The morning of December 31st, I finalized the Menu. Woke up early to go to the weekend market near our place. Prepared the ingredients and realized, I did not have a "Paellera" or Paella Pan. Called Terry's (a Spanish Deli) to reserve 1 for me. I then cooked my Little Contessa's requested lunch and immediately headed towards Terry's in Pasong Tamo extension (they were open until 3PM that day... thank goodness!) with my hubby in tow.
Each time I am in a delicatessen is always a treat. I like checking each and every shelf every time scrutinizing bottles after bottles of wine... exotic ingredients and everything else.
I picked up the smallest Paella Pan (I wanted to get a medium sized one but my oven could only accommodate the 12" round pan) , got a few earthen ware dish servers, a small pack of Paella rice, a bottle of dry Sherry and several Spanish Chorizos. Last minute, I decided to get the Squid Ink for good measure. I wasn't sure if the ink from the huge squid I got from my fish monger will give me the "blackness" I want for my Paella.
Happy and almost giddy with excitement, we headed back home. My hubby & I had lunch and I went straight to cooking after.
Ingredients:
1 big squid (about half a kilo) ink sac carefully removed a place in a bowl, squid flesh sliced into rings, tentacles sliced into 1 inch pieces
3 cups of Paella Rice
100-150 grams Spicy Chorizo (remove casing and cut into small 1/4" cubes)
Red Pepper Flakes
3 tablespoons of Olive Oil
2 large onions peeled and diced
12 cups of Chicken Stock or Clam stock (or a combination of both)
1 can of whole peeled or crushed tomatoes (I like using the Molinera brand)
Salt & Pepper to taste
Squid ink sac emptied in half a cup of water
a dash of Cayenne Pepper (optional)
a pinch of saffron
1 pack (4grams) prepared Squid Ink (if using)
Lemon wedges (garnish)
Steamed Mussels (optional)
Hard Boiled eggs (optional)
Steamed prawns (optional)
Aioli (optional)
Procedure:
1. Make the chicken or clam stock. Towards the end, add the saffron and simmer for another 15 minutes.
2. Oil the Paellera. Make sure to cover all inside surface.
3. On a low-medium flame, add the Olive Oil. Fry the Chorizo for about 4 minutes or until the "reddish" oil from the sausage comes out. Using a slotted spoon, set aside.
4. In the same pan, saute the onion for 5 minutes making sure that it does not turn brown. The goal is to achieve a translucent look. Add the garlic and cook for another 20 seconds. Add the red pepper flakes and the squid rings and cook for about 3 minutes. Remove from pan using a slotted spoon, careful not to get the juice and the oil from the pan.
5. Add the Paella Rice making sure to coat all the grains with the oil. Stir well for about 1 minute. Then add the tomatoes with the juices and all. Stir in the squid flesh. Then Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.
6. Add 4 cups of the stock. Stir well until the liquid gets absorbed by the grains, Risotto style. Add the squid ink (both the fresh and the 4 grams that comes in a pack) Stir well. Slowly add the remaining stock. Put back in the squid flesh into the pan (juices and all).
7. As soon as the grains absorb almost all the liquid - season with salt and pepper (+ the cayenne if you want more heat), cover the pan with a lid or aluminum foil and place in the oven for 10 minutes. Remove after the designated time and let it rest covered for another 10. Serve with lemon wedges, sea salt, aioli (if using) and garnish with flat leaf parsley.
NOTE: I did not add back to the pan the Chorizo cubes. A friend dining with us that night is refraining from eating pork so I served the fried Chorizo in a different dish.
I served this dish together with Roasted capsicum & baby potatoes, grilled zucchini, different chorizo tapas, garlic prawns, steamed mussels in vinaigrette and Chicken liver in Sherry.
I made a big batch of Sangria to complete the Spanish night experience. Oh... and Crème brûlée for a very sweet ending. Enjoy!
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