Has anyone ever made Paella?

Paella with Shrimp..jpg



Here's a pic of it - one of the many versions of it. This one has just shrimp in it.

I've seen it being made with chicken, sausages & loads of seafood. I don't want all that stuff in mine, and I'm also not planning to make enough to feed the U.S. Army either.

Also, I don't have a paella pan, so I'm going to have to use one of my big deep 5-qt skillets. I'd probably go with some chicken, sausages, shrimp & maybe some scallops in mine. :wink:
 
Shermie said:
Those prices though, are probably in your country. I'll have to look & see what the price is in American currency. :wink:
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You can get it in the spice aisle at any Kroger. A bottle costs about $16, but the bottle actually contains a tiny tube of the threads. Get the McCormick brand, which has 0.06 ounces (vs. Spice Island brand, