Perfect Paella

    Well summer is nearly over, SIGH. This makes me so sad. It seems like it has just begun. Most of my summer vacation was spent in Newfoundland, which don't get me wrong, I totally enjoyed....but all it did was rain. So much so that I ended up coming down with pneumonia. Jeeze.

    Well now that I am finally back in the land of the sun, and my husband has returned home after being gone for three months, we've been trying to cram a summer full of missed activities, into the last three weeks of summer vacation.
    Since returning home, we've been taking it easy. We made a trip to the zoo, a trip to the beach, we went camping with friends, did some back to school shopping, and had a couple of our close friends over for the night to visit.
    While our friends were visiting, I thought it would be nice to try something new for Supper. Paella had been on my brain for quite some time, but it is quite a large dish to make for two people (let alone just for myself), so I had been putting it off. This was the perfect opportunity to give it a whirl.
    I don't often try making a recipe for the first time during a dinner party, but I knew that our friends wouldn't have a problem with being my Guinea Pigs. When we get together, we often spend time trying out new recipes and cuisines.
    I have had Paella on a number of different occasions and really enjoyed it, but have never made it myself. Typically it is made with an assortment of seafood, but to my dismay, my hubby doesn't like many of what he calls "seabugs". This saddens me. So when deciding what approach I wanted to take with the Paella, this was a major factor. In order to make a hubby friendly dinner, I settled on a Chicken, Shrimp and Chorizo Paella.

Chicken, Shrimp and Chorizo Paella:

Ingredients:

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into pieces and marinated in spice mixture (see below)
salt and black pepper, to taste
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/4 cup olive oil
2 Spanish chorizo sausages, sliced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1/2 red onion, diced
2 ripe tomatoes peeled, seeded and finely chopped OR 1 can 14 ounce whole tomatoes crushed by hand
1 red, orange or yellow bell pepper, julienned
2 cups Spanish short grained rice (Arroz Cebolla)
1 generous pinch saffron threads
4 1/2 cups warm homemade chicken stock or water
1 pound jumbo shrimp
1/2 cup sweet peas, frozen and thawed
Lemon wedges

All the fixin's

Spice Rub for Chicken:

Ingredients:

1 tbsp. sweet spanish paprika
2 tsp. dried oregano
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

1) Combine ingredients in a small bowl.
2) Rub the spice mixture all over the chicken.
3) Marinate for 1 hour, covered.

Directions:

(1) Marinate the chicken for 1 hour and remove from refrigerator.

2) Heat the oil in a paella pan or wide skillet.
3) Brown the chicken on all sides, when it's nearly cooked through, add the chorizo links and brown.





Browning the chicken

Add the chorizo.



4) Remove the chicken and sausage from the pan. Keep the remaining oil and caramelized bits in the bottom of the pan.

5) Sauté the garlic and onion until just caramelized.

6) Add the bell peppers. Cook just to soften them and to meld the flavors. Season with salt and pepper.

(7) Add the rice, stirring to coat the grains until lightly toasted. Then add the tomatoes.

Add the rice, and stir to toast
the grains for a minute or two.

8) Add the stock and saffron and give it a stir. Simmer for 15-20 minutes, gently moving the pan around so the rice cooks and absorbs evenly. Do not cover with a lid or constantly stir like risotto. Just shake the pan to move everything around.

If you are unfamiliar with the floral flavor of
saffron, I suggest going easy on the amount
you add. It can be a little intense, and if you
don't end up liking it, you will ruin your dish.

9) Once the rice begins to absorb the liquid, add the shrimp. Cook until the underside begins to turn pink.

10) Return the chicken and chorizo back to the pan. Simmer, without stirring, until the rice is al dente, about 10 minutes.

11) Scatter the peas on top and continue to cook until the liquid is absorbed. Allow to rest off the heat for 5 minutes before serving.

12) Garnish with lemon wedges.

