Use your grill to create authentic, fast paella

Tag : frozen crushed garlic
Use your grill to create authentic, fast paella 11:25 AM CDT on Friday, July 18, 2008 By J.M. HIRSCH / Associated Press
When was the last time you made paella?
Thundering silence from the crowd. That's probably becausetraditional versions of this otherwise awesome Spanish summer dishof rice, seafood and meat can take the better part of a day.
Even streamlined versions take a couple hours. But it seemed therehad to be a faster way. After all, many of the key ingredients— white rice, shrimp, calamari — cook quickly. Surely,shortcuts could be found for everything else.
This ultra-streamlined version keeps all the robust flavors oftraditional paellas, but gets a kick in the pants from precookedchicken sausages and a unique cooking method.
Traditional paellas are cooked outdoors over wood fires. Thisversion uses a grill, which retains the festive outdoor aspects ofthe dish (making it great for a barbecue), but speeds things up(even over stovetop versions).
Part of the speed comes from being able to cover the grill, whichretains heat to speed the cooking.
Paella traditionally is cooked in a special wide, shallow pan(available online and at kitchen shops). You also could use alarge, oven-safe skillet (about 14 inches). Either way, be sureyour pan fits on your grill with the cover down.
This recipe can be adapted for the stovetop, but you will need toreduce the heat (the pan is closer to the flame on the stove thanon a grill), and use the oven to replicate the effect of closingthe grill.
Note that during cooking, a crusty layer of rice will form alongthe bottom of the pan. This is good. It is called soccarat and isconsidered essential to the taste and texture of traditionalpaella.
Finally, there are plenty of ingredients left out of thissimplified recipe that could be easily added, including mussels,fish and other meat. Experiment to suit your tastes.
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PRONTO PAELLA
Start to finish: 1 hour
Servings: 6
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 cloves garlic, minced
Pinch red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
2 red bell peppers, cored and thinly sliced
12-ounce package sweet Italian chicken sausages (precookedvariety), cut into 1/2-inch-thick oblongs
1 large yellow onion, finely diced
3 tablespoons tomato paste
2 cups long-grain white rice
3 1/2 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup white wine
1 teaspoon crushed saffron threads
1 pound raw extra-large shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 pound calamari rings
1 cup peas (thawed if frozen)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Salt and ground black pepper, to taste
1 lemon, cut into wedges
Heat a grill with a cover to high.
Place a paella pan or very large oven-safe skillet (at least 14inches) on the grill. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil, the garlic,red pepper flakes, paprika, red peppers and sausages. Cover andcook, stirring occasionally, until the peppers are tender, about 5minutes.
Transfer the sausage and pepper mixture to a bowl and set aside.
Return the pan to the heat. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons ofolive oil and the onion. Saute for 2 minutes, then add the tomatopaste. Cook, stirring constantly, for 5 minutes.
Add the rice and stir to mix into the tomato paste. Slowly pour inthe broth and wine and stir well. Stir in the saffron, close thegrill and let cook 9 minutes.
Open the grill, stir the rice, then cover the grill and cookanother 9 minutes, or until all the liquid is abosrbed and a lightcrust of rice has formed along the bottom of the pan.
Add the shrimp and mix into the rice. Cover the grill and cook 4minutes. Add the calamari, peas and reserved sausage and peppermixture. Cover the grill and cook another 4 minutes, or until theshrimp are pink and firm.
To serve, sprinkle the paella with parsley, season with salt andpepper, then set the lemon wedges around the edge of the pan.
Nutrition information per serving: 617 calories; 162 calories fromfat; 18 g fat (4 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 247 mg cholesterol;68 g carbohydrate; 39 g protein; 4 g fiber; 1,010 mg sodium.