Paella is a simple and wonderful dish, but it’s always been difficult to impossible to make at home on a kitchen stovetop. An outstanding paella requires a proper pan – meaning a pan with the right depth, contour and size to cook the rice and ingredients to perfection.
The classic Spanish paella pan – the paellera – has all of those characteristics, but it needs the kind of dispersed heat that you can only get from a special gas cooking ring or a gas grill. On a stovetop gas burner the thin metal of the classic paellera fails to spread the heat, resulting in a scorched center and undercooking around the edges.
The Fourneau Paella Pan changes all of that, and makes it possible for the home cook to produce a perfect paella on a gas stovetop. The heavy cast iron construction of the pan spreads the heat, and the pan’s size and shallow sloped sides are similar to those of the classic Spanish paellera. The elegantly sculpted pan goes from stovetop to table, making for a beautiful presentation of the finished paella.
This recipe will produce four generous servings of the best stovetop paella imaginable. Mix and match your veggies with whatever is in season.
RECIPE
Ingredients:
1 large onion
2 garlic cloves
2 medium tomatoes
1.5 cups Spanish Paella Rice (bomba)
3 cups vegetable broth
1/2 cup white wine
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp saffron
7-8 Marinated artichoke hearts
1 Roasted red bell pepper
1/4 cup frozen peas
1/4 cup manzanilla olives
Salt
Olive Oil
Directions:
Finely chop the onion, garlic and tomatoes. Heat a hearty glug of olive oil in the Fourneau paella pan until the oil shimmers. Add onion and cook until translucent and soft. Add the onion, tomatoes, paprika and saffron and stir until a jammy sauce forms. Add a generous pinch of salt.
In a medium saucepan, begin to bring the vegetable broth and white wine to a boil. Add the paella rice to the paella pan and stir to incorporate and slightly toast the rice. Salt again generously. Spread the rice mixture evenly throughout the pan and slowly pour the boiling water & wine mixture over the rice. Set heat to low and without stirring, let the paella cook uncovered for 20 minutes.
During the last five minutes of cooking, sprinkle the peas, roasted red bell pepper, artichoke hearts and olives on top of the rice. This is the moment for cool creative paella vegetable designs.
When the vegetable toppings have warmed through, remove the pan from heat and bring it right to the table. Garnish with lemons and serve warm alongside crusty bread and dry white wine. Provecho!