Paella For Two

This is my Paella recipe  for 2 using a 10-12 inch pan since its just my hubby and me now : ) The original Paella Recipe is HERE And the chart for making this in a larger pan is below.

Ingredients (My recipe has been adapted from the  La Paella pan booklet)
(1012  inch pan which serves 2-4 see modification chart for different sized paella pans below) my hubby loves it)
pinch saffron threads
1 1/2 cups water
1/4 cup white wine
sea salt to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup frozen peas
1/2 of a medium Spanish Corizo Sausage (not mexican as its a completely different product)  peeled and cut up
3 garlic cloves minced
1/2 onion chopped fine
1 small tomato(Roma size) peeled and grated on large grate
1/2 red bell pepper diced small
3/4 cup Bomba Rice or medium grain rice (OR, My Dad always used Uncle Ben's Converted rice)
1 lemon cut into wedges

Directions 
Note: The paella pan must be turned through out the cooking in a circular motion for even heating.

Boil the water with salt and saffron covered for about 10 minutes, taste for salt, turn off heat and set
aside.
 Heat oil in paella pan on medium high and saute the shrimp and chorizo until the shrimp is just starting to turn pink, remove from pan set aside on plate.
Turn heat down to medium and in the oil saute the sofrito:onion, pepper, garlic, and tomato until dark burgundy adding a little water here and there if starting to burn, about 10-15 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste again..

Bring broth back to boil.
Add the rice and saute for 1-2 minutes.
Add the wine and most of the saffron broth at this time (reserve a bit for end if needed) stir or shake to evenly distribute rice turn up heat to a vigorous simmer.
At this point no more stirring of rice but turning of pan is needed.

After rice and liquid are at same level (8-10 minutes) lower heat to medium and arrange the clams and peas on top simmer gently for another 10 minutes or until rice has absorbed all the liquid about 10 more minutes.Turning pan as needed.
If it is not finished (check a rice grain and it should be al dente or chewy with tiny white dot in the center) add more broth and continue cooking a few more minutes.
Arrange the shrimp and chorizo on top and turn up heat to high, turning pan in circles to create  a crust on the bottom (socarrat) but be careful not to burn  this only takes 1-2 minutes!
Squeeze lemon all over and arrange more wedges on top of paella.
Serve right away with bread and a good Spanish Red Wine!

Modification Chart by Size of Paella pan
16 inch pan serves 4-6 multiply recipe by 1 1/4
18 inch pan serves 6-8 multiply by 1 1/2
22 inch pan serves 8-10  multiply by 2
26 inch pan serves 10-12 multiply by 3
32 inch pan serves 12-14 multiply by 5

 (A larger pan will require 2-3 burners)

Thanksgiving 2013 Paella Feast!

~The tavola all set with a nice Spanish wine~

~The Paella!~

~Our amica Jessica!~

~Our son Ryan takes his Paella very seriously.~

Proof that the food was good : )

