Large Plates
This is the kind of meal that makes for extraordinary summer night entertaining. The colors, the smells, the exotic nature of serving seafood that must be pulled from the shells at the table, the allure of taking a Spanish classic and adapting it to live fire cooking, and the joy of eating a variety of marine creatures all on one plate is magical. This recipe is easily adaptable to any seafood that looks amazing at the fish monger and may be doubled to feed a crowd of twelve. Delicious served with an icy pilsner or a glass of sauvignon blanc, and a simple green salad, cooking paella together on the OFYR grill has a cinematic, sexy appeal. Add a Gypsy Kings playlist and let the night unfold with good food and good company.
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 1 large white onion, diced
- 8 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 plum tomatoes, small dice
- Pinch saffron
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
- 1 tablespoon sea salt
- 2 cups sauvignon blanc
- 1 pound Bomba (paella rice)
- 4 cups fish stock
- 4 cups squid ink base (or additional fish stock)
- 2 pounds mussels, cleaned and debearded
- 2 pounds clams
- 1 pound jumbo shrimp, heads on
- 12 langoustine
- 1/2 pound squid, bodies cut into 1/4 inch rings, tentacles cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1/2 cup parsley, for garnish
- Grapeseed oil, for preparing the OFYR
Directions
- Prepare the OFYR Grill. Begin cooking the paella when the fire is still hot but the flames are tamed.
- Place a paella pan on the grate over the live fire. Heat the olive oil in a paella pan. Add the onion and let it cook until fragrant and translucent, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in the garlic and tomatoes and cook for a few minutes. Add in the paprika and pinch of saffron. Add the Bomba rice to the pan and let it coat in tomato mixture.
- Pour 1 cup of the wine into the pan and let it simmer until evaporated.
- Add the fish stock and the squid ink base and give it a quick stir. Season with salt to taste.
- Let the rice simmer, adding water if the rice begins to dry out. Keep an eye on the mixture and stir occasionally to make sure the bottom of the pan is not burnt. When the texture of the rice is al dente, it is done. Remove from the OFYR grate.
- While the rice is simmering, oil the ring of the OFYR and place the seafood around the ring by type.
- After about 2 minutes, pour the wine over the mussels and clams. When they open, they are ready to be removed from the OFYR ring.
- Flip the shrimp and langoustines, they are done when opaque through the center.
- Turn the squid so that it is charred on all sides.
- Arrange the grilled seafood over the paella rice and garnish with the parsley. Dig in immediately.
Grilling Notes
When working with mollusks such as mussels and clams, toss any that you notice are open when cleaning and debearding. After cooking them, toss any that remain closed. Add water as necessary, be generous. Cooking paella over fire requires more liquid and it is better to cook off the water than to burn the rice. Langoustines, also known as Norwegian Lobsters or Dublin Prawns, have a sweet and sophisticated taste. Cooked lobster tails or claws may be substituted. If squid ink base is unavailable, substitute 2 cups squid ink and water. Black pearl rice is an awesome substitute if paella rice and squid ink are unavailable (add more fish stock to make up for the squid ink base liquid).