{"id":10488,"date":"2016-01-17T05:00:36","date_gmt":"2016-01-17T11:00:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.crumbbums.com\/?p=10488"},"modified":"2016-01-16T08:16:48","modified_gmt":"2016-01-16T14:16:48","slug":"sunday-supper-paella","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.crumbbums.com\/?p=10488","title":{"rendered":"Sunday Supper: Paella"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a title=\"DSC_0505\" href=\"http:\/\/farm2.staticflickr.com\/1632\/24248189596_b5a3dedeec_s.jpg\" rel=\"\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" title=\"DSC_0505\" src=\"http:\/\/farm2.staticflickr.com\/1632\/24248189596_b5a3dedeec_b.jpg\" alt=\"DSC_0505\" width=\"1024\" height=\"704\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Background<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Paella\">Paella<\/a> is a traditional\u00a0Spanish rice-based dish that can accommodate\u00a0chicken, seafood,\u00a0sausage, and more. We&#8217;ve never made\u00a0paella before and thought it\u00a0would\u00a0be fun to make a seafood and chicken version on our <a href=\"http:\/\/www.biggreenegg.com\/\">ceramic cooker<\/a>. We checked out a number of different recipes and guides for making paella on a ceramic cooker. Here are\u00a0two that most influenced what we ended up making:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.biggreencraig.com\/paella.html\">This was the base recipe that we used<\/a>, customizing it using other information<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.nakedwhiz.com\/paella\/paella.htm\">Amazing primer for cooking paella on a ceramic grill<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Equipment and Materials<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Garcima-Carbon-Steel-Paella-Pan\/dp\/B00A6VC3SK\">Paella pan<\/a>\u00a0&#8211; Ours is 13.5&#8243; in diameter at the top rim, 11.5&#8243;\u00a0on the bottom cooking surface. With 2&#8243; of handles on either side, the total 17.5&#8243; diameter fit nicely in our Large Big Green Egg, which has an 18.25&#8243; cooking diameter.<\/li>\n<li>2 links (about 1\/2 pound) of\u00a0Spanish chorizo<\/li>\n<li>1 pound of\u00a0large shrimp<\/li>\n<li>1\/2 pound of mussels<\/li>\n<li>1\/2 pound of clams<\/li>\n<li>3 chicken thighs (with skin and bone, about 1 1\/4 pounds)<\/li>\n<li>1 tbsp of paprika<\/li>\n<li>Black pepper<\/li>\n<li>Kosher salt<\/li>\n<li>Extra virgin olive oil<\/li>\n<li>1 large pinch saffron threads<\/li>\n<li>1 onion, diced<\/li>\n<li>2 ripe tomatoes, diced<\/li>\n<li>3\u00a0cloves of garlic, finely chopped<\/li>\n<li>2 cups of\u00a0rice (ideally\u00a0Bomba, but we could only find\u00a0Arborio as a substitute)<\/li>\n<li>32 oz of chicken broth (our pan was full after ~24oz; we didn&#8217;t use the\u00a0other 8 oz)<\/li>\n<li>2 lemons, cut into wedges<\/li>\n<li>2 tbsp\u00a0coarsely chopped parsley leaves<\/li>\n<li>1 small bag of frozen peas (we used probably a cup of peas)<\/li>\n<li>1 bottle of red Spanish wine (for drinking)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Most of these ingredients are very inexpensive; however, the shrimp was pricey. I think we would make this in the future\u00a0on a far cheaper budget &#8212; in the $25 range for the whole meal (without the wine) &#8212; by either cutting the shrimp out entirely or reducing the amount of\u00a0shrimp.<\/p>\n<p><a title=\"DSC_0484\" href=\"http:\/\/farm2.staticflickr.com\/1471\/24248177196_d665730977_s.jpg\" rel=\"\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" title=\"DSC_0484\" src=\"http:\/\/farm2.staticflickr.com\/1471\/24248177196_d665730977_b.jpg\" alt=\"DSC_0484\" width=\"1024\" height=\"731\" \/><\/a><a title=\"DSC_0495\" href=\"http:\/\/farm2.staticflickr.com\/1467\/23978711270_099f85a23e_s.jpg\" rel=\"\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" title=\"DSC_0495\" src=\"http:\/\/farm2.staticflickr.com\/1467\/23978711270_099f85a23e_b.jpg\" alt=\"DSC_0495\" width=\"1024\" height=\"731\" \/><\/a><a title=\"DSC_0498\" href=\"http:\/\/farm2.staticflickr.com\/1441\/24166146912_0e30965557_s.jpg\" rel=\"\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" title=\"DSC_0498\" src=\"http:\/\/farm2.staticflickr.com\/1441\/24166146912_0e30965557_b.jpg\" alt=\"DSC_0498\" width=\"1024\" height=\"819\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><b>Procedure<\/b><\/p>\n<p>This is a fun dish to make\u00a0that doesn&#8217;t take too much time. The total prep time for us was a leisurely 60\u00a0minutes, including peeling and deveining our shrimp. The total cook time was approximately 30 (intense) minutes.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Preparation of Materials<\/span><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=IOTMQ2oXdLE\">Peel and devein shrimp<\/a>, then season with salt, pepper, and paprika.