paella

Valencian paella.

Preparation of paella with peas, chicken, shellfish, and calamari.

A giant seafood paella cooked on the 2003 Catalonian National Day in the village square of Cornudella de Montsant, Catalonia, Spain.

Closeup of the dish.

Vegan paella

Paella (IPA: [pa'eʎa]) is a rice dish, it is traditionally eaten on Sundays. The name paella is the word for "frying pan" in Valencian (from Latin patella).

Paella is usually garnished with vegetables and meat or seafood. The three main ingredients are rice, saffron, and olive oil.

Legends about its origin

• There is an old story of how the Moorish kings' servants created rice dishes by mixing the leftovers from royal banquets in large pots to take home. In the Arab countries, it is often wrongly believed that the word paella originates from the Arabic word baqiyah, meaning leftovers.
• The story about the word paella deriving from para ella (for her) is obviously wrong too, even though it is said that most paellas are made by men cooking once a week for their wives.
• It has been noted the similarity in name and method of cooking with the Pilaf dish. The word paella has amazing resemblance to other rice dishes made from Grecee to Iran: Pilaf, Pilau, Polo. All prepared in similarly shaped cookware.
• Nevertheless, the origin of the name paella in the Valencian word for frying pan is beyond any possibe doubt. This word in turn derives from Latin patella and is akin to French poêle, Italian padella and Old Spanish padilla.

Basic cooking method

For recipes, see Wikibooks:Cookbook:Paella.

Paella is generally cooked in a paella pan, which is a large, shallow, flat pan. First the meat, and then the vegetables are stir fried in olive oil; subsequently water is added and brought to a boil, and left boiling for half an hour or so. (This, however, is not the sole method utilized in the preparation. Many chefs add the water, allow it to come to the boil and at that moment add the rice. Otherwise the water may evaporate leaving not enough liquid in which to cook the rice.) Later, after checking the obtained broth flavour and adding salt if required, the rice is added. Real paella rice is never stir-fried in oil, as pilaf. Once the rice is nearly done, the paella is removed from the heat and left to absorb the remaining water. Traditional paella has a crispy, caramelized, toasted bottom (called socarrat in Valencian) that is considered a delicacy. To achieve a socarrat, one needs only to turn up the heat to high and listen to the bottom of the rice toast. Once the aroma of toasted rice comes from the pan, the heat is removed once again. The paella is ready to be served after having cooled for several minutes.

Related paella traditions

It has become a custom for mass gatherings in the Valencian Community—festivals, political campaigns, protests, etc.—to prepare an enormous paella, sometimes to win a mention in the Guinness Book of Records. Ad hoc wide-diameter pans are commissioned for these cases.

Paella and its variations are typical picnic dishes for the Spanish spring and summer. The dish is also typically consumed during the Falles in Valencia.

Related dishes

• Arroz a la valenciana
• Arroz negro
• Fideuà
• Fried rice
• Jambalaya
• Plov
• Risotto

External links

Wikibooks Cookbook has an article on

Paella

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Paella

• Spanish Food - Paella
• Step-by-step paella recipe
• Paella - Recipe and video on how to cook an original Valencian paella
• Official recipe from Valencia
• Paella cooking method - Techniques and recipe for making paella and description of paella pan
• Step-by-step paella guide with photos
• Spanish Rices, Paella, Fideua and Black rice
• Vegan Spanish Paella recipe

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