Ingredients
| FISH STOCK makes about 2 litres | |
| 1kg fish bones & heads | |
| 1 brown onion, peeled, quartered | |
| 1 whole garlic head | |
| 3 fresh bay leaves | |
| a few black peppercorns | |
| ½ bunch flat-leafed parsley stalks | |
| ½ cup white wine (optional) | |
| 2 tomatoes, whole | |
| SALMORETTA (SOFRITO) | |
| 150ml olive oil | |
| 100g garlic cloves, peeled, chopped in half | |
| ½ bunch parsley, including stalks | |
| 1kg chopped tomatoes | |
| 1 x 600g jar ñora paste (see note) | |
| PAELLA | |
| ½g saffron | |
| 400ml fish stock (see recipe) | |
| 80ml olive oil | |
| 300g calamari cleaned, sliced into 1cm-thick rounds | |
| 2 tablespoons salmoretta (see recipe) | |
| 215g Bomba rice | |
| 250g fillet hāpuku, skin-on, cut into 4 pieces | |
| 12 prawn cutlets, deveined, cut into 3 pieces | |
| 1 roasted, peeled capsicum, sliced | |
| 1 lemon, cut into wedges |
The reason this is called gentleman’s paella is because there are no shells, so you don’t get your hands dirty.
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Instructions
| 1. | FISH STOCK |
| 2. | Place all ingredients in a large saucepan and just cover with cold water. |
| 3. | Bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 90 minutes, skimming occasionally to remove any scum that floats to the top (this will prevent the stock from going cloudy). |
| 4. | Set aside to cool, then ladle through a sieve lined with muslin (or a clean damp Chux cloth), discarding solids. |
| 5. | SALMORETTA (SOFRITO) |
| 6. | In a large, wide, heavy-based pot, heat the oil and add the garlic, cooking over a medium heat until well browned on all sides – the fragrance should be intense. |
| 7. | When browned, add the parsley (no need to chop) and fry for a minute or two. |
| 8. | Add the tomatoes and cook gently over a low-medium heat for 15-20 minutes until the tomatoes are cooked right down. |
| 9. | Add the ñora paste and cook on a medium heat, stirring occasionally for 10 minutes. |
| 10. | Take off the heat. Allow to cool and purée well. Freeze any excess salmoretta in ice cube trays. |
| 11. | PAELLA |
| 12. | Heat the oven to 180℃. |
| 13. | Infuse the saffron in 60ml of hot water for 3 minutes. |
| 14. | Put the fish stock and saffron water into a saucepan, bring to the boil and turn off (do not reduce the liquid in volume, just bring to the boil and turn off). |
| 15. | Put a 30cm paella pan over a high heat and add half the olive oil. |
| 16. | Add the calamari and season with a good pinch of salt and pepper. |
| 17. | Cook, stirring continuously, for 2 minutes or until firm and caramelised. |
| 18. | Reduce the heat to medium and add the salmoretta. |
| 19. | Stir with the calamari, frying gently until well mixed, about 30 seconds. |
| 20. | Then add the stock and saffron water, bring to a simmer and immediately sprinkle in the rice. Increase the heat to medium-high. |
| 21. | It’s important to taste the stock you have in the pan – it should have the flavour of a well-seasoned soup. Add extra salt if required at this stage. |
| 22. | Once boiling, DO NOT STIR THE PAELLA. Instead, shake the pan back and forward to evenly distribute the rice. |
| 23. | Add the pieces of fish to the pan, skin-side up. |
| 24. | Let the rice cook on medium-high for 9-10 minutes, shaking the pan occasionally, until you can see the rice thickening, then turn down to medium heat for 4-5 minutes. |
| 25. | Be careful not to burn the paella – turn the heat down if you feel it’s cooking too quickly. |
| 26. | Remove from the heat, cover with a clean tea towel and allow it to reposar (rest) for 10 minutes. |
| 27. | This is when the remaining liquid will be absorbed by the rice. |
| 28. | In the meantime, put the prawns onto a metal tray, season with salt and pepper and mix with the remaining olive oil. |
| 29. | Roast in the oven until cooked, about 6 minutes. |
| 30. | Place the prawns onto the paella with the sliced roasted capsicums. |
| 31. | Turn the heat on to high and place the paella back onto the flame. |
| 32. | This is the time to create the socarrat (the crust on the bottom of the paella without burning) – it usually only takes 20 seconds or less on the flame. |
| 33. | I like to use the back of a spoon to feel that the rice has stuck in places. |
| 34. | Serve with lemon wedges for your guests to squeeze as they serve themselves. |
Food and recipe styling Frank Camorra / Photography Manja Wachsmuth