Recipes

Paella

Rafael Palomino

Bistro Latino - NYC

Hogao, a traditional Colombian condiment made with fresh tomatoes and onions, adds a South American lilt to the iconic Spanish dish.

Ingredients

Hogao:

  • 2 plum tomatoes, diced
  • 1/2 medium-size red onion, diced
  • 1 small garlic clove, minced
  • 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon chopped parsley

Paella:

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 teaspoons finely minced garlic
  • 2 cups long-grain rice
  • 2 pinches saffron threads
  • 2 pinches Sazón Goya with achiote
  • 5 cups fish stock or water salted to taste
  • 2 tablespoons kosher salt
  • 2 tablespoons diced plum tomato
  • 6 large littleneck clams
  • 12 mussels
  • 2 small fresh lobsters, quartered
  • 6 large shrimp, peeled, and deveined
  • 2 medium-size dry chorizo, diced
  • 1/2 cup canned black beans
  • 2 tablespoons diced scallions
  • 1/4 cup hogo

Method

Before cooking the paella, prepare the hogao. Combine all the ingredients and set aside so that flavors may mellow and marry.

To begin the paella, select a large skillet. Traditionally, a medium-size paella pan should be used for this recipe. If one is not available, use a large skillet with curved sides. Heat the oil in the skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until softened but not browned, about 1 minute. Add the rice and stir until all the grains are completely coated with the oil. Crush the saffron threads between your hands over the pan and sprinkle over the rice. Add the Sazón and stir.

Add 3 cups of the stock and salt (or the seasoned water) to the skillet. Bring to a boil, immediately reduce to a simmer, and cover, stirring occasionally. After 5 minutes, add the tomatoes and stir. Simmer 3 minutes more. The mixture should still be quite soupy. As the liquid is absorbed, add more stock, 1/2 cup at a time, until there is no more stock, and there is still liquid on the bottom of the pan.

Place the clams in the skillet, gently push them down into the rice, and cover. After the clams have cooked for 3 minutes, place the mussels in the skillet, gently pushing them down into the rice. After this point, do not stir the mixture, but move it gently with a wooden spoon every so often to make sure it is not sticking to the pan. After the mussels have cooked 1 minute, add the chorizo, lobster, and shrimp. Cook the paella for about 5 more minutes, until lobster pieces are cooked through and shrimp are opaque. Sprinkle the mixture with black beans, scallions, and reserved hogao, and serve.

Yield

4 servings