B&B Accommodation and Fishing Holidays in Lecrin Valley, Andalucia, Spain

Traditional recipes from Andalucia Southern Spain

Let your mouse hover over the picture for its description

The lounge   The rooftop splash pool   The front of the house   One of the guest bedrooms   The dining area   Looking down the street that Casa Azul is on

Paella

Ingredients

  • 600ml/1 pint 1½fl oz calasparra (Spanish short-grain rice)
  • 1.3l/2 pints 6fl oz chicken stock
  • ½ tsp saffron stamens
  • 3 bay leaves
  • 150ml/5fl oz good olive oil
  • 1 large Spanish onion, finely diced
  • 3 tsp finely chopped garlic
  • 1 tsp soft thyme leaves
  • ½ tsp dried chilli flakes
  • 1 red pepper, diced
  • 225g/8oz swordfish
  • 225g/8oz salmon
  • 115g/4¼oz fresh or frozen peas
  • 3 tsp paprika
  • 18 small clams, cleaned
  • 18 mussels, cleaned
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • 125ml/4½fl oz dry white wine
  • 5 tbsp flatleaf parsley, chopped
  • 4 large tomatoes, de-seeded and diced
  • 55g/2oz unsalted butter
  • 1 lemon, zest only
  • salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 12 jumbo raw prawns, in shell
  • 450g/16oz squid, cleaned and chopped into bite-sized pieces

    • Preperation

    In a large paella dish or heavy-based saucepan, cook the rice in the stock with the saffron and bay leaves until tender, but al dente, and set aside. Keep warm.

    Place half the olive oil, the onion, one teaspoon of the garlic, the thyme, chilli flakes, and red pepper into a frying pan and cook until the onion has started to soften. This will take a couple of minutes.

    Add the swordfish and the salmon, peas and paprika and continue frying until golden brown, about 6-7 minutes. Keep the mixture moving so that everything browns equally and doesn’t burn.

    Meanwhile, to cook the cleaned molluscs (you should scrub them and remove any beards prior to cooking), place half of the remaining olive oil into another saucepan and, once hot, add another teaspoon of garlic.

    Add the clams and the mussels, coating them well with the garlic and oil, then add the lemon juice, white wine, and parsley. Cover and toss until the shells open - this should take a couple of minutes. Remove and discard any that don’t open.

    Fold together the rice, fish and molluscs with the tomatoes, butter and lemon zest, season, cover, and set aside

    .

    Finish off the paella by frying the prawns for 2-3 minutes in a frying pan with the remaining olive oil and garlic, turning once. For the last minute of cooking, add the squid and fry over fierce heat. Scatter the prawns and squid over the paella and serve immediately.