Paella = The simple art of coals + olive oil + garlic + chicken legs + peppers & tomatoes + sausage & seafood + rice + saffron from spain's mediterranean coast. . . .
Paella on the beach somewhere in the vicinity of Barcelona (Lillian Zepeda)
One of my vivid recollections about living in Spain is how gnarly the seafood can be (as evidenced by the fish on the left in this photo from the Mercado Central de Valencia). And as such, the seafood paella can be pretty gnarly as well. So be mentally and emotionally prepared before you dive into a seafood paella . . .
It's not very often that you see a "paella for two" . . . TheTravelista shows how it's done somewhere in Bacelona.
Only in Barcelona does paella become art . . . (photo by Momo)
Matthew Bremner published a nice (albeit controversial) article in the BBC today crowning Josefa Navarro (pictured above) as the greatest paella chef in the world. She makes her paella for the Paco Gandia in Alicante Spain. Those who agree with Bremner include Ferran Adria of El Bulli, and Joel Robuchon (the most Michelin-starred chef in the world). So perhaps this claim is not to be take lightly? (Photo credit Matthew Bremner).
In the beginning of the paella. . . the chicken legs take a simmer in the olive oil and salt.
Lovely tribute today in the NYTimes to my least favorite of all of Spain's wonderful cities . . . Madrid. Not that it's a bad city, it's just my least favorite. Andrew Ferren even admits that Barcelona is more cohesive aesthetically. Nonetheless, I do believe everyone should visit Madrid at some point in their life. Afterall, it's not Milwaukee.
This paella photographed by FeistyTortilla was made during Las Fallas, a holiday in Valencia where the locals make extravagant "ninots" or huge dolls and characters that they march through the street, and then BURN to the ground later in the evening. And during all of the madness, they enjoy a little paella . . .
Translation: Spaniards wanted a paella emoji, so Eugeni Alemany opened a Change.Org petition to get it done. The result was full success. By mid-2016, the paella emoji will be released alongside 74 new emojis available for digital use. But in typical Spaniard fashion, many paella traditionalists are upset with the design . . . I'll say this, when it comes to paella, you can't please all of the Spaniards.
All of the Spaniards that I have ever witnessed in the act of making paella pour the rice in a cross . . . what I call Spain's "Ode to Jesus." They say it simply makes it easier to "eye" the amount of rice that should be used. The real debate is not whether or not to pour the rice in a cross, but rather, should one make the cross before the stock? Or after the stock? I've done both. Right now, I'm keen on the idea of doing it before the stock so as to coat the rice with the wonderful base of olive oil, tomato, garlic, and oil from the sausage or chicken. But you do you.
This is O Penso in the northwest of Spain. Last summer, NPR ran a story (that continues to intrigue me) about small Spanish villages for sale . . . whole villages! O Penso was listed at $230k for 100 acres, 6 homes, 2 farms, and a standalone bread making kitchen. One could build an outdoor kitchen or two, and then just imagine the weeklong paella festival you could host for friends in your own private village in the hills of Spain . . .
1987 Nerja Spain. "Everyday paella was made on the beach with fish caught by local fisherman on this same beach. It was delicious. Never felt so much at home in a foreign country as I did in Spain." (Miheco)
A beautiful birds eye view of Valenica, Paella's birthplace, from Juanedc.
One of my favorite things about a good paella in Spain is spending time with the characters that make them. Juanedc seems to have found just such a character in Teruel Spain.
Aina Vidal doing an evening Paella on the island of Mallorca . . .
Jenny Downing getting close up and personal with the Paella bait . . .
Enrique Granados (one of the padres of Spanish Classical Giutar) is perhaps my favorite Paella making music. Granados was born in Lleida (out in the hills of Catalunya) in 1867. At the age of 20, he went to Paris to study music where he became a prolific composer of Spanish melodies. In 1916, on his way back to Espana from the US, his ship was torpedoed by a German U-Boat in the English Channel. His wife Amaparo drifted away from the wreckage. Distraught, Granados jumped from his lifeboat to rescue her . . . and he subsequently drowned.
Click below for a listen:
Click below for a listen:
Gabriel Garcia Marengo showing how to pulp those tomatoes . . . many Spaniards are morally opposed to having any tomato seeds in the Paella.
Marc Palumbo illustrating the birth of a Paella . . . garlic + olive oil.
A random wall somewhere in Espana . . .
Kristina DC Hoeppner on the frying pan (not recommended, but I've done it in a pinch).
The greatest paella music (#paellamusic) is that of Antonio Molina. It's old music, as in Spain Civil War Old, but it blares through apartment buildings and vacant fields all over Spain during the summer months. And when I'm outside under my apricot tree getting the fire ready for paella, there is no better voice to take me back to the old country than Antonio Molina.
Gabriel Garcia Marengo with the finished product . . . a nice yellow hint to the rice of the Paella. Que aproveche!
Teresa Avellanosa going old school with paella propaganda from Spain . . . so cool. I'd love to have this on my wall.
Brandon Levinger showing the real colors of paella . . .
If there's anything that I love almost as much as Paella . . . it's Spain's infamous tortilla de patata (in fact, some days I like it more than Paella).
HorraPics doing it right on the fire . . .
I firmly believe that Barcelona is the greatest city in the world. And this video shows it: Chamfered streetcorners, cobblestone alleys, ornate streetlights, hills to the west and sea to the east. I remember flying into Barcelona from Los Angeles in the spring of 2007. To shake off the jet leg, I went for a run. It was so beautifully odd . . . I got hundreds of stares from people thinking "look at that dude running?!" Barcelona may not be a great running city, but it is definitely a great Paella city.
