Valencian paella
As we know that you love paella, we bring you the recipe
INGREDIENTS
(FOR 5 PEOPLE)
- 500 g rice (J. Sendra variety)
- 750 g chicken
- 200 g rabbit
- 150 g green beans (ferraura)
- 150 g flat green beans (rotjet)
- 60 g garrofó (a type of white bean)
- 200 g grated tomato
- 150 ml extra virgin olive oil
- 30 g salt
- Saffron Infusion (Minitip: Use about 6-7 saffron threads per person. Grind them in a mortar until they become powder. Add some paella broth and let it infuse. Just before adding the rice, incorporate the saffron infusion and you’re ready!)
- 5 g sweet paprika
Minitip: Keep in mind that there are cultures where rabbits are considered pets, and they won’t tolerate you putting it in the recipe. However, the traditional recipe includes it, and that’s how we’re going to do it here.
Minitip: The rabbit meat takes longer to cook than the chicken; add it when the chicken is less sautéed.
Minitip: The traditional recipe also includes vaquetes (snails), although it is optional. In fact, being an ingredient that can create controversy, I, who usually cook for a large number of people, don’t use it.
Introduction
Authentic paellas have their origins in the Valencian Community. That’s why this recipe is internationally recognized (we even have an emoji for it!) and people from all over the world seek it in restaurants as the traditional delicacy it is.
But authentic paellas are made according to the customs of each area within the Valencian Community. Why? Because the traditional paella, the one that smells like the countryside and smoke, is the one that has been cooked for Sundays, during Fallas, with friends or family, with your beer and chips while you cook it, while you talk to the company that tries to help you control that orange wood fire. And obviously, after preparing the paella, taking a dip in the pool in the summer before sitting at the table because you end up dripping wet. Making paella requires effort and love. And it can be cooked in a high-end kitchen or in a barbecue area next to a river during a summer outing.
I bring you the recipe from the Valencia area because, in principle, each area within the community has its own small variations (but variations, not atrocities like adding peas).
There are certified restaurants where you can go and enjoy a good traditional paella, but my advice is that you learn to make it yourselves and have a Sunday paella with family or friends.
Now I’ll leave you with the recipe for this traditional Valencian paella, which is carried in the hearts of all rice lovers. Because there have been a thousand different creative rice dishes since then, but us paella lovers know how a good plate of paella with socarrat reaches our hearts.
Preparation
First, pour the olive oil into the paella pan, level it, and turn the heat to very low. Around the oil, I like to sprinkle the salt so that the area doesn’t burn. When the oil is hot, add the chicken, mix it well with the previously sprinkled salt to season it. Let it cook over low heat, extracting all its juices, and when it is halfway browned, add the rabbit to finish cooking it all together. When all the meat is nicely browned, move it to the edges of the paella pan.
Add the vegetables (rotjet and ferraura) and cook them over low heat. Fry the vegetables briefly to preserve all their properties, flavor, and color; move them to the edges of the paella pan and lower the heat to the minimum.
Now comes a very important step. It’s time to add the paprika, and without stopping stirring, add the grated tomato that we prepared earlier.
Minitip: It’s extremely important not to let the paprika burn because it would make the whole paella bitter. That’s why another trick you can do is to mix the paprika directly with the grated tomato to prevent it from burning. Let the tomato cook well.
Minitip: Triple sofrito trick: when the tomato has been cooked, add a glass of water and let it cook again. Repeat this process up to three times. This will intensify the flavors of our paella.
Once the tomato is fried, mix it with all the ingredients in the paella pan and cook everything together for a few minutes until the tomato starts to stick to the pan. Then add the garrofó.
Now, pay attention. We won’t use prepared broth to achieve an authentic flavor of traditional Valencian paella. So, we need to make the broth on-the-go with the water we add, and we will reduce it. How? First, add the necessary amount of water for the rice you’re using and take note of the level it reaches in the pan. Once you’ve seen how high it goes, fill it up to the edge. Let it boil, and when it reduces to the level you noted before, incorporate the saffron infusion, the rice, and spread it evenly throughout the paella pan.
Turn the heat to the maximum for the first five minutes and evenly distribute the rice. The following five minutes, cook over medium heat. Taste for salt and adjust if necessary. For the last seven minutes, cook over low heat.
Let it rest for ten minutes while you finish your potatoes and olives, and enjoy!
online courses
Wellcome to Rice Paella online courses
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