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Paella: A tasty change from turkey

by: Norie Duran

          Paella       Norie

A traditional menu cooked by Spanish farm workers in the fields, paella has been adapted by the Filipinos in their cuisine as part of their Spanish heritage. It is traditionally served in many celebrations especially for the Noche Buena on Christmas Eve and the Medya Noche on New Year's Eve in the Philippines.

Various theories about the origins of the name paella have been conceived. A romantic version is that the dish was prepared by a querido (Spanish for lover) for his fiancée. The word por ella (for her, in Spanish) has become paella.

"La paella" is also used to refer to the cooking utensil made of iron or stainless steel with a flat, thick base. Filipinos now call this circular and shallow pan with two round handles on opposite sides as the "paellera".

Originally cooked with sea foods (shrimps, mussels, crab), pork, chicken and vegetables, the paella has now been modified to countless varieties. Paella negra has the squid's black ink as its main flavoring while another one makes use of crab's fat (aligue in Filipino).

We present to you the most traditional paella. No matter what paella variety you prepare, we guarantee that it will be sumptuous and really delicious. Bon appetit!

Paella

  • 1 lb mussels
  • 1 lb raw prawns
  • ½ lb squid hoods cut into ¼ inch slices
  • 2 chorizo slices, sliced thickly
  • 1 lb bite size chicken pieces
  • ½ lb pork cubed
  • 4 cloves finely crushed garlic
  • 2 pieces chopped red onions
  • 4 large chopped tomatoes
  • 2 cups (16ozs) glutinous or short grain rice (or Calrose)
  • 5.25 cups chicken stock seasoned with salt and pepper to taste
  • 3 tbsp cooking oil
  • 1 tsp annatto seeds soaked in 2 tbsp hot water and strained
  • ¼ tsp ground turmeric
  • 1 cup green peas
  • ¼ lb green beans cut into 1 ½ inch lengths
  • 1 small green pepper (capsicum) cut into thin strips
  • 1 small red pepper (capsicum) cut into thin strips
    1. Wash and scrub mussels thoroughly, removing the beards. Peel and de-vein the prawns keeping the tails intact. Cut squid hoods and set aside.
    2. Fry the chorizo slices in 1 tbsp cooking oil until brown. Drain on paper towels.
    3. Brown chicken and pork pieces and drain on paper towels.
    4. Add the remaining oil. Sauté garlic, onions, tomatoes, turmeric, and annatto water for about 3 minutes.
    5. Add rice and stir for about five minutes or until rice becomes translucent.
    6. Stir in the chicken stock, bring to a boil. Simmer and cover for 10 minutes.
    7. Add the chicken pieces and allow to cook for about 20 minutes. Add the pork, prawns, mussels, chorizo and vegetables and cook for 10 minutes or until the liquid is absorbed.

    Serves 4-6.