(Thanks to the good folks at Salomon Running for this nectar aerial video of the greatest city on earth).
(Thanks to the good folks at Salomon Running for this nectar aerial video of the greatest city on earth).
Diego exhibiting a really nice Paella crust which is achieved by NEVER stirring the Paella once all of the ingredients are in . . . just let is simmer undisturbed.
The hills of central spain? Or the hills of the wasatch mountains? In places, they're almost interchangeable . . .
In 2008, Gwyneth Paltrow starred in the magnificent PBS travel documentary entitled SPAIN . . . On The Road Again. The program consisted of 13 episodes of Gwyneth parading around Spain in a Mercedes Benz with Mario Batali, Mark Bittman (of the New York Times), and the Barcelona-born actress Claudia Bassols sampling different Spanish food region-by-region . . . in this case, Gwyneth & Mario preparing Paella in Valencia's backyard.
Matt Westgate rocking the rosemary sprigs on the finished Paella. Rosemary is native to the Mediterranean, and there are actually huge hedges of the stuff along the roads and sidewalks of eastern spain. In my backyard under the apricot tree, I planted a few rosemary plants alongside my outdoor brick oven. My goal is to have a nice smell of spain in the air while I cook my paellas.
Luis Marina showing what it's like to be in the heat of the paella pan . . . unbeatable perspective.
Krista showing Paella's aftermath . . . notice that beautiful brown glaze at the bottom of the pan? It's called la socarrat, and it's the most sought after affect of legit paella chefs. It's a clear indication that the paella has been properly caramelized by the fire (not quite a burn . . . just a nice toasting).
This is my backyard Paella set up. Like I've said, Paella should always (or reasonably often as possible) be done on the fire. This beautiful set up is under my apricot tree in the backyard. I can sit in a chair through the afternoon and poke at my fire while enjoying the pace of the Paella. Another view below:
Marco Zanferrari doing a lobster paella . . . I've only had it once. I was in a restaurant in Boston called the Barcelona Wine Bar. I guess it's what rich Spaniards eat?
NPR recently ran a story on the 400th birthday of the greatest novel ever written, Don Quixote de La Mancha by Miguel de Cervantes. I've read Quixote twice. It's a stunning book especially when considering how old it is because it seems as modern and relevant as ever. When I lived in Spain, I often heard Quixote referred to by countless Spaniards as "my Bible." Ilan Stavans (professor at Amherst College) argues in the NPR interview that the central tenet of Quixote is that one must live in a genuine way, passionately, in spite of what other people think. He also references a previously unknown fun fact . . . evidently, George Washington had a copy of Quixote on his desk when he signed The United States Constitution.
The real question, though, is this . . . is there any reference to Paella in the novel? I'm afraid that the answer is no (although the novel is full of interesting food passages like when Sancho enjoys an onion & cheese sandwich). Which begs the next question . . . did the word Paella exist 400 years ago in the Iberian Peninsula? Or alternatively, did the actual phenomenon of Paella exist at the time? Did Miguel de Cervantes ever eat Paella? I regret to inform you that I don't know the answer. What we do know is that (i) rice was a staple in Spain by the 15th century thanks to the Moors, and (ii) nobody knows when the actual Paella came into existence (there surely wasn't one moment in time when the Paella was born, but rather a series of events that culminated in the Paella).
The real question, though, is this . . . is there any reference to Paella in the novel? I'm afraid that the answer is no (although the novel is full of interesting food passages like when Sancho enjoys an onion & cheese sandwich). Which begs the next question . . . did the word Paella exist 400 years ago in the Iberian Peninsula? Or alternatively, did the actual phenomenon of Paella exist at the time? Did Miguel de Cervantes ever eat Paella? I regret to inform you that I don't know the answer. What we do know is that (i) rice was a staple in Spain by the 15th century thanks to the Moors, and (ii) nobody knows when the actual Paella came into existence (there surely wasn't one moment in time when the Paella was born, but rather a series of events that culminated in the Paella).
Grapa showing how the "Paella Set Up" is done out in the fields of Espana . . . I'm a huge proponent of paella on the fire. Not only is it the authentic way of doing it, but it tastes soooo much better than paella done on the stovetop.
Gabriel Garcia Marengo having just added the chicken stock . . . which is not a Paella photo that you see too often.
Just a hot summer's evening on some anonymous street in some corner of Spain . . .
Claudio Lobos illustrating a really nice brown glaze that should be in effect when you take the Paella off of the fire . . .
Enjoying a Paella at Esperpento in San Francisco. It was good. But the joint that really intrigued us was B44. Its paella was really good, and the rest of the menu might have been better.
Alex Brown . . . is that oregano?! And if so, you sure it belongs? (I'm not).
FeistyTortilla wandering the back alleys of Paella's birthplace . . . Valencia, Spain. I lived in Valencia for a stint in 1998. I remember really warm summers, cobblestone streets, palm trees, sea breeze, and surprisingly modern architecture mingled with the old tradition.
Mike McCune adding the shrimp to his seafood paella . . . only cook them for a few minutes or they'll be tough! (i.e. add them last).
From our friends over at Wikipaella, this is Evarist Miralles doing his thing . . . this clip wonderfully illustrates the simplicity of the art of Paella. And it goes without saying that Mr. Miralles can quarter a rabbit like a 16th century woodsman. Obviously, if you don't like (or have) rabbit, then use all of the parts of the chicken: the chicken thighs, the chicken legs, the chicken breasts. Each part adds a distinct flavor to the Paella . . .