A dish with an interesting name paella, like, in principle, any other, does not have a single form of preparation.
Each mistress prepares a paella in her own way. One housewife believes that it is impossible to get hot without mussels, the second is guided by a combination of shrimp and chicken, the third will say that green beans must be present in the dish. And they will all be right.
So what is paella? And how to cook it so that it tastes good?
Shrimp paella - general cooking principles
Itself the name of the dish means a pan (Paella), they cook paella in a special wide flat utensil, where the rice layer reaches a height of no more than 2 cm. However, it is quite possible to replace it with an ordinary cast-iron frying pan with low sides.
Rice for paella is chosen with special care: long-grained, familiar to us jasmine and basmati are not suitable, ideally take arborio or the most common Krasnodar round-grain rice in our country. The main thing is that the grains are large and without chips.
Given that freshly caught shrimp in our regions of the country is not possible to get, use a frozen product. Shrimp can be peeled or in shell, small or royal - it depends on the recipe and your preferences.
Another important component of the dish is saffron: coloring rice cereal in a golden hue, it gives paella a characteristic sunny color.
Prepare a dish by analogy with the Uzbek pilaf: sauté vegetables, separately fry shrimps, other seafood and meat, mix everything, cover with rice and simmer over low heat. It is important to observe the recommended cooking time at each stage so that the shrimp does not become rubber and the rice does not remain undercooked or does not turn into porridge.
In general, paella with shrimp is a continuous creation and culinary fantasy, placed in a certain framework.
1. Shrimp paella
Ingredients:
• chicken stock - a little more than a glass;
• Arborio rice - 1 cup;
• tiger prawns - 12 pcs.;
• green canned peas - 1 handful;
• sausages "chorizo" - 3 pcs.;
• 2 onions;
• fresh paprika - 1 pc.;
• 3 cloves of garlic;
• 20 g dry paprika;
• cayenne pepper - a pinch;
• saffron - 10 stamens;
• olive oil for frying.
Cooking method:
1. In the prepared slightly cooled chicken broth, put saffron, salt, pour cayenne pepper.
2. Put the chorizo sausages into slices in a hot pan. Fry in olive oil with onion, chopped into small crumbs, until fat is melted.
3. When the onion becomes transparent, add seasoning “paprika” and garlic chopped through the garlic, fry for several minutes.
4. Pour washed rice to the fried foods, mix thoroughly.
5. Add canned peas, mix well again and stir, fry for several minutes.
6. Place the shrimp on top of the rice, alternating them with chopped thin straws paprika.
7. Pour all over with spicy broth, send to the preheated oven for 20 minutes.
2. Paella with prawns and chicken
Ingredients:
• 200 g round grain rice;
• chicken - a small piece;
• half a kilogram of shrimp;
• onion head;
• 4 cloves of garlic;
• 1 pod of fresh paprika;
• tomato - 3 teaspoons;
• green frozen peas - 200 g;
• a half liter jar of chicken broth;
• olive oil for frying;
• seasoning turmeric - 5 g;
• allspice black powder, basil seasoning and paprika seasoning - 1 teaspoon each;
• salt - half a teaspoon.
Cooking method:
1. Peel the garlic, cut into thin slices with a knife.
2. Put the garlic in a frying pan heated with olive oil, fry a little and remove from the stove.
3. Peel the onion, cut into four parts, put in a hot pan, fry until golden brown.
4. Add washed, dried and chopped chicken meat, fry again over high heat, stirring continuously, for 5 minutes.
5. For onions and meat, lay sweet pepper sliced in a medium cube.
6. Add tomato paste, mix thoroughly and fry for a couple more minutes.
7. Rinse and put the rice in a pan, stir, reduce heat and warm.
8. Pour a little broth, salt, season with seasonings and simmer over moderate heat until the broth is completely evaporated.
9. Pour in a little more broth; Add remaining broth.
10. At the very end, put the shrimp and green peas on the rice, mix thoroughly and simmer over moderate heat, covering with a lid, for 5-7 minutes.
Ingredients:
• rice groats - a little less than half a kilogram;
• 16 shrimp;
• olive oil - 50 ml;
• 6 cloves of garlic;
• onion head;
• 1 tomato;
• frozen green peas - 30 g;
• pitted olives - 50 g;
• saffron - 20 g;
• black allspice powder, salt - 20 g each;
• 4 slices of lemon.
Cooking method:
1. In a hot pan with olive oil, put the onion, chopped into small crumbs, garlic squeezed through a press, fry until slightly brown.
2. Pour the tomato with hot water, hold for a few seconds and remove the skin from it, finely chop it, put it on the onion and garlic, pour a little water, pepper, add saffron, and stir well.
