The other night, as we trolled YouTube for videos that struck our fancy - Maria Callas singing Casta Diva from Bellini's Norma, Women in Art, silly commercials, and such - we came across one of our favorite episodes of Posh Nosh, “Paella.”
As people who love food, if you have never seen Posh Nosh, you really owe it to yourselves to watch these brief little gems. The series is, for us, the perfect combination of Monty Python, To the Manor Born and PBS cooking shows (do you remember Rogers and Gray's Italian Kitchen series? "First you must refresh your herbs..." - the H in herbs breathy in its enunciation). In Posh Nosh, Arabella Weir and Richard Grant are brilliant as the Hon. Simon and Minty Marchmont; their haughty goal is "to bring extraordinary food to ordinary people."
In the Paella episode, Minty consistently pronounces paella - pie-ELL-uh, to Simon's absolute disdain. Of course, underplayed British hilarity ensues...
The episode got me to thinking about paella. I had my first served by a friend in college - a Bohemian artist who gathered young people around her and amazed us with her free spirit and creative ways. She was always introducing us to "new things" which usually turned out to be really traditional and time-honored things from other cultures. Paella was one such thing. I had never seen such a mountain of food!
Since then, I have made it several times on a smaller scale ... once I procured a paella pan, that is. Note: you do not NEED a paella pan to make paella... I simply needed... er... wanted one.
After watching the Posh Nosh episode, I decided it was time to make one again.
Paella is a Spanish dish from Valencia, and there are three traditional types: paella valenciana (meat-based - duck, rabbit, pork, etc.), paella de marisco (seafood and no veggies) and paella mixta (a paella free-for-all). Well the mixta is the perfect type for me as it is a mixture of pretty much anything one wants to put in it. There are a couple of items that are standard in any paella - bomba rice (I used arborio with success), saffron (and not just a measly pinch, either), and olive oil.
I looked at a bunch of recipes, borrowed a couple of ideas, checked my freezer, cobbled it all together, and ended up with this recipe. The end result? It was really good. Seriously good, if you ask the others who shared it. Next time, I might make a few changes (maybe add some green peas or diced red bell peppers) but I will leave those decisions up to you for the time being.
¡Buen provecho!
~ David
Lobster Paella Mixta
5 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
3 plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1/4 pound pancetta, diced
salt & pepper
1/2 teaspoon Piment d’Esplette
1/2 teaspoon saffron threads
1 1/2 cups bomba rice (you can substitute arborio)
1/2 cup white wine
3 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 cup pole beans, sliced
1 pound lobster meat, chopped
1 pound jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined
4 ounces artichoke hearts (fresh, canned or frozen)
1/2 pound par-cooked asparagus spears
Preheat the oven to 375°F. In a paella pan (or large skillet with a cover), sauté onions till clear in 3 tablespoons of the olive oil. Add tomatoes, pancetta, salt and pepper – simmer 10 minutes. Add additional 2 tablespoons oil and rice – sauté until rice turns opaque. Add Piment d’Esplette and saffron, and stir for 30 seconds. Add wine and broth, cover, and transfer to oven. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven, stir in sliced beans then arrange shrimp and artichoke hearts on top of rice. Cover and bake 10 minutes more. Arrange chopped lobster and asparagus on top, and cook a final 5 minutes uncovered. Serve at the table from the paella pan. Labels: artichoke hearts, asparagus, lobster paella, paella, paella mixta, pancetta, saffron, shrimp, tomatoes