Chicken & Chorizo Paella

This was my second attempt at Paella and this time I went for a chicken and chorizo version for my non shell fish family eaters : ) This time I slightly burnt the bottom attempting to make that  caramelized crust on the bottom of the pan, called a socarrat. Making that exquisite soccarrat is very risky but I am told that after a few endeavors I should have it down and it will be well worth the risk, and I am not one to give up too easily : ) I also realized I used way too much chorizo as it over powered the rice which is after the star of this dish so I have adjusted the recipe to show these changes.
Ingredients (My recipe has been adapted from the  La Paella pan booklet)
(14-16 inch pan which serves 4-6 see modification chart for different sized paella pans below)
1 medium chorizo sliced like thickish pepperoni slices
pinch saffron threads
3 cups water with chicken bouillon  added or just use chicken broth
1/2 cup white wine
sea salt to taste
1/4 cup olive oil
1-2 pounds chicken thighs boned and skinned
1 whole garlic bulb raw if just using for falvor but if wanting to serve with the paella roast it ahead of time
4 ounces frozen peas
6 garlic cloves minced
1 onion chopped fine
1 tomato peeled and grated on large grate
1 red bell pepper diced small
1 1/2 cups medium grain rice (My Dad always used Uncle Ben's Converted rice)
2 lemons cut into wedges
Directions 
Note: The paella pan must be turned through out the cooking in a circular motion for even heating.
Boil the water & bouillon/chicken broth with salt and saffron covered for about 10 minutes, taste for salt, turn off heat and set
aside.
 Heat oil in paella pan on medium high and saute the chicken until just cooked through then add  chorizo and slightly crisp up remove  both from pan set aside on plate.
Turn heat down to medium and in the oil saute the sofrito:onion, pepper, garlic, and tomato until dark burgundy adding a little water here and there if starting to burn, about 10-15 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste again..
Bring broth back to boil.
Add the rice and saute for 1-2 minutes.
Add the wine and most of the saffron broth at this time (reserve a bit for end if needed) stir or shake to evenly distribute rice turn up heat to a vigorous simmer.
Place the garlic bulb in the middle.
At this point no more stirring of rice but turning of pan is needed.
After rice and liquid are at same level (8-10 minutes) lower heat to medium and arrange the chicken, chorizo, and peas on top simmer gently for another 10 minutes or until rice has absorbed all the liquid about 10 more minutes.Turning pan as needed.
If it is not finished (check a rice grain and it should be al dente or chewy with tiny white dot in the center) add more broth and continue cooking a few more minutes.
Arrange the shrimp and chorizo on top and turn up heat to high, turning pan in circles to create  a crust on the bottom (socarrat) but be careful not to burn  this only takes 1-2 minutes!
Squeeze lemon all over and arrange more wedges on top of paella.
Serve right away with bread and a good Spanish Red Wine!

Modification Chart by Size of Paella pan
16 inch pan serves 4-6 multiply recipe by 1 1/4
18 inch pan serves 6-8 multiply by 1 1/2
22 inch pan serves 8-10  multiply by 2
26 inch pan serves 10-12 multiply by 3
32 inch pan serves 12-14 multiply by 5

 (A larger pan will require 2-3 burners)

Shrimp Mussel & Chorizo Paella!

The sofrito!

Mussels and peas are now added.

Way too much shrimp but what can I say :)

Sopping up the socarrat!

My sweet lovely Mother in law aka Paella  sou chef : )

My son not at his best but enjoying some paella indeed!

Hubby and me sharing a mutual love for shrimp.

All done!

And I mean ALL done!

When I was growing up my godfather Manny Vasquez and my Father used to make Seafood Paella every time they got together for holidays and is still one of my favorite celebratory meals in the world! But this Paella was very special in that it was my first "solo" Paella and when I say "solo" I don't mean I attempted it without some help because my dear sweet mother in law helped me tremendously but rather I mean my very own first Paella where I was the main cook and not my dad's sou chef :) For years the very thought of making a solo paella was something that was rather intimidating and even a bit scary but a recently gifted Paella pan finally broke me down and I made it...... all I can say is that it wasn't that scary after all.
Ingredients (My recipe has been adapted from the  La Paella pan booklet)
(14-16 inch pan which serves 4-6 see modification chart for different sized paella pans below)
6 ounces shrimp (we used twice as much since I had some shrimp lovers in the house)
pinch saffron threads
3 cups water
1/2 cup white wine
sea salt to taste
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 pound mussels or Clams
4 ounces frozen peas
1 medium chorizo sausage peeled and cut up
6 garlic cloves minced
1 onion chopped fine
1 tomato peeled and grated on large grate
1 red bell pepper diced small
1 1/2 cups medium grain rice (My Dad always used Uncle Ben's Converted rice)
2 lemons cut into wedges
Directions 
Note: The paella pan must be turned through out the cooking in a circular motion for even heating.
Boil the water with salt and saffron covered for about 10 minutes, taste for salt, turn off heat and set
aside.
 Heat oil in paella pan on medium high and saute the shrimp and chorizo until the shrimp is just starting to turn pink, remove from pan set aside on plate. 
Turn heat down to medium and in the oil saute the sofrito:onion, pepper, garlic, and tomato until dark burgundy adding a little water here and there if starting to burn, about 10-15 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste again..

Bring broth back to boil.
Add the rice and saute for 1-2 minutes.
Add the wine and most of the saffron broth at this time (reserve a bit for end if needed) stir or shake to evenly distribute rice turn up heat to a vigorous simmer.
At this point no more stirring of rice but turning of pan is needed.

