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La Paella: Deliciously Authentic Rice Dishes from Spain's Mediterranean Coast
The most famous dish of the hottest cuisine in town right now, paella is as flavorful as it is festive. Longtime Barcelona resident and Spanish food expert Jeff Koehler fills us in on this cherished rice dish, from its origins to just what it takes to make the perfect one (even without an authentic paella pan). Thirty recipes range from the original paella valenciana , studded with chicken and rabbit, to his mother-in-law's Saturday shellfish special, to sumptuous vegetarian variations, to surprising soups and sweet takes. Stunning scenic photographs, shots of the finished dishes, plus a source list of unusual ingredients and special equipment round out this gorgeous homage to one of Spain's national culinary treasures.
144 pages, Hardcover
First published September 21, 2006
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June 7, 2014I have not only read the book, but have spoken to the author AND had paella in Barcelona. The book is a gem of a cookbook, because of its accessible style and easy instructions.
Paella is a recipe to strive for! Part salad, part seafood or even vegan, this is a recipe that can take years to go thru all the permutations.
Go wild!
Paella is a recipe to strive for! Part salad, part seafood or even vegan, this is a recipe that can take years to go thru all the permutations.
Go wild!
May 21, 2022
This is the first cookbook I read the entire way through. I was unfamiliar with paella until my wife and I went to a restaurant in Tampa and noticed the dish being brought to the table next to us. We went back to the same restaurant a couple nights later and ordered it for ourselves. I decided quickly to try fixing it on my own when I got back to the Midwest.
Not wanting to do it halfway, I announced to my congregation that we were going to have a “paella” night. No one there had ever fixed it (nor had I at that point.) I got hold of this cookbook from a friend, who also loaned me her paella pans. I read the book from cover to cover and watched several YouTube videos. On the night of the dinner, 15 people showed up to help me cook, and we fixed four different recipes from the book, without a trial run beforehand.
The crowd of 30 who showed up to eat finished everything.
The paella has the following necessities:
1. A paella pan: a shallow, steel pan, up to 26 inches in diameter.
2. El sofrito: a slow, aromatic sauté of vegetables. Tomatoes and fresh peppers are almost always included. The sofrito can also include artichoke hearts, green beans, eggplant, peas, etc.
3. La picada: a mashed paste of toasted almonds, fresh parsley leaves, and garlic cloves, sometimes people add rabbit liver. La picada is added near the end of cooking the sofrito.
4. Saffron and smoked paprika: added at the end of the cooking the sofrito.
5. Featured meats and fish: added at various times, depending on the recipe. These can include snails, clams, mussels, head on shrimp, rabbit, chicken, pork, cuttlefish, etc.
6. The liquid: fish stock, vegetable stock, chicken stock, or water.
7. Rice: this is the most important ingredient. It should be short or medium grain, preferably from Spain. You can buy this rice at specialty stores or online. When the water is boiling in the paella pan, with the seasoned sofrito, add the rice, poke it around to distribute it evenly, then do not stir for the next 18 minutes: 10 minutes on high flame and 8 on low. The rice will carmelize on the bottom of the pan: the best part.
Not wanting to do it halfway, I announced to my congregation that we were going to have a “paella” night. No one there had ever fixed it (nor had I at that point.) I got hold of this cookbook from a friend, who also loaned me her paella pans. I read the book from cover to cover and watched several YouTube videos. On the night of the dinner, 15 people showed up to help me cook, and we fixed four different recipes from the book, without a trial run beforehand.
The crowd of 30 who showed up to eat finished everything.
The paella has the following necessities:
1. A paella pan: a shallow, steel pan, up to 26 inches in diameter.
2. El sofrito: a slow, aromatic sauté of vegetables. Tomatoes and fresh peppers are almost always included. The sofrito can also include artichoke hearts, green beans, eggplant, peas, etc.
3. La picada: a mashed paste of toasted almonds, fresh parsley leaves, and garlic cloves, sometimes people add rabbit liver. La picada is added near the end of cooking the sofrito.
4. Saffron and smoked paprika: added at the end of the cooking the sofrito.
5. Featured meats and fish: added at various times, depending on the recipe. These can include snails, clams, mussels, head on shrimp, rabbit, chicken, pork, cuttlefish, etc.
6. The liquid: fish stock, vegetable stock, chicken stock, or water.
7. Rice: this is the most important ingredient. It should be short or medium grain, preferably from Spain. You can buy this rice at specialty stores or online. When the water is boiling in the paella pan, with the seasoned sofrito, add the rice, poke it around to distribute it evenly, then do not stir for the next 18 minutes: 10 minutes on high flame and 8 on low. The rice will carmelize on the bottom of the pan: the best part.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews