2021 Vuelta - Stage 6: Requena to Alto de la Montaña de Cullera
Today, the riders will travel through Valencia, home to the iconic paella. I assume anyone reading this has already had paella at least once in your life. I remember my first time. It was at Jaleo, José Andrés’ flagship restaurant in Washington, DC. I was a lowly government intern at the Justice Department (although, apparently, there were unpaid interns working there as well, so maybe not that lowly - suckers), making little money and spending it regularly (either next door at the now-shuttered Fadó Irish pub) or a couple blocks down at Jose’s place, drinking endless amounts of sangria, and eating tons of tapas. Someone once suggested “let’s get the paella” - I didn’t know what it was, only that it said allow 45 minutes to prepare.
It came to the table in a huge pan, albeit not as HUGE as the paella pans World Central Kitchen brings to their emergency operations, but still very big. My life started changing at that moment. A new-to-me dish, simple yet complex, was the catalyst to broaden my horizons, challenging me to go to more than just your standard Italian restaurant and/or ordering “the usual” at your favorite place. I still have fantasies of having a paella party in my backyard. I got the fire pit installed last year. I now have a solid recipe...just need to get the cooking attachments for the fire pit and a paella pan...and this stupid virus to go away so I can safely have a party. Good things come to those who wait - just like this recipe!
Valencian Paella adapted from The Food of Spain, Vicky Harris
This recipe originally called for chicken and rabbit. Since most of us can’t readily purchase rabbit, I adjusted this recipe using a whole chicken instead. Traditionally, paella is cooked outdoors over a wood-burning fire which imparts a nice smoky flavor. In a kitchen, this can be mimicked by using some smoked paprika. I strongly suggest you use dried beans in this recipe. The flavor and texture of the final beans are plump, creamy, and mind-blowing.
100 grams, each of dried lima and cannellini beans
1/2 cup olive oil
Whole chicken
1/4 lb fresh green beans, cut into thirds
Large ripe tomato, peeled and seeded
Saffron
2 tsp smoked paprika + 1 tsp regular paprika
10 cups chicken stock
Rosemary
3/4 lb of Bomba/Calaspara rice or Arborio
Place the dried beans in a large bowl and cover with plenty of water. Cover and set overnight.
Break down the chicken by cutting off the wings and cutting out the backbone with shears (reserve those for making stock at a later time). Using a large chef’s knife, remove the thigh/leg quarters from the breasts, separating at the joint, then cut the legs from the thighs at the joint. Split the chicken breasts in half, lengthwise along the breast bone; then, cut them across, giving you 8 chicken pieces for cooking. Season the chicken skin liberally with kosher salt and black pepper.
Heat the oil in a large non-stick skillet (no less than 12”, otherwise use a large Dutch oven/pot) over medium-high heat. Place all of the chicken, except for the 2 small pieces of breast meat that doesn’t have bone attached, skin-side down. After 2 minutes, add these remaining pieces skin-side down. Season the underside of all the chicken with more kosher salt and black pepper. After about 4 minutes, flip the chicken and brown on the other side, reducing the heat to medium and cook for 4 minutes.
After the chicken has browned on the underside, add the green beans around the pieces of chicken and cook for 5 minutes. Then, add the tomato and cook for a few more minutes, until the tomato breaks down and the pan sauce starts to thicken.
Meanwhile, crush a heavy pinch of saffron threads between your fingers into a small bowl and cover it with about ¼-cup of boiling water and let steep.
Once the sauce has slightly thickened, stir in the paprika along with 8 cups of stock. Raise the heat and bring to a boil.
Stir in the beans. Once the stock is boiling again, add in the saffron and a sprig of fresh rosemary and reduce the heat to medium low, maintaining a light simmer for 30 minutes.
Sprinkle the rice into the pan, being careful to avoid landing on the chicken. Bring to a rapid boil over high heat for 5 minutes. Then reduce the heat to medium, maintaining a steady simmer, cooking for 15 minutes. Test the rice to see if more stock is needed, adding any as needed. You’ll be finishing this similar to a risotto.
Once the rice is cooked, taste for any seasoning needs. Allow the liquid to evaporate away while simmering. You’ll see bubbles at the outer edges, as they stop, you know you're done. If you have a spotty brown crust in the middle, you’ve done it right! This is called the socarrat.
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Copyright 2021, Brendan McCann, All Rights Reserved.
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