Seafood Paella recipe

As we all know, Spain is a gourmet kingdom. Top wines, world-famous ham, and dazzling tapas, it’s a paradise for foodies. And among all the coveted delicacies, paella is no doubt a national dish of Spain. It originates in the rural areas of Valencia between the 15th and 16th centuries. In its original way, paella is made with short-grain rice, chicken, rabbit meat, vegetables, and stock. And in Cadiz, since we have fantastic fresh marine products, they are ideal for seafood paella. You don’t want to miss out on the seafood paella if you come here one day. Have or haven’t been to our province, here we offer you a Seafood Paella recipe to bring the taste of Cadiz to your table! Let’s get started!

 

Seafood Paella Recipe
Seafood Paella

Cooking utensil

Preferably we use a paella pan to make the rice. Because to make the same amount of rice, a paella pan allows it to be cooked on a bigger extension so it doesn’t get too thick. But if you don’t have it at home, a cast-iron skillet or a regular pan would also work.

 

Seafood Paella Recipe
A big paella pan.

Ingredients

– ½ Teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil: The green gold brings a fruitiness to your paella.

700 mL of fish stock: You could either get the packed fish stock from the supermarket or make it yourself beforehand with some shrimp shells. 

– Salt

– Black pepper: Preferably the fresh cracked pepper over the pre-ground one.

– ½ teaspoon of sweet smoked Spanish paprika: It gives our paella a smoky flavor and a bit of reddish color. 

– 0.5 g of saffron: The red gold. The Key to bring to your table the authentic Spanish taste.

– Onion: Chop half of an onion

– 4 cloves of garlic: Finely mince it. 

– A cup of paella rice or round rice: Unlike long-grain rice, the paella rice absorbs better the broth and thus gets juicier and more flavor. If you can’t find any paella rice in the grocery store, then round rice could be an alternative.

– 4 pieces of fresh mussels: Wash off the seaweed stuck on its shell. 

– 4 pieces of fresh prawns: Don’t peel them.

400 grams of fresh squid: Cut them into some small oval circles. 

– 250 ml of tomato paste: Get it in the supermarket.

–  Some parsley: Mince some parsley for a better final presentation.

–  1 Lemon: Chop it to wedges. 

 

Cook in this order

1.First, take out 200 ml of broth, heat it in a small pot until slightly boiling, and add 0.5 g of saffron into it.

2.Heat the pan with medium heat and pour the oil into the hot pot.

3.Fry the garlic and onion for 1-2 minutes to make it slightly colored. Remember to keep stirring, so it doesn’t get burnt.

Seafood Paella Recipe
Fry the garlic and onion.

4.Put in the tomato paste, followed by some salt and freshly ground pepper. Stir it for 1 minute.

Seafood Paella Recipe
Add tomato paste.

5.Add a cup of rice to the pot, mix them well, and stir for one minute.

Seafood Paella Recipe
Ric mixed with the tomato paste.

6.Pour in 500 ml of broth and then add 200 ml of the pre-heated broth. Stir the rice and the soup slowly. Make sure to get the rice evenly distributed in the pan and don’t touch it after that, though you could shake the pan from time to time. 

7.Add the squid, prawns, and mussels. Place them evenly the way you want them presented in the end. Gently shake the pan from time to time to prevent burning. 

Seafood Paella Recipe
Add the broth and the squid.

8.Switch the heat to medium-low, so the stock just slightly boils. Simmer for 5 minutes.

Seafood Paella Recipe
Place the seafood the way you want.

9.Now comes the critical point to make that magical crust (socorrat) that everyone craves on the table. To create this rice crust, turn up the heat to medium-high for about a minute and turn off the fire. 

10.I know how you’re salivating, but there’s still one last step. Cover the pan with tin foil and let it sit for 3-4 minutes. That’s when the rice keeps absorbing the broth to create an ultimate pleasure in your mouth. 

11.Before serving, allocate the lemon wedges around the pan evenly and pinch in some parsley for garnish. 

Seafood Paella Recipe
Enjoy your paella with the socorrat at the bottom.

12.Go wake up your family or friends if they didn’t follow up the aroma to your kitchen. 

 

 Some tips

  1. If possible, get the fresh seafood as we do here in Cádiz. They are juicier and taste better than the frozen ones.
  2. A trick to peel the garlic: Put the garlic under the blade and smash it down. And the sticky skin should easily fall off.

 

Share with us below how did your homemade paella turn out!

And if you are eager to go on a foodie trip, Cádiz has much more to offer!

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