Hugo Brown

How to make an authentic paella

  • From Spectator Life
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The UK has something of a reputation for butchering those classic European dishes on which entire cultures seem to be founded. Think spaghetti carbonara creamy enough to make an Italian weep or the kind of rubbery, watery beef bourguignon that is the culinary equivalent of our grizzly, grey weather to any self-respecting Frenchman or woman. But perhaps no dish is more maligned or widely miscooked than Paella.

Certainly, we’re not helped in this respect by our celebrity chefs. And the usual suspects are at it again – Jamie Oliver reportedly received death threats for adding chorizo to his version and Gordon Ramsay followed suit, eliciting a similar reaction. It’s also not worth thinking about how wrong the versions which litter our supermarket shelves are (yes, that does even mean the Charlie Bigham’s).

Our long history of these kinds of offences led Spanish journalist Josep Pla to remark: ‘The abuses committed in the name of Paella Valenciana, are excessive – an absolute scandal.’

So on World Paella Day (20 September) perhaps it’s time to right some of these wrongs and lower the collective blood pressure of a nation.

Firstly, like tandoori and tagine, paella takes its name from the wide shallow pan in which the dish is cooked. If possible, it should be cooked on an open fire using Bomba Rice (this ingredient is crucial). The classic version comes from Valencia and features green beans, chicken, butter beans, rabbit and sometimes is seasoned with rosemary leaves – this is called the Paella Valenciana.

Quique Dacosta, a chef from Alicante, whose eponymous restaurant in Denia (a small city on Spain’s east coast) has three Michelin stars says, ‘Within the Valencian community there might be more than 325 different paella recipes but an authentic recipe will always respect the main products of the region.

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