* When cooking Paella, it is important not to stir. But equally important to cook it long enough to create a golden brown crust on the bottom. This is called the socarrat and is important in achieving the key flavor. After doing so, let the Paella set for five or so minutes.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Unfamiliar Tools and Ingredients:

Paella Pan:

The pan is circular and shallow, and has two round handles on
opposite sides. It is traditionally made with cast iron, but is more
commonly found in stainless steel. I found my pan in the gourmet
food section at Winners.

Spanish Rice/ Arroz Cebolla:



This is a medium grain rice that's perfectly suited to making paella.Although it is very similar to Arborio rice (which is commonly used for
Risotto), it has less starch content and is actually harder in texture. If you
are unable to find Spanish Rice, Arborio will make a suitable substitute.

 

Saffron:

Saffron's flavor and aroma are described as being very floral. Which would make sense considering
it is nothing more than the stamen, which has been very carefully harvested from the Saffron Crocus
Flower. Saffron also contributes a luminous yellow-orange colouring tofoods. It is widely used in ethnic
cuisines such as Milanese Risotto in Italy, Bouillabaisse in France, in Biryani along with various meats in
India, and Paella in Spain. Because of the labour intensive harvesting process associated with
Saffron it is quite expensive to buy. Safflower and Turmeric make great substitutes.

Chorizo Sausage:

Spanish Chorizo is a pork sausage that has been given it's smokiness and deep
red color from dried smoked red peppers otherwise known as paprika.
It is usually encased in natural casings made from pig intestines, using a traditional
method that has been used since Roman times. The sausages are flavored
using white wine, a generous amount of garlic and herbs, and pork fat.
Chorizo is easily found in local grocery stores, due to recent popularity. But
if you're making a Spanish dish, be sure you buy the Spanish Chorizo
and not it's Mexican counterpart.

Traditional Newfoundland Fare: Part II

    Fish and Brewis (pronounced "brews") is a traditional Newfoundland meal. It includes salt codfish, boiled potatoes, and hard bread or hard tack. Because of the great fishing waters around the coast of Newfoundland, Codfish was readily available making Fish and Brewis a common meal with many Newfoundland households.
    The recipe may vary from community to community, household to household, or even from generation to generation, but the ingredients stay the same. The recipe typically calls for salt cod fish, potatoes, and hard bread. The Cod has to be soaked in water overnight to reduce the salt content of the fish. The hard bread is broken into bite-size pieces and is as well soaked in water overnight. The next day all the components are boiled separately until tender, then are served together.
    Fish and Brewis is traditionally served with scrunchions. This is salted pork fat that has been cut into small pieces and fried until it resembles pork rinds. Both the rendered fat and the liquid fat are then drizzled over the fish, hard bread and potatoes.
    Drawn butter is sometimes used instead of scrunchions. Drawn butter in this instance is a mixture of melted butter and chopped onions that is thickened by flour in a saucepan then served hot over the fish, hard bread, and potatoes.
    In some Nova Scotia households, this dish is known as "Salt cod and pork scraps".

Fish and Brewis:
(This recipe will serve 4 people)

Traditional Newfoundland Fish and Brewis with
Pork Scrunchions and garnished with Mustard Pickles.

Ingredients:
8 pieces of salt cod (Soaked overnight)
8 medium sized potatoes (Peeled and quartered)
4 pieces of Purity Hard Bread  aka. Brewis (Soaked overnight)
1/2 cup of salted pork scrunchions

 

Directions:
(1) In 3 separate pots boil the salt cod, potatoes, and hard bread.
(2) In a medium sized pan, over medium high heat, cook until crisp the salted pork scrunchions.

(3) Once the fish and hard bread have cooked and the potatoes have softened, plate them together and drizzle with the pork scrunchions.

