For many years now we have used to make at least one paella outdoors on a Muurikka griddle pan every summer. Usually when several diners will join our meal: paella is plentiful, especially when you make it in a biggest size Muurikka.
Smaller amounts can be done also inside in a large frying pan or in a large wok pan, but the portions are never as big as in Muurikka. Altogether this is quite an easy food to make even though preparation and baking takes about 50-60 minutes.
We have made this paella Valenciana according to a recipe found in a cookbook “Finnish dinner table and the kitchens of other countries (part 8)”, published in the year 1982. This book says: “It is difficult to find two similar paellas. So there is not one and only recipe. Ingredients vary, also the amounts of them”. That’s why I want to believe that our paella is a real paella Valenciana. With a small difference: we have never used cooked crabs and calamaris. They still are in the recipe below and you can by all means use them if you want.
You can use turmeric as a substitute for saffron, color is quite much alike.
PORTION: 6 servings
TIME TO MAKE: 50-60 minutes
INGREDIENTS:
- 2½ dl oil
- 4½ dl rice
- 200 gr chicken slices
- 200 gr pork slices
- (6 cooked crabs)
- (2 cans of preserved calamaris)
- 1 handful of shrimps
- 1 small can of mussels
- 4 big tomatoes
- 200 gr fresh or frozen peas
- 200 gr cutted red bell pepper
- 2 yellow onions
- 4 garlic cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon of saffron or 2-3 teaspoons of turmeric
- 1½ l meat broth
- salt, pepper, paprika powder
- cayenne pepper, chopped parsley, lemon juice
First blanch tomatoes and cool down. Peel and cut in small pieces. (If you haven’t blanched tomatoes before, it means to cook by dipping briefly into boiling water, then directly into cold water.) Set aside.
Cut the bell pepper into small pieces, set aside.
Make the meat broth (2 meat bouillon cubes and 1½ l water). Set aside
Chop the onion and press garlic cloves. Set aside.
Pour oil in hot Muurikka. First fry chicken slices and pork slices with chopped onion and pressed garlic cloves until the meat is evenly cooked. Spice with salt, pepper and paprika.
Add tomatoes and bell pepper (and calamaris) and let simmer for about two minutes.
Add rice and let simmer for about three minutes.
Then pour in meat broth and add saffron (or turmeric). Taste and add some more salt and pepper if needed.
Add peas, mix well with the other ingredients already in the pan and simmer on low heat for about 20 minutes. Add broth, if needed. At this point do not stir anymore.
Add mussels and shrimps on the top and let simmer for about ten minutes or until rice is evenly cooked and there is no extra liquid left.
(Add crabs about 5 minutes before the whole paella is ready)
Sprinkle finely chopped parsley and some cayenne pepper evenly on the surface.
Add lemon juice evenly on the surface.
Tags: Paella Valenciana Spanich cuisine
Ruokasirkusta 