<\/li>\n<li>Season chicken with salt, pepper, and paprika<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.seriouseats.com\/2014\/11\/how-to-clean-debeard-mussels.html\">Clean and debeard mussels<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/Clean-Clams\">Clean\u00a0clams<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Cut chorizo into 1\/4 inch rounds<\/li>\n<li>Dice tomatoes<\/li>\n<li>Dice onion<\/li>\n<li>Chop garlic<\/li>\n<li>Chop parsley leaves<\/li>\n<li>Add frozen peas to cup of warm water<\/li>\n<li>Add saffron to 2-3 tbsp of hot water and stir thoroughly. This releases the flavor and color of the saffron into the liquid.<\/li>\n<li>Light charcoal and bring\u00a0temperature up to roughly\u00a0450 degrees. I\u00a0had a full load of\u00a0lump charcoal and used three firestarters to light the entire top surface so that the paella would cook evenly. The grill was setup for direct cooking, with the paella pan on top of the grill grate directly over the fire. Given my results, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.nakedwhiz.com\/paella\/paella.htm\">I will probably make the raised rack described here<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" title=\"DSC_0492\" src=\"http:\/\/farm2.staticflickr.com\/1582\/23978709930_a5374f065e_b.jpg\" alt=\"DSC_0492\" width=\"1024\" height=\"704\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Cooking<\/span><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Warm chicken broth on low heat on the\u00a0stove inside<\/li>\n<li>Put the empty paella pan on the hot grill so that it comes up to temperature.<\/li>\n<li>Saute the chorizo until it is brown on all sides, then remove it to a bowl. There is no need to actually cook the chorizo thoroughly&#8211;it will cook in the rice.<\/li>\n<li>Saute the chicken until it is brown on all sides, then remove to a bowl. Again, no need to completely cook the chicken. We had thick full thighs, with bones, so I seared it on all sides and let it sit a bit in the hot pan.<\/li>\n<li>Saute onions and garlic until translucent. There should be a good amount of juice in the pan after the chorizo and chicken. But, you can also add a little olive oil here if necessary.<\/li>\n<li>Add tomatoes, saffron\/water mixture, and rice to the pan. Use a wooden spoon to mix\u00a0everything together thoroughly.<\/li>\n<li>Mix in the sausage and chicken. Spread\u00a0the entire mixture across the entire pan evenly.\u00a0Where you set things up now will affect the\u00a0look of the dish at\u00a0the end.<\/li>\n<li>Once everything is situated where you want it to be at the end, add the warm chicken broth to the pan, close the lid, and let it simmer for 15-20 minutes.<\/li>\n<li>At\u00a0approximately 7 minutes left to cook the rice, add the seafood to the pan.\u00a0If you have both mussels and clams, add the clams a few minutes after the mussels since\u00a0the clams will cook faster. I also added the peas at this point so that\u00a0they would only be lightly cooked and added the parsley to the top.<\/li>\n<li>NOTE: As the rice begins to finish cooking, you will\u00a0hear\u00a0a crackling\u00a0sound, like a <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/TRhkHXe0sgA?t=40s\">bowl of Rice Krispies<\/a>. As this begins,\u00a0open the bottom\u00a0vent and\u00a0increase the temperature to create a nice crust of rice on the bottom (the soccarat). Be careful here&#8211;there is a fine line between a nice crust and a burned crust.<\/li>\n<li>When the rice is al dente, you have a crust, and any shellfish are open, remove the pan from the heat and take it to the table along\u00a0with the lemon\u00a0wedges.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><a title=\"DSC_0500\" href=\"http:\/\/farm2.staticflickr.com\/1508\/23906483029_1cec1ab171_s.jpg\" rel=\"\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" title=\"DSC_0500\" src=\"http:\/\/farm2.staticflickr.com\/1508\/23906483029_1cec1ab171_b.jpg\" alt=\"DSC_0500\" width=\"1024\" height=\"731\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Results<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>We invited\u00a0our neighbors over to share\u00a0the paella with us and,\u00a0overall, it was a successful dish. Paella is served family-style, with the pan in the middle of the table. Because there are many different elements in the dish (e.g., chicken, chorizo, mussels, clams), people can choose those components that they like the most.\u00a0Our neighbors brought a\u00a0fresh salad, which complemented the richness of the paella. The red wine was also very good with the rice, chicken, and seafood.<\/p>\n<p>The flavor of the paella was terrific.