Tag Archives: rice

Paella on the Grill

Posted on June 26, 2016 by nina in the kitchen

Last night Dave made his best paella yet! This is a Cook’s Illustrated recipe for Paella on the Grill, found in the July/August 2016 issue or online at CooksIllustrated.com.

Here is the link to the recipe. You may need a subscription to open it.

https://www.cooksillustrated.com/recipes/8890-paella-on-the-grill?incode=MCSCM00L0&ref=new_search_experience_2

Paella is a Spanish rice dish with many variations. We enjoyed paella in Albufera, a town near Valencia in southern Spain. They are known for growing rice and making their paella with a dry caramelized crust of rice that is the most prized part of the dish! It’s called the socarrat.

Traditional paella is made on the grill which provides a large cooking surface to develop the socarrat and a charcoal heat that gives the smokey flavor. The amount of shrimp, chicken and chorizo you see here is more generous than the traditional Valencia style. It’s all about the rice!

Notice the paella pan is thin, has impressions hammered on the bottom and is not covered with a non-stick surface.

We use a 17 inch traditional paella pan you can buy online or at our local Eastmans Party Store in Midland Michigan. It does NOT have a Teflon-like coating. We coat it with oil after using to prevent rusting.

We use a Weber charcoal grill with a gas starter.

This is a great recipe to serve for family and friends!

https://www.cooksillustrated.com/recipes/8890-paella-on-the-grill?incode=MCSCM00L0&ref=new_search_experience_2

4 Comments

Posted in main dishes and tagged albufera, chorizo, eastmanpartystore, paella, rice, saffron, smokedpaprika, socarrat, valencia, Weber charcoal grill. Bookmark the permalink.

Dirty Rice

Posted on January 16, 2016 by nina in the kitchen

This is Dirty Rice, Baked Spicy Cajun Chicken and Gingersnap Gravy.

Dirty Rice is a Cajun recipe that Paul Prudhomme made famous with his spicy style of cooking!

The Cajun people originated in southern France, emigrated to Nova Scotia in the early 1600’s, and settled in a colony that became known as Acadia. In the 1700’s the British drove them out and many migrated to Louisiana where they were well received by the French population there. Many settled along waterways and became farmers, trappers and fishermen.

Chef Prudhomme developed his skills and shared his love of Cajun food with the world.

So what’s the difference between Creole and Cajun cooking? Both cuisines were based on the use of local fresh products.

Creole originated in New Orleans and is a mixture of the traditions of French, Spanish, Italian, American Indian, African and other ethnic groups.

Cajun is very old French country cooking which began in France, moved to Nova Scotia and then came to Louisiana. Creole is more sophisticated and complex than Cajun. It’s city cooking.

Creole cooking was prepared by the cooks and servants for the changing aristocracy of New Orleans. Cajun was prepared by country folks for their own families.

Here’s the ingredients

Paul Prudhommes recipes usually have a seasoning mix. My recipe is 1/3 the salt, cayenne and black pepper he uses. I like hot spicy food, but Paul’s heat is too much for me. Our Louisiana friends tell us the Cajun food does not have as much heat as Prudhommes.

Combine these seasonings in a small bowl:

1 and 1/3 teaspoons cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon salt

1 and 1/3 teaspoons black pepper

2 and 1/2 teaspoons sweet paprika

2 teaspoons dry mustard

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 teaspoon dried oregano

In a large saucepan combine over high heat:

1 pound chicken gizzards and hearts, ground

1 pound ground fresh pork

4 bay leaves

Cook and stir until meat in thoroughly browned and broken up into tiny pieces with your spoon, about 8 minutes.
Add the seasoning mix and stir well
Add:

1 cup finely chopped onions

1 cup finely chopped celery

1 cup finely chopped green bell pepper

4 teaspoon minced garlic

Reduce to medium heat. Cook and stir 10 minutes.
Add 4 cups chicken stock and simmer with the lid partly on, about 10 minutes.

