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Paella Made Perfect
The “Paella Lady” shares her secrets
Written by Sarah Jay
IT ALL began 22 years ago on a study-abroad program in Spain. Stepping off a bus in Granada to meet my host family, I was greeted by Isidora, a smiling older woman with kind eyes. It was after 10pm, but the first thing we did was head to a nearby bar to share una tapa and una caña (a beer). Only then did Isidora take me to my new home, where she proceeded to feed me again—a midnight meal of olive-oil-fried chicken and fries.
And that pretty much sums up how I spent the next four months: Eat. Drink. Repeat.
Formerly a picky eater, in Spain I had what they called una buena cuchara (a good spoon). I devoured everything my host family offered: Manchego cheese, chorizo, jamon serrano, home-cured olives, black sausage, an incredibly delicious peasant dish called migas de pan (fried bread crumbs). Everything was a revelation, but the dish that captured my heart, and that set in motion my lifelong love of Spanish food, was paella.
It was a weekly ritual. Every Sunday we headed out to the cortijo (a country house), 18 of us, where Isidora cooked up our lunch in a two-foot-wide paella pan. I’d watch carefully as she browned the meat, sautéed the vegetables and cooked the sofrito. Then she would add rice and water (never broth) and simmer until the rice was tender. Finally, we would gather around the magnificent paella, and with a lemon wedge in one hand and a fork in the other, we dove in. Plates unnecessary.
Returning home, I tried my hand at the dish. My first attempts in a skillet were not impressive. But then I snagged a huge, well-seasoned paella pan at the James Beard Foundation’s biannual tag sale in Manhattan, and my paella adventures took off. I held big, fat paella parties for friends and family. I became known as the Paella Lady (though not yet of Queens).
Fast forward a few years later to when I met a Spanish man named Isidro, married him and decided on a whim to start importing paella pans. It was 1997, a time when people thought paella was nothing special, just a kind of Spanish-style jambalaya.
I was determined to straighten them out. My mission was to show how spectacular real Spanish paella could be, and to give people the tools and techniques to make it themselves. I smuggled home an initial purchase of 30 pans in my luggage and peddled them at my paella parties. Thus began the business. Except it was more hobby than business since I also had a full-time job as an editor at Fine Cooking magazine.
Nonetheless, my timing was good. Spanish food was coming of age, and my little company, which started in a basement in Connecticut, eventually grew legs. Four years ago, I took the plunge. I moved my family and my company to the international food mecca of Jackson Heights, left my magazine job and focused on growing the business.
Today we stock a huge selection of paella pans and accessories, along with terra cotta cazuelas and other Spanish cookware. Though my customers now find me through my website, paellapans.com, rather than at paella parties, my focus hasn’t changed from the early days. It’s still all about helping people make authentic paella at home.
HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW, IN A NUTSHELL:
- · GET A PAELLA PAN. Why? Because its wide, shallow shape keeps the rice in a thin layer. Rule of thumb: The thinner the rice, the more delicious the paella.
- · USE MEDIUM-GRAIN RICE. Most paella chefs prefer an expensive variety from Spain called bomba, but the truth is that any medium-to-short grain rice will work. If you don’t want to break the bank, just use Goya’s version.
- · USE QUALITY SAFFRON. On this matter, I part with my mentor, Isidora, who used artificial yellow powder to color her paella, saffron being a luxury. I prefer the real thing, and you only need a pinch to do the job.
- · KEEP AN EYE ON THE PRIZE. There’s an uncertainty factor when cooking rice in a large, uncovered pan. The rate of evaporation varies, so the cooking time is never exactly the same. A couple of key points: Don’t be tempted to overfill the pan with garnishes (great paella is all about the rice) and never stir the rice once the liquid comes to a boil.
Paella with Shrimp, Clams and Mussels
Serves 6
This recipe, which works best in a 16-inch paella pan, calls for bomba rice, which absorbs more liquid than other varieties. If you use another medium-grain rice, you’ll only need to add 3. cups of broth to the rice.
Large pinch saffron (about 30 threads)
1 bottle (8 ounces) clam juice
1 small yellow onion, cut in half
1 very large ripe tomato or 2 small tomatoes
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
8 cloves garlic, 4 finely chopped and 4 whole
1/4 teaspoon sweet or hot pimentón (smoked Spanish paprika)
Kosher salt
12 large shell-on shrimp
1 pound mussels, cleaned
1 3/4 cups Spanish bomba rice (see headnote)
24 cockles (about 10 ounces), cleaned
2 lemons, cut in wedges, for serving
In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, toast the saffron until it’s fragrant, 30 to 60 seconds. Off the heat, crush the threads as finely as possible with the back of a spoon. Add the clam juice, bring to a boil and immediately remove from the heat. Set aside to infuse. Grate the onion on the largest holes of a box grater to get about 1/3 cup of onion puree (or you can puree it in a mini food processor). Cut the tomato in half horizontally. Grate on the box grater all the way down to the skin. You should have about 1. cups pureed tomato pulp. Set a 16-inch paella pan over medium-low heat. Add the olive oil and the grated onion. Cook the onion in the center of the pan, stirring occasionally, until it softens and darkens slightly, about 4 minutes. Stir in the tomato pulp, chopped and whole garlic, pimenton and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Gently cook this mixture, called a sofrito, in the center of the pan, stirring frequently, until it’s deep, dark red and very thick, about 30 minutes. Adjust the heat as needed, being careful not to let it burn. If it starts sticking, deglaze by adding a little water. (You can make the sofrito a day ahead and refrigerate it.)
Peel the shrimp and put the shells in a medium saucepan. Pat the shrimp dry with paper towel, season with salt and set aside. Set the saucepan with the shrimp shells over medium-high heat, stirring until they’re dry and pink, 2 to 3 minutes. Add 5 cups water and bring to a boil. Pick through the mussels to find the smallest eight; reserve in the refrigerator. Add remaining mussels to the boiling water. Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Strain the broth into a large bowl, discarding the shells and mussels. Add the reserved saffron-clam broth and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt to the shrimp-mussel broth. Measure out 5. cups of the broth, reserving the remainder.
When the sofrito is done, add the rice to the paella pan and cook briefly over medium heat, stirring constantly to combine it with the sofrito, 1 to 2 minutes. Spread the rice evenly in the pan. Increase the heat to high and pour in 5 1/4 cups broth. Shake the pan gently and use a spoon to help spread out the rice again, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat slightly to maintain a vigorous simmer, repositioning the pan as needed so it bubbles all the way to the edges. From this point on, do not stir the rice. Simmer vigorously until the rice appears at the same level as the broth, about 8 minutes. If the rice has appeared before 8 minutes, pour a little of the reserved broth into the pan. Arrange the clams and reserved mussels in the pan, distributing them evenly. Lower the heat so the broth maintains a more gentle simmer. After another 5 minutes, arrange the shrimp in the pan, pushing them into the rice. Continue simmering until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender but still firm (taste a few grains beneath the top layer), about 5 minutes more. If all the clams and mussels haven’t opened, or if the shrimp is still undercooked by the time the rice is done, cover the pan loosely with foil for a few minutes to trap the heat and finish cooking.
Check for any caramelized rice sticking to the pan (a delicacy called socarrat) by using a spoon to feel for resistance on the bottom of the pan. Check in several areas, especially the center. If there is none, increase the heat to medium high and carefully cook, moving the pan around, until you hear a good deal of crackling and feel resistance, 1 to 2 minutes; if you smell burning, remove the pan from the heat. Cover with a clean kitchen towel or aluminum foil, and let rest for 5 to 10 minutes.
Get creative! Click here for more paella recipes.
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