Seafood Paella

The Spanish have been making paella for as long as there have been Spaniards. The ingredients are traditionally very flexible (chicken!) but for seafood, this is the pinnacle of the paella pile. If you have a large group to feed then this a scalable solution--depending on the size of your pans. You can even hire the bigger pans and burners for parties. Please DO read the entire Method for this recipe before you start to avoid making mistakes.

My good mate, Paul Harris got me onto this a few years ago now. He's a real wizard in the kitchen... and sometimes he cooks in there too. Occasionally he even wears clothes to do it, but not often. Anyway, he reckons I over-research the shit out of everything. And he's probably right (in typical fashion). But when I get to produce the EASY recipes that are a direct result of my overly-researched findings... everyone benefits.

So, shut up Harris... and thank you, for everything. You big, beautiful hairy gorilla of a man.

Ingredients

• Saffron (optional)
• 2 tblspns Olive Oil
• 250g Squid Bodies, cleaned, cut into 1cm rings
• 1 Brown Onion, chopped
• 1-2 Chorizo, roughly sliced
• 4 cloves Garlic, minced
• 400g can Peeled Tomatoes, crushed
• 1 tblspn Sweet or Smoked Paprika; or Wazoo (Recipe HERE)
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric (or: see Saffron option in Method)
• 4 cups (1 litre) Chicken Stock (Recipe HERE)
• 2 cups Paella Rice, or; Short Grain Risotto Rice (+1/2 cup water for Risotto)
• 1 Red Capsicum, chopped
• 6-12 fresh Mussels, unopened shells, scrubbed and debearded
• 250g fresh Prawns, peeled (or 350g unpeeled)
• 12 fresh Scallops
• 3 Green (Spring) Onion tips, sliced
• Handful of Cherry Tomatoes, halved
• Fresh Basil Leaves, Lemon/Lime wedges, Parsley to garnish (all optional)

Method

1. Optional: In a small bowl combine saffron and 1/4 cup hot water; let stand 10 minutes. If you don't have saffron, just forget this step and use tumeric later.
2. In a 38cm paella pan (Don't have a 38cm paella pan? See below for smaller pan instructions) heat oil over medium heat. Add squid to pan. Cook, turning frequently, 30 to 60 seconds or until squid have released their juices and are no longer translucent. Transfer to a plate and let sit.
3. Now, prepare the rest of the ingredients. Once we return the pan to the hob, we want to be able to lay our hands on every ingredient and throw it into the pan without distractions.
4. Return the pan to the hob (medium heat)--add more oil if needed. Add onion, chorizo and garlic to pan. Cook and stir for 5-10 minutes. Add peeled tomatoes (crush them first with your fingers--don't buy crushed tomatoes in a can, that stuff is watered down to buggery. You're welcome!), turmeric (or saffron mix) and paprika. Cook and stir until thickened and almost paste-like.
5. Add chicken stock and 1/2 teaspoon salt to pan; bring to boiling over HIGH heat. Add rice and capsicum, stirring to evenly distribute. Cook, without stirring, until rice has absorbed most of the liquid, 10 minutes, or; until the rice is cooked through. (If your pan is bigger than your burner, rotate it every few minutes to ensure the rice cooks evenly.)
6. Moving quickly now: Add prawns, scallops, squid and top with mussels. Press the seafood gently into the paella so that it is completely covered. Cook, without stirring, 3-6 minutes more (edges should look dry and a slightly burnt crust should be forming on the bottom). If the paella looks too watery, reduce heat to a simmer until most of the liquid has evaporated, otherwise...
7. Remove from heat. Top with shallots and cherry tomatoes. You can also add basil leaves, lemon/lime wedges and parsley--the choice is yours. Cover pan and let rest 10 minutes before serving.
8. SMALLER PAN OPTIONS: For a smaller 29cm Skillet (deep dish): Prepare as directed except reduce rice to 1.5 cups and reduce chicken stock to 3 cups (750ml).