You may also like:
Salt Codfish Cakes
Pease Soup with Salt Beef and Steamed Dumplings

Traditional Newfoundland Fare

    I just so happen to still be on vacation in Newfoundland. I've been having a wonderful time visiting with friends and family as well as enjoying a bunch of delicious food I never get to have at home. My parents have a bunch of Salt Cod from last years fishing season, and my mother thought it would be nice to cook some up. Since she was taking the time to prepare the fish, I thought I would take this opportunity to share the recipe with all of you.
     Salt Cod is traditionally prepared in a dish called Fish and Brewis. With the leftover fish from this dish, it is very common to create Codfish Cakes. They are super simple to make and are a staple in Newfoundland cooking. I didn't really appreciate these as a child growing up here, but I've definitely warmed up to them somewhere along the way.

Salt Codfish Cakes (Traditional Newfoundland):

Ingredients:
10-12 small potatoes (Peeled and cut into quarters)
1 Lb. of salt Codfish (Soaked overnight to remove salt)
1/2 cup onion
1Tbsp. parsley
salt and pepper to taste (You may not need any salt due to the high salt content already in the fish.)


 Directions:
(1) In a medium sized pot, boil the potatoes until tender.

(2) In a large pot, boil the salt cod.

(3) Once the potatoes and fish are cooked, remove from the water and let cool.
(4) Mash the potatoes and place in a large bowl.
(5) Remove the skin and any bones that may have been forgotten from the fish. Flake the fish apart and add to the bowl.
(6) Add all the remaining ingredients and combine using your hands.

As you add the fish, break it apart into flakes.

(7) Begin forming the cakes similar to making hamburger patties.

These were made about 1 inch thick by 5
inches wide.



(8) Once all the cakes have been formed, fry them in a hot oiled skillet. If you are making them in a large batch, they will freeze well until you are ready to eat them.

* This recipe yields approximately 16-20 codfish cakes.

You may also like:
Pease Soup with Salt Beef and Steamed Dumplings (Traditional Newfoundland)
Fish and Brewis (Traditional Newfoundland)

Craving Some Curry...

    My husband doesn't like seafood. So I thought I would make all the recipes I have been wanting to try containing seafood, while he's away. This one was on the top of the list so it was the first to be made.
It was so good, I never wanted to stop eating it. Seriously.
    A while back I made my own homemade curry paste. A Red Curry Paste, as well as a panang curry paste. They turned out marvelously. I had gotten around to using the Red Curry Paste quite sometime ago when I made Red Thai Duck Curry. It was so good, I was just itching to try the other one. This recipe was the perfect way to test it out.


Pineapple Panang Curry with Prawns:

Panang Prawn Curry with Pineapple
served with Basmati Rice

 

Ingredients:

1  Tbsp.peanut oil
1/4 cup panang curry paste

1 14oz can coconut milk
1 lime (juice)
1 Tbsp. fish sauce
1 tsp. palm sugar (grated, or white or brown sugar)
1 pound shrimp (peeled and deviened)
1 red pepper (sliced)

1/2 cup pineapple, cut into chunks
1 handful peas

1 handful cilantro
1 handful peanuts (roasted and chopped)

Directions:
(1) Heat the oil in a sauce pan.
(2) Add the panang curry paste and saute until fragrant, about a minute.

(3) Add the coconut milk, lime juice, fish sauce and sugar and simmer for 15-20 minutes to thicken.

(4) Add the shrimp,peas and red pepper. Simmer until the shrimp is cooked, about 5 minutes.

(5) Add the pineapple, cilantro, and peanuts. Remove from heat, and serve over hot Basmati Rice.

You may also like:
Red Thai Duck Curry
Indian Butter Chicken

The Perfect Pad Thai

    I was trying to eat up all the vegetables I didn't get to this past week. Rather than wasting them, I usually toss them into a stirfry of some sort. This time I felt like Shrimp Pad Thai.
    Pad Thai is an all time favourite of mine. I've had it a bunch of times in various restaurants, but I find that they are always to heavy handed with the noodles, and they never put enough of the good stuff in there. Because of this reason I choose to make my own at home. I believe I do a much better job :)
   

Shrimp Pad Thai:

