Advent Recipe Day Twelve: Paella Rice with Carabinero Prawns

Paella rice with Carabinero prawns is a classic Spanish cuisine dish, specifically originating from the Mediterranean region of Valencia. This dish pairs rice with red Carabinero prawns and a wonderful range of ingredients to create a delicious meal.

An extremely popular recipe across Spain, paella has been exported all over the world thanks to its excellent flavours and simplicity. In this version from Le Cordon Bleu Madrid, they’ve designed the recipe so that home cooks can give it their own personal touch by adding the Seasoning for Paella to their liking.

Serves 3-4
Total time: 2 hours

Ingredients

Garnish

100 g peas, field variety
2 artichokes
200 g chicken wings
olive oil

Sofrito base

2 garlic cloves
olive oil
300 g tomatoes, on the vine variety
Seasoning for Paella (French sea salt, Spanish paprika, turmeric, caraway seeds, white pepper, garlic, hot peppers)

Paella stock*

200 g velvet crabs
100 g onion
1 celery stick
40 g carrot
olive oil
1 litre water

*N.B. Traditional Spanish paella is prepared using the following: 1 tablespoon of Spanish paprika, 6 threads of saffron in the sofrito base and 1 rosemary sprig, which is added to the stock.

Carabineros

3-4 prawns, Carabinero variety

Rice

200 g rice, Bomba variety
800 ml paella stock

Method

Garnish

Clean and trim the field peas and the artichokes. French the chicken wings. Lightly brown them in the paella pan with extra virgin olive oil. Once browned, remove the field peas, artichokes and chicken wings from the pan and set aside.

Sofrito base

In the paella pan, sauté the two finely chopped garlic cloves, and add the Seasoning for paella.

Add the tomatoes (previously grated). Cook until the water and juices have reduced and are well concentrated. Set aside.

Paella stock

Cut the velvet crabs into small pieces. Dice the vegetables into small cubes. Sauté and brown both in the paella pan until golden. Infuse all the ingredients in water for 20 minutes and strain.

Rice

Pearl the rice with the sofrito base in the paella pan. Moisten with the paella stock and add the vegetables and chicken wings. Cook the rice for 18 minutes while keeping a constant eye on the intensity of the heat so that the rice grains are perfectly cooked and the stock is fully absorbed during this time. After 14 minutes have elapsed, add the Carabinero prawns and season with salt accordingly. Arrange the prawns and some of the chicken wings and vegetables on top of the paella.

Chef’s Tips

Before finishing the paella, put the pan on high heat to toast the rice and to obtain a socarrat effect – a delicious caramelized crust on the bottom central part of the paella pan.

Advent Recipe Day Twelve: Paella Rice with Carabinero Prawns

Paella rice with Carabinero prawns is a classic Spanish cuisine dish, specifically originating from the Mediterranean region of Valencia. This dish pairs rice with red Carabinero prawns and a wonderful range of ingredients to create a delicious meal.

Ingredients

Method

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