Editor's note: The recipe below is excerpted from Tyler Florence's Eat This Book. To read more about Tyler Florence and to get his tips on throwing a Super Bowl party, click here.
There's a restaurant in Barcelona off la Ramblas — the "walking district" — called Las Turcoles, which means charcoal. You walk down an unassuming cobblestone street and into an even more unassuming bar. To get to the restaurant you walk through the kitchen where there are fifteen Spaniards standing around a train-engine of a coal-fed stove. The place looks and smells like Spain at its finest: paprika, chorizo, hams, and garlic.
I knew I was in the right place when I got to the bottom of my dish. The rice was toasted and crunchy, like a perfect paella should be. Using a method called socarrat, the chefs crank up the heat under the rice really high once it's cooked through, until they smell the rice begin to toast, and then shut it off. It was one of the most delicious things I've ever tasted.
Recipe information
Total Time
1 3/4 hours
Yield
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Rinse the chicken pieces and pat dry. Mix the oregano and paprika with some salt and pepper in a small bowl. Rub the spice mixture all over the chicken and stick it in the refrigerator to marinate for 30 minutes.
Step 2
Heat the oil in a paella pan or wide shallow skillet over medium-high heat. When the oil is beginning to smoke, add the chicken, skin side down, and brown all over, turning with tongs. Add the chorizo and continue to cook until the oil is a vibrant red color. Remove the chicken and sausage to a platter lined with paper towels.
Step 3
Return the pan to the stove and lower the heat to medium. Now make a sofrito by sautéing the garlic and onion in the oil that remains in the pan for 7 to 10 minutes, until they begin to brown. Add the tomatoes and cook it all down until the mixture caramelizes a bit and the flavors meld. Season with salt and pepper. Fold in the rice, stirring to coat the grains. Stir in the saffron. Pour in 3 cups warm water and simmer for 10 minutes, gently moving the pan around so the rice cooks evenly and absorbs the liquid. Do not cover or stir constantly as you would a risotto.
Step 4
Add the shrimp, lobster, clams, and the reserved chicken and chorizo. Give the paella a couple of good stirs to tuck all the pieces in there, then just let it simmer, without stirring, until the rice is al dente, about 15 minutes. Scatter the peas on top and continue to cook for 5 more minutes, until the paella looks fluffy and moist. (The ideal paella has a toasted rice bottom called socarrat.) Then let it rest off the heat for 5 minutes. Garnish with parsley and serve with lemon wedges.