3. Pour rice into the pan, stir thoroughly. Bring to readiness, if necessary - add boiling water.
4. Put the shrimp on the rice, close the lid and simmer for 5 minutes over low heat.
5. Add chopped olives and green peas, close the lid again, add more heat and then lighten for 1 minute.
6. After fully prepared, let the paella brew for 20 minutes.
7. Serve on portioned plates, top with lemon slices.
4. Paella with shrimp and mushrooms
Ingredients:
• 1 cup rice cereal;
• shrimp without shell - 12 pcs.;
• some olive oil;
• 6 medium fresh champignons;
• black allspice powder, sea salt - 20 g each;
• 1 onion;
• ready soy sauce - 2 tbsp. spoons;
• Parmesan cheese - a small piece;
• any seasoning - 20 g;
• 5 cloves of garlic.
Cooking method:
1. Fresh mushrooms, peel, rinse, cut into medium slices, put on a hot frying pan with butter and fry together with chopped onions until golden crust and until the moisture evaporates completely.
2. In mushrooms with onions, pour a little sea salt, seasoning and allspice.
3. Wash the rice groats, fill with water and boil for 15 minutes.
4. Defrost shrimp.
5. After softening the mushrooms, add the shrimp to the pan, stir, fry a little until the shrimp is slightly fried.
6. Put boiled rice in a frying pan, pour a little soy sauce, stir well, sprinkle with parmesan and the remaining seasoning, stir again and simmer with the lid closed for 5 minutes over low heat.
7. At the end, put the garlic chopped through the garlic, let it brew for a couple of minutes and put it on serving plates.
5. Paella with shrimp and ham
Ingredients:
• two onions;
• 30 ml of olive oil;
• seasoning paprika - 30 g;
• 2 slices of smoked ham;
• 10 g of saffron;
• cayenne pepper - 10 g;
• Arborio rice - a little more than a glass;
• broth - 800 ml;
• 25 small shrimp;
• green peas in frozen form - 50 g;
• parsley - half a bunch;
• hot pepper in powder - 10 g.
Cooking method:
1. Take a cast-iron frying pan, heat olive oil on it. Put onion in small crumbs, ham in small cubes and fry for several minutes.
2. Pour saffron into the chicken stock and leave for half an hour.
3. Sprinkle the contents of the pan with hot pepper, cayenne pepper, season with paprika, season the washed rice and stir well with a spoon.
4. Pour 700 ml of broth. As soon as the broth boils, reduce the heat, close the lid and simmer until the rice groats are soft.
5. Lastly, add peas and shrimp, fill with the remaining broth and boil with the lid closed for 6 minutes.
6. Pour chopped parsley, let the dish brew.
6. King paella with shrimp
Ingredients:
• a little more than a liter of chicken stock;
• onion head;
• a handful of saffron;
• olive oil for frying;
• 4 cloves of garlic;
• 1 bell pepper;
• a pound of rice groats;
• dry white wine - half a glass;
• small cod or haddock without skin;
• 7 large shrimp;
• 5 squid;
• 3 sticks of asparagus fresh;
• 2 large tomatoes;
• pitted olives - 12 pcs.;
• a bunch of parsley;
• pickled artichokes - 1 jar;
• 3 slices of lemon.
Cooking method:
1. In a container with chicken stock, put the peeled onion and saffron on a medium heat, bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for several minutes.
2. Strain the finished broth through cheesecloth and drain into a large mug.
3. In a hot cast-iron skillet, put the diced garlic and bell pepper, fry over moderate heat for several minutes.
4. Add the washed rice cereal to the garlic and pepper, fry with continuous stirring until the cereal is transparent.
5. Pour in dry white wine, stir and simmer until it evaporates completely.
6. Pour in a little chicken stock, simmer until the stock is absorbed in rice.
7. Pour in more stock, continue to simmer.
8. Put squid, shrimp, chopped fish, olives, sliced in circles, artichokes, chopped peeled tomatoes, finely chopped asparagus in a pan, pour the remaining broth and simmer until all products are softened.
9. When serving, put Paella with shrimp and fish on portioned plates, sprinkle with chopped parsley leaves and lay on top of lemon wedges.
Shrimp paella - choice of spices
Properly selected spices will give the dish a unique aroma and taste.
Fit:
• saffron;
• cardamom;
• turmeric;
• Bell pepper;
• cloves;
• anise;
• curry;
• chili;
• tarragon.
You can combine spices based on your taste preferences. Do not use a large number of spices, a pinch of one or the other is quite enough. Enjoy your meal.
