Grilled Lobster Paella

Preparation

1. Step 1

   Prepare a hot fire in a charcoal grill. Let burn down to red-hot coals; rake to edge of grill. (For backup, start a second round of coals in a charcoal chimney on pavement nearby.) Put a 16"-18" paella pan on grill grate; heat 1/2 cup olive oil. Add 3/4 lb. Spanish chorizo, sliced into 1/2"-thick rounds, and 6 stalks green garlic, thinly sliced, or 2 finely chopped leeks, white and light-green parts only; cook until golden, 3-4 minutes.

   Step 2

   Add 1 tablespoon smoked paprika and 2 1/2 cups short-grain rice (such as bomba, Valencia, or calasparra); cook, stirring often, until rice is coated, 2 minutes. Add 1/4 teaspoon saffron threads to 7 cups hot seafood or chicken stock. Add stock to pan and season to taste with kosher salt; stir to distribute ingredients. Let cook, undisturbed, until stock simmers and rice begins to absorb liquid, about 10 minutes. Rotate pan every 2-3 minutes to cook evenly.

   Step 3

   Arrange 3 1-1 1/4-pound lobsters, halved lengthwise, claws cracked, over the rice. Continue cooking, rotating the pan often, as the rice swells and absorbs the stock. Add more coals from charcoal chimney to maintain even heat under the pan. Cook until the rice is almost tender and the lobster is cooked through, about 10 more minutes.

   Step 4

   Scatter 2 cups shelled peas or frozen peas, thawed, on top. (If the liquid evaporates before the rice is tender, add more hot stock.) Cook without stirring, allowing rice to absorb all of the liquid, so that a crust (the socarrat) develops on the bottom and the edges begin to dry out and get crusty, 5-10 minutes, for a total cooking time of about 40 minutes.

   Step 5

   Remove pan from grill. Cover with large clean kitchen towels and let rest for 5 minutes. Garnish with 1/2 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley and serve with 3 halved lemons, making sure to scrape some of the socarrat from the bottom of the pan onto each plate.