Paella seafood recipe

¡Hola! Come join us and learn all the secrets for cooking the real seafood paella. 

The seafood paella is also known as "Paella Marinera" or “Arroz a Banda” in Spain and there are a lot of varieties of paella dishes in different regions of Spain. Paella is synonymous with Spanish culture. 

A good authentic paella is not so easy to find in restaurants and preparing it at home is quite complicated, but once you know the secrets of the authentic recipe, you will be the master of The Spanish Seafood Paella. 

Learn the secrets of the Spanish seafood paella!

What Rice is used for Paella?

The first step is to select the right kind of rice. The best ones for cooking are the Bomba and the Senia.

Bomba rice is a rice that does not overcook, takes up the liquid well, and maintains a good texture. Senia rice is a round rice that takes on the flavor very well, both qualities are essential if we want our paella to be a success.

Another very important factor that must be considered when cooking paella is the broth. It’s best to prepare your own fish broth in order to get the most authentic flavor since the rice will absorb the original juices of the broth, but you can also get a seafood broth for paella for a quicker process.

Last but not least, Saffron. This is the most expensive ingredient of the seafood paella recipe and certainly the hardest to be found, but using it takes your paella to the next level. 

Saffron gives your paella a very particular flavor and taste. As the saffron mixes into your paella, it’ll give your rice a beautiful golden color compared to the “neon yellow” color created if you use food coloring as a Saffron substitute. 

What are the main ingredients in Seafood Paella

Key Ingredients: Prawns, mussels, squid, rice, stock, onion, garlic, olive oil, saffron, paprika, tomato and lemon (optional, just at the end).

This paella meal is for 5 people, with an estimated time of 1 hour for the broth and about 45 minutes for the paella itself.

Rice will cook for 18 minutes. If you are using Senia, you need to be precise; if you are using Bomba rice, it can cook some more minutes without any problems.

At TerraMar Imports we suggest you use an 18 or 20 inch paella pan.

• 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil (0.20l)
• 0.66 lb monkfish, cut into chunks
• 0.66 lb fresh emperor fish
• 0.55 lb of prawns
• 3 garlic cloves
• 40 g garlic scopes (optional)
• 500 g rice (bomba or sendra)
• 1 little tablespoons of smoked paprika
• 220 g chopped tomatoes
• 1.1 lb fresh mussels
• 68 oz Fish Stock
• 1 strand Saffron (and/or Paella Food Coloring)

For the stock

• 3 tbsp olive oil (0.3l)
• 1 onion, roughly chopped
• 200 g can chopped tomatoes
• 3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
• 2 Red Peppers
• 1 kg Whitebait
• 500 g mackerel
• About 5 liters of water

How to cook a delicious Spanish seafood paella in 3 Steps

Instructions:

STEP 1 (You can avoid this step if you buy the seafood broth for paella and the precooked mussels)

Preparation of the broth and the mussels

In a fast pot (about 8 liters), fry the peppers cut into strips and the garlic heads cut in half (3-4 minutes).

Add the fish and onion and fry it a little together with the peppers and garlic (3-4 minutes).

Now add the water according to the amount indicated in the recipe, the Saffron and let it cook for 15 minutes in the fast pot.

Uncover the pot and with a cooking paddle press firmly the fish and vegetables to flatten them slightly and then strain them into a large container (use a wire strainer).

Reserve the broth obtained to use it to carry out the master paella recipe. If we did too much broth, it can be frozen for another occasion.

If you are using fresh mussels, you need to cook them first apart as well. We only need to boil them, so they are completely open before we use them for the paella. Once water is boiling, it takes only 2 minutes to be done.

STEP 2 

Now, you will discover one of the most precious secrets of the Seafood Paella recipe: ‘La Salmorreta’

Prepare Salmorreta (fried dried Red Nora Peppers, garlic, salt, tomato)

• Prepare all the ingredients, cut and weighed according to the amounts indicated.
• Pour the oil into the paella pan, light the fire and add the Red Ñora Peppers. Fry them quickly for about 2 minutes and remove them to a mixing bowl. Put the peeled garlic cloves in the same container.
• Sauté the halved tomatoes for about 5 minutes and put them in the mixing bowl as well.
• Add the salt in the same container and use a blender to mix all these ingredients. Reserve this salmorreta for later.

STEP 3

Sauté prawns, monkfish and emperor fish and add rice

• Sauté the prawns in the paella (if you use frozen, add them without defrosting) and when they are lightly browned, remove them (2 minutes).
• Sauté the monkfish, emperor fish and the garlic cut into small pieces in the paella (2 minutes) and then add the salmorreta that we have in the mixing glass and fry for about 1 minute constantly stirring it.
• Add the fish stock (68oz) and the food coloring.
• As soon as the broth begins to boil, add the rice distributed throughout the paella, the prawns and the mussels.
• Let it boil for the indicated time, being careful during the first 12 minutes to move the rice slightly with the Stainless Steel Skimmer and prevent it from caking and in the last 6 minutes you can lower, maintain, or raise the heat depending on how dry you want to leave the rice and the "socarrat" you want to make if you are using the polished paella pan.
• When the exact cooking time (18-20 min) indicated has been reached, turn off the heat.
• Let it stand for 5 more minutes, serve and enjoy!