of the liquid has been absorbed, about 20 minutes.

AUTHENTIC SPANISH SEAFOOD PAELLA

Steps:

• Rouchly chop 3 cloves of garlic, finely dice 1/2 onion, finely chop 1/2 red bell pepper and cut 1 cleaned tube of squid into small squares
• Heat a paella pan with a medium-high heat and add in 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, after 1 minute season the olive oil with sea salt and add in the cut squid, mix with the olive oil and cook for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes, then remove from the pan and set aside, then add in the diced onion & chopped garlic into the pan, mix with the olive oil, after 1 minute add in the chopped bell pepper and continue to mix so everything evenly sautees
• After 3 minutes, add in 1/2 cup tomato sauce and season everything with 1/2 tsp sweet smoked paprika, sea salt & black pepper, mix together, after 2 minutes and the tomato sauce has thickened, add the squid back into the pan, mix together and then add in 2 1/2 cups fish broth
• Once the broth comes to a boil add in 1 cup round rice, give it one final mix so everything is evenly distributed, after 5 to 6 minutes add in the shrimp and the cleaned mussels, after another 5 minutes, lower the fire to a low-medium heat and simmer until all the broth has been absorbed by the rice, then hit back to a medium-high heat to achieve the socarrat, just go between 1 to 2 minutes, then remove the pan from the heat and cover
• After 5 minutes uncover the pan, and garnish the paella with lemon wedges and finely chopped parsley, enjoy!

AUTHENTIC SEAFOOD PAELLA

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in a large skillet or paella pan over high heat. Cook and stir onion, tomato, salt, and smoked paprika into the hot oil until softened, about 3 minutes. Add romano beans, butter beans, and rice; cook and stir until rice is coated with oil, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Place shrimp, mussels, and clams over the top of the rice mixture. Pour in white wine and seafood stock; sprinkle in saffron threads and rosemary. Bring mixture to a simmer. Turn shellfish and continue to cook until clams and mussels have opened, and shrimp are pink and cooked through, about 5 minutes. Remove clams, mussels, and shrimp and set aside.
• Stir peas into the paella; simmer, uncovered, until rice is tender and has absorbed the liquid, 20 to 25 minutes. Stir in squid, and return clams, mussels, and shrimp to the pan. Cook until squid is opaque and cooked through, 2 to 3 more minutes. Serve with lemon wedges and chopped parsley.

THE ULTIMATE PAELLA

Steps:

• Combine the paprika and oregano in a small bowl. Rub the spice mix all over the chicken and marinate chicken for 1 hour in the refrigerator.
• Heat oil in a paella pan over medium-high heat. Saute the chorizo until browned, remove and reserve. Add chicken skin-side down and brown on all sides, turning with tongs. Add salt and freshly ground pepper. Remove from pan and reserve.
• In the same pan, make a sofrito by sauteing the onions, garlic, and parsley. Cook for 2 or 3 minutes on a medium heat. Then, add tomatoes and cook until the mixture caramelizes a bit and the flavors meld. Fold in the rice and stir-fry to coat the grains. Pour in water and simmer for 10 minutes, gently moving the pan around so the rice cooks evenly and absorbs the liquid. Add chicken, chorizo, and saffron. Add the clams and shrimp, tucking them into the rice. The shrimp will take about 8 minutes to cook. Give the paella a good shake and let it simmer, without stirring, until the rice is al dente, for about 15 minutes. During the last 5 minutes of cooking, when the rice is filling the pan, add the lobster tails. When the paella is cooked and the rice looks fluffy and moist, turn the heat up for 40 seconds until you can smell the rice toast at the bottom, then it's perfect.
• Remove from heat and rest for 5 minutes. Garnish with peas, parsley and lemon wedges.

SEAFOOD PAELLA

Steps:

• Fry the onion in the oil in a 16-inch paella pan until soft, stirring often. Stir in the garlic, and before it begins to color, add the tomatoes. Add the sugar, salt to taste, pimentón (or paprika), and saffron, stir well, and cook until the tomatoes are reduced to a jammy sauce and the oil is sizzling. Add the squid and cook, stirring, for a minute or so. Add the rice and stir well until all the grains are coated. (You can prepare the dish to this point up to an hour in advance.)
• Bring the stock and wine to a boil in a saucepan. Pour over the rice, bring to a boil, and add salt to taste (even if the broth tastes a bit salty, it will not be salty when it is absorbed by the rice). Stir well and spread the rice out evenly in the pan (do not stir again). Cook the rice over low heat for 18 to 20 minutes, moving the pan around and rotating it so that the rice cooks evenly. Lay the shrimp on top after 10 minutes and turn them when they have become pink on the first side. Add a little more hot stock toward the end if the rice seems too dry and you hear crackly frying noises before it is done. When the rice is done, turn off the heat and cover the pan with a large piece of foil.
• Steam the mussels with a finger of water in a pan with a tight-fitting lid. As soon as they open, they are cooked. Throw away any that have not opened.
• Arrange the mussels on top of the paella.

EASY PAELLA

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, mix together 2 tablespoons olive oil, paprika, oregano, and salt and pepper. Stir in chicken pieces to coat. Cover, and refrigerate.
• Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet or paella pan over medium heat. Stir in garlic, red pepper flakes, and rice. Cook, stirring, to coat rice with oil, about 3 minutes. Stir in saffron threads, bay leaf, parsley, chicken stock, and lemon zest. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce heat to medium low. Simmer 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a separate skillet over medium heat. Stir in marinated chicken and onion; cook 5 minutes. Stir in bell pepper and sausage; cook 5 minutes. Stir in shrimp; cook, turning the shrimp, until both sides are pink.
• Spread rice mixture onto a serving tray. Top with meat and seafood mixture.

PORTUGUESE PAELLA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Sprinkle chicken with rosemary, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and black pepper.
• Heat oil in a large oven proof nonstick skillet or paella pan over medium-high heat.
• Add chicken; cook for 3 minutes on each side or until lightly browned.
• Remove chicken from pan; cover and keep warm.
• Add chourice and cook until lightly browned;.
• Add onion and bell pepper; cook for 7 minutes, stirring constantly.
• Add rice, tomato, paprika, saffron and garlic; cook for 1 minute stirring constantly.
• Return chicken to pan.
• Add broth and 1/4 teaspoon of salt; bring to boil.
• Wrap handle of pan with foil, cover pan;.
• Bake at 400°F for 10 minutes.
• Stir in shrimp, asparagus, and peas.
• Cover and bake an additional 5 minutes or until shrimp are no longer translucent.

EASY PAELLA

Steps:

• Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan or wok. Add the onion and soften for 5 mins.
• Add the smoked paprika, thyme and paella rice, stir for 1 min, then splash in the sherry, if using. Once evaporated, stir in the chopped tomatoes and chicken stock.
• Season and cook, uncovered, for about 15 mins, stirring now and again until the rice is almost tender and still surrounded with some liquid.
• Stir in the seafood mix and cover with a lid. Simmer for 5 mins, or until the seafood is cooked through and the rice is tender. Squeeze over the lemon juice, scatter over the parsley and serve with the lemon wedges.