After rice and liquid are at same level (8-10 minutes) lower heat to medium and arrange the Mussels/Clams  on top simmer gently for another 10 minutes or until rice has absorbed all the liquid about 10 more minutes.Turning pan as needed.
If it is not finished (check a rice grain and it should be al dente or chewy with tiny white dot in the center) add more broth and continue cooking a few more minutes.
Arrange the peas, shrimp and chorizo on top and turn up heat to high, turning pan in circles to create  a crust on the bottom (socarrat) but be careful not to burn  this only takes 1-2 minutes! 
Squeeze lemon all over and arrange more wedges on top of paella.
Serve right away with bread and a good Spanish Red Wine!

Modification Chart by Size of Paella pan
16 inch pan serves 4-6 multiply recipe by 1 1/4
18 inch pan serves 6-8 multiply by 1 1/2
22 inch pan serves 8-10  multiply by 2
26 inch pan serves 10-12 multiply by 3
32 inch pan serves 12-14 multiply by 5

 (A larger pan will require 2-3 burners)

Mixed Paella Valenciana

~My Grandpa and Mom~

This is my Grandpa Pasqualo Pompei DeMaria's recipe for a Mixed Paella Valenciana and it is called so because it is a mixture of meats, seafood, and vegetables. My Grandpa DeMaria was my Mother's Father and a first generation Italian American whose parents, Carl and Philomena DeMaria came from Naples, Italy and settled in Jersey City NJ in the early 1900's. He was a highly intelligent, handsome, and very gifted man who loved to read, usually several books at once, while he puffed on his pipe. I have fond memories of lying on the couch next to him while he strummed on the guitar and sang beautiful songs in Italian and Spanish, I miss him but atleast I have this family heirloom recipe to remember him by.
Our family usually only makes this dish for special occasions like a birthday, holiday, or special feast and  I'll never forget the time we  decided to make Paella for our family reunion.....in my Dad's hotel room. As my family and I walked into the front of the hotel lobby you could smell the seafood cooking which was a pretty amazing feat due to the fact that our room was way up on the 3rd floor.... and to my horror people were at the front desk complaining of this odd smell. I quickly got into the elevator and just as soon as we got off I could see my sister in the hallway spraying room freshener and in the room there were lighted scented candles on every table and all the while my Dad just kept saying, "Oofa! These Americans, what do day want..... Jack In De Box, oofa oofa....no taste !"

Ingredients
1 green pepper diced
1 medium onion diced
1 pound chicken cut in small pieces
2 dozen mussels scrubbed and cleaned
2 dozen clams scrubbed and cleaned
1 pound shrimp peeled and deveined
4-8 *Lobster tails (1-2 bags Frozen Langostino Tails $10.99 from Trader Joes are a much cheaper alternative) See note below
1/2 pound Chorizo cut in 1/4 inch slices
1 small  bag frozen peas
1 pound Uncle Ben's Long Grain Rice (I have checked on this and many paella experts say this is the rice to use, it has something to do with it being parboiled)
1 jar pimento or roasted peppers
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 teaspoon saffron threads
1 small can of tomatoes
Directions
Saute chicken in olive oil until 3/4 done and remove. Saute the onion and pepper in same juices.
Add tomatoes, shrimp, lobster ( do not add frozen tails at this point as they are pre-cooked), and chorizo and simmer for 15 minutes. Replace chicken and simmer for 5 more minutes.
In a separate large pot place 1/4 cup water and steam the clams and mussels for 8-10 minutes or until shells open. Discard any that did not open. Reserve the juice in the pot and add more water to make 7 cups of liquid.
Heat to near boiling and add rice and saffron. Then add peas, mussels, frozen tails, and clams along with any left over juices form frying pan and simmer for 20 minutes, add salt to taste at this point. Make sure to scrape pan with a wooden spoon so that the rice doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan. Just before serving top with the pimentos.
This serves 8 very hungry people

Something I am deeply proud of is the fact that my Grandpa was a musician and we actually found this clip of him singing and playing guitar on you tube, so click HERE if you want to take a listen!

* This is the only thing in the recipe I have changed. My Grandpa had called for 8 lobster tails! I decided on using frozen Langostino tails form Trader Joes. What is a Langostino tail you ask? Well I saw some at Trader Joes in the freezer section and loved the price so I decided to do some research and it turns out it's more close to a crab than a lobster but it is a perfectly fine substitute for lobster tails because they are just as sweet tasting and really kind of cute : )