\u00a0The chicken, chorizo, and mussels were cooked well, but the clams were overcooked and rubbery. The clams should have been added several minutes after the mussels (rather than just 2 or 3 minutes). The biggest issue with the dish was that I burned the rice crust at the bottom. So, while the rice throughout was very tasty and cooked well, the bottom crust was burned and bitter. Fortunately, we could scoop out of the pan\u00a0without pulling the crust off; so, we could avoid the burned crust.<\/p>\n<p>This size paella would easily feed four adults plus any small children, leaving some leftovers. With three adults eating it, we had a half of a chicken thigh and some rice leftover, which made a delicious\u00a0lunch the next day warmed up in the\u00a0microwave.<\/p>\n<p>One delightful surprise was that the paella pan &#8212; even with the burned rice\u00a0crust on the bottom &#8212; cleaned pretty easily. The crust came off\u00a0easily because of the oil on the pan from\u00a0sauteing the veggies. After cleaning the pan, I again\u00a0wiped a little olive oil around the pan.<\/p>\n<p><a title=\"DSC_0520\" href=\"http:\/\/farm2.staticflickr.com\/1456\/24274309515_9f295f4979_s.jpg\" rel=\"\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" title=\"DSC_0520\" src=\"http:\/\/farm2.staticflickr.com\/1456\/24274309515_9f295f4979_b.jpg\" alt=\"DSC_0520\" width=\"1024\" height=\"680\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Thoughts\u00a0for\u00a0the future<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I am certain that we will make this dish again.\u00a0It is\u00a0not too expensive, flavorful, and fairly cheap on time.\u00a0It is the perfect size for having another family over for dinner and the family style serving makes\u00a0dinner feel relaxed and comfortable.\u00a0Here are some things to do differently next time to make this better:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Use the Bomba rice, rather than the Arborio rice. The Arborio was fine, but Bomba should be less creamy.<\/li>\n<li>Use a rabbit instead of chicken.<\/li>\n<li>Use\u00a0a little\u00a0less shrimp and fewer mussels.<\/li>\n<li>Make sure to ask\u00a0in advance if anyone joining us has food\u00a0allergies\u00a0and adjust\u00a0accordingly\u00a0(e.g., no shellfish). We screwed this one up (sorry Eric!).<\/li>\n<li>Build\u00a0a fire that is\u00a0not so hot at the start;\u00a0the chorizo was seared too much and the fire was really hot towards the end of the cook, which contributed to the\u00a0crust problem.<\/li>\n<li>Add the clams several minutes after the mussels and shrimp.<\/li>\n<li>Avoid burning the crust of the rice. Listen carefully to the sound of the crackling as the cook on the rice comes to an end.\u00a0As soon as it starts crackling, increase the temperature, but only\u00a0for a minute or two.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Background Paella is a traditional\u00a0Spanish rice-based dish that can accommodate\u00a0chicken, seafood,\u00a0sausage, and more. We&#8217;ve never made\u00a0paella before and thought it\u00a0would\u00a0be fun to make a seafood and chicken version on our ceramic cooker. We checked out a number of different recipes and guides for making paella on a ceramic cooker. Here are\u00a0two that most influenced what &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.crumbbums.com\/?p=10488\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Sunday Supper: Paella&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10545,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[87],"tags":[103,171],"class_list":["post-10488","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-food","tag-recipes","tag-yummy-stuff"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crumbbums.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10488","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crumbbums.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crumbbums.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crumbbums.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crumbbums.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10488"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.crumbbums.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10488\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10520,"href":"https:\/\/www.crumbbums.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10488\/revisions\/10520"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crumbbums.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/10545"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crumbbums.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10488"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crumbbums.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=10488"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crumbbums.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=10488"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}