Add 1 and 1/2 cups uncooked rice.

Stir, cover and reduce to the lowest heat possible. Cook 5 minutes.
Remove from heat and keep covered 10 minutes or until rice is done.
Serve immediately alone, as a side dish or with Gingersnap Gravy and Spicy Baked Chicken

This rice a very meaty. Yummy as a main dish or a side. Traditionally the rice is served in a rounded form. I spooned some in a small cup and then inverted it on the plate. Gingersnap Gravy is a surprising addition, but not essential

What do you think?

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Posted in side dishes and tagged cajun, dirty rice, gizzards, Paul Prudhomme, rice. Bookmark the permalink.

What’s to Eat in Seville?

Posted on March 28, 2015 by nina in the kitchen

Seafood, bulls tail, pork cheeks, squid ink, jamon, puréed tomato and bread soup, tapas, fresh bread, pastries, gelato….here’s my favorites.

This lumpy crusty bread looks like the crenelated tops of the Moorish castle walls. Its served everywhere and has a soft white center.
This was my favorite food in Seville. Rice and shrimp in squid ink sauce with squid stuffed with rice. The squid ink has a mild seafood flavor.
Bulls Tail in a rich red wine sauce over roasted potatoes. So memorable we ordered it twice! Bullfighting is HUGE in Seville! Similar to oxtails available in the States.
This also is Bulls tail, but it tasted more like beef chuck pot roast with tomato, peppers and carrots. Very mild.
Pork Cheeks in a rich sauce over roasted potatoes and topped with goat cheese. Garnish is fresh rosemary, green onion and red pepper. Amazingly tender and lean!
This is a Serranito, a new twist on a sandwich made with a crusty baguette. Layered inside are thinly sliced grilled pork, a thinly poured omelette, and a slice of mild white cheese. Over the top of the bread is a slice of jamon. A char grilled pepper is on the side to add to the sandwich.
A tapas of toasted bread layered with tomato purée, one anchovy and olivada, a puréed black olive spread.
This little frying basket was a fun way to serve fried bites of fish. They fry fish a lot. We had fried calamari also, but this was marinated bites of fish lightly breaded and deep fried. It’s called Corzo in Adobo.
This is eggplant believe it or not! It’s cut into thick strips and quickly fried and then brushed with a dark honey and balsamic vinegar glaze.
Salmorejo is a puréed cold soup made with fresh tomatoes, fresh bread, garlic, olive oil and salt. It can be purchased at the local fresh food markets or made at home. We also saw this served as a dipping sauce with bread in Lisbon.
This salmorejo is served with the traditional sliced hard cooked egg, sliced jamon and drizzled with olive oil.

Delish cold soup made of ground almonds, garlic and cream and topped with the most tasty raisins. It can also be made with bread and olive oil instead of cream.
Grilled squid served with a parsley and olive oil sauce.
Sautéed clams with lemon and garlic.
Marinated quail legs, garlic slices, onion and carrot served over lettuce. The marinade had lemon juice, olive oil and Dijon style mustard. Lots of fresh parsley added too.
Cool dessert! Orange and orange blossom cream sauce with mint ice cream and gin slush over all. The orange like garnish was amazing. It is called a ground cherry or a husk tomato and is sweet and tart. (Physalis) Reminds me of the Chinese lantern ornamental plant in the Midwest.
Let’s talk about oranges in Seville. Here is an orange from the orange trees all over Seville. They were blooming and fragrant for us.They tell us in Seville that only the tourists pick them because they don’t know they are sour and are only used to make orange marmalade which is sent to England. Also you can get fined 1 Euro for each orange you pick! We found this one on the ground . They taste slightly sour, but not as sour as lemons. I’d make juice out of them if I had a tree to pick from!

Cafe con Leche or espresso with milk. This is the most common coffee served. You can get decaf. Sometimes it’s served as a glass of steamed milk with an individual packet of instant decaf for you to add.
Cappuccino is always served fancy with chocolate powder or syrup. You can get decaf too!