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp. tamarind concentrate or tamarind paste dissolved in water
2 Tbsp. fish sauce
2 Tbsp. palm sugar or brown sugar
2 tsp. chili sauce
1 serving rice noodles
1 Tbsp. peanut oil
1 serving shrimp/chicken/tofu
1 shallot (chopped)
2 cloves garlic (chopped)
1 egg (lightly beaten)
2 Tbsp. roasted peanuts
1/2 cup carrots (julienned, very thinly)
1/2 cup celery (cut on the bias)
1/2 cup red/green pepper ( very thinly sliced)
1 green onion (thinly sliced)
1/4 cup cilantro (chopped)
lime wedges

*Most people use bean sprouts as the main vegetable. I really don't like bean sprouts so I chose to use the vegetables that I had on hand.

Directions:
1) Slice all the vegetables so they are ready to go.
2) Prepare the sauce by combing the tamarind, fish sauce, palm sugar, and chili.
3) Quickly scramble the egg.

All the fixin's ready to go. While cooking Thai food,
it comes together quite quickly. It's best to have all
the ingredients prepared and ready to go before
you start cooking

The sauce Makings.
(Tamarind Concentrate, Fish Sauce,
Sambal Oelek(chili sauce), Palm Sugar)

If you're opting to use palm sugar, make
sure you grate, rather than chop it. You
want it to dissolve quickly into the sauce.

4) Cook the noodles according to the package directions.
5) Heat oil in the pan.
6) Add the shrimp, shallots and garlic. Saute for 3 minutes.

When the shrimp start to turn pink, it's time
to flip over and cook the other side. They only
take a moment, so be careful not to over cook.

7) Add the sauce and the noodles. Mix and move to the side of the pan.
8) Add the egg, let sit a moment and then mix it in to the noodles.

9)Add the vegetables and let cook for a minute. Combine with the noodles.

10) Add the peanuts, green onion and cilantro. Remove from heat.
11) Serve with lime wedge.

One Man's Trash is Another Man's Treasure: Part II

   I have been finding all these recipes lately that I really want to try that ask for Shrimp Stock. So what was I to do, but of course make some of my own. Recently, every time I would purchase shrimp, I would ensure that they had the shells and tails still attached. When the time came to cook some or all of the shrimp, instead of tossing the shells away, I saved them in a resealable plastic bag. Also, I had been saving my vegetable clippings as usual. Instead of waiting to make my next batch of chicken stock, I used them up making Shrimp Stock.
    I should start by saying, that frozen/uncooked shrimp, with the shells and tails attached are considerably cheaper than those that have the shells/tails removed. Now I understand that this is because of the extra labor involved to remove them. But wouldn't you agree it to be silly to pay more for less of a product. Especially when the part that has been removed, can be easily utilized to enhance the flavor of your food. Had I not saved the shells/tails, I would have been forced to spend X amount of dollars on an item I already had the ability to make myself for free. And I say free, because the items from which it's made, are items that would otherwise be tossed in the trash.
    While making this Shrimp Stock, I could have easily tossed everything in the slow cooker, as I do with my Chicken Stock. But today I had some free time and decided to use the stove top.   

"Free" Shrimp Stock:

Ready for the freezer. I use these convenient freezer
jars for easy storage. Each container holds
2 cups of stock.

Ingredients:

shells/tails from about 2 lbs worth of shrimp (enough to fill a medium sized freezer bag)

clippings from carrots, celery, and onion (enough to fill a medium sized freezer bag)

2-3 garlic cloves

2 bay leaves

1 tsp. whole peppercorns

2-3 tsp. salt

16 cups water

Directions:

(1) Add the frozen shrimp shells to a very large pot. Cook until they become pink.

 

(2) Add all the other ingredients, and pour in the water. Bring to a boil, and reduce to a simmer for no less than 3 hours.

(3) Once the time has passed, strain the liquid and discard the rest.

(4) From here you can freeze the stock, or process it using Mason Jars and a water bath.

You may also like:
"Free" Chicken Stock