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Paella , The Most Famous Spanish Dish. |
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Tuesday, 26 July 2005 |
Everybody who has visited Spain and more in particular Valencia
must have heard of the famous Paella a la Valenciana. But I
think most people don't know where the paella comes from and
what it means.
First of all, paella is not exactly the dish but the recipient
this typical plate is cooked in. We all have seen the paella
pan before when visiting Spain or browsing the net for paella
recipes
The typical paella a la valenciana was "invented" in a small
village called El Perelló close to the city of Valencia. The
unique situation of the village between a natural lake with
sweet water and the sea provided to the habitants of the area
all they needed to make a complete dish with many of the most
important vitamins and minerals in a balanced combination.
With farmlands at hand where they grew rice and beans, the sea
for shellfish and the lake for ducks together with their
chickens gave the people of the area all they needed to make 2
different versions of the paella a la valenciana.
The first one is the paella made of meat. This paella is a
combination of chicken and duck together with rice, lemon,
olive oil, beans and saffron. But nowadays the duck is most of
the times substituted by rabbit which is a lot easier to get
and cheaper.
This type of paella is still very popular amongst the people of
Valencia and it is very common to hear people say: "Sunday I am
going to eat paella with my parents".
In the old days the paella was served in the paella pan and all
who joined in at the table ate from the same pan with wooden
spoons. Today most people prefer to have their portion on a
plate.
Another typical paella was the one made of seafood, Paella de
marisco. This paella is made of rice and seafood. The used
ingredients are: sepia, calamares, lobster, mejillón o
clotxina, garlic, lemon, rice, saffron, olive oil and beans (
octopus, squid and mussel) Clotxina is a smaller variation of
the regular mussel.
The Recipe of the paella Valenciana
The quantities are /person
. Chicken (150 grs.)
. Rabit (150 grs.)
. Red paprika powder.
. Saffron
. 3 table spoons of natural tomato
. Green beans (70 grs.).
. Garrofón (a type of bean typical to Valencia (25 grs.)
. Haricot bean (25 grs.).
. water
. Olive oil (5 table spoons).
. Rice (125 grs.)
. Salt
. If you like it: half artichoke
Preparing the ingredients and the paella pan
The traditional way to prepare a paella is on a campfire but
this is difficult to achieve at home so there is a very good
alternative for this which is the double gas ring on a tripod
with a bottle of gas.
The most important points according my mother in law when
preparing the paella are: the fire below the paella pan must be
the same on every part of the pan, you must be able to adjust
the fire in 2 rings an outer and an inner ring and the paella
must be completely in balance so that when you add water the
level should be the same everywhere on the paella pan.
Preparing the paella Valenciana
Step one: 12 hours before starting to prepare the paella put
the garrofón (a type of bean typical to Valencia) in water.
Step 2: Put the olive oil in the pan and when the oil is hot
put in the chicken and rabbit and fry them until they have this
golden look. We should try to distribute the pieces of meat
evenly in the paella pan.
Step 3: Now we put in the different beans and the garrofón and
fry them. If we want to add alcachofa (artichoke) we can add it
now also. Make sure the fire is not very intense but neither to
low.
Step 4: Add to the paella the red paprika powder and the
natural tomato and mix them with the other ingredients.
Step 5: After a few minutes we add water to the paella. This is
another crucial step in preparing a tasteful paella. If we add
to much water, the paella will be to weak and if we add to
little the rice will not be boiled sufficiently. But there is a
small insiders trick to know what the right level is. On the
outside of the paella pan there are 2 grips attached. They are
attached to the pan with rivets who are clearly visible on the
inside of the pan. This is the level of the water that must be
added. Don't add more or less water it will ruin your paella.
Step 6: Put the fire intensity on high but not to high. We
leave the paella now boiling for 3 - 5 minutes and then we
lower the intensity of the fire to medium. Try the paella and
if needed add salt to it. Leave the paella this way for about
13 - 17 minutes depending on the type of rice you used.
Step 7: A step that is forgotten by most people, turn out the
fire and cover the paella with kitchen paper and leave the
paella alone for another 5 - 10 minutes.
In the meanwhile cut a lemon in 4 and when the 5 or 10 minutes
have passed you can put the lemon on the outside of the paella.
Serve separately with onion (my father in law and myself like
to eat the paella with raw onion in one hand and the spoon in
the other)
Preferred drink to go with the paella : a red wine from
Valencia especially from the area of Utiel / Requena. (other
Spanish wines will do also of course).
Enjoy this typical plate of Valencia
Peter Vermeeren lives and works in Valencia.
His personal website is all about Valencia. Married to a
Valencian lady gives him a priviliged insight in all aspects of
life in Valencia. His site provides visitors and people who want
to start living in Valencia with expert information. visit his
site here: http://www.about-valencia.com
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