Paella by Carlos

For 20 years or so, around this time of the year, Fuad and Maureen have been inviting to a Paella and Sangria Party at their home in McLean, Virginia. At all these parties, the paella was prepared by Carlos. 

Carlos has gained some fame over the years and now has his own website Paella by Carlos. This time, I documented the preparation of the paella by Carlos step by step. We had the Paella Tradicinal, with chicken and seafood. It was outstanding.

Paella

Paella is a rice dish originally from Valencia. Paella is regarded as one of Valencia's identifying symbols. It is one of the best-known dishes in Spanish cuisine.

The dish takes its name from the wide, shallow traditional pan used to cook the dish on an open fire, paella being the word for a frying pan in Valencian/Catalan language. As a dish, it may have ancient roots, but in its modern form, it is traced back to the mid-19th century, in the rural area around the Albufera lagoon adjacent to the city of Valencia, on the Mediterranean coast of Spain.

Paella valenciana is the traditional paella of the Valencia region, believed to be the original recipe, and consists of round-grain rice, bajoqueta and tavella (varieties of green beans), rabbit, chicken, sometimes duck, and garrofó (a variety of lima or butter bean), cooked in olive oil and chicken broth. The dish is sometimes seasoned with whole rosemary branches. Traditionally, the yellow color comes from saffron, but turmeric and Calendula can be used as substitutes. Artichoke hearts and stems may be used as seasonal ingredients. Most paella cooks use bomba rice, but Valencians tend to use a cultivar known as senia.

Paella de marisco (seafood paella) replaces meat with seafood and omits beans and green vegetables, while paella mixta (mixed paella) combines meat from livestock, seafood, vegetables, and sometimes beans, with the traditional rice. 

History

Muslims in Al-Andalus began rice cultivation around the 10th century. Consequently, eastern Iberian Peninsula locals often made casseroles of rice, fish, and spices for family gatherings and religious feasts, thus establishing the custom of eating rice in Spain. This led to rice becoming a staple by the 15th century. Afterward, it became customary for cooks to combine rice with vegetables, beans, and dry cod, providing an acceptable meal for Lent. Along Spain's Mediterranean coast, rice was predominantly eaten with fish.

Spanish food historian Lourdes March notes that the dish "symbolizes the union and heritage of two important cultures, the Roman, which gives us the utensil and the Arab which brought us the basic food of humanity for centuries: rice."

Carlos

Preparing

Serving

Thanks Fuad

"Wein-Oktoberfest" of the German Wine Society (Washington DC Chapter) at the German Embassy in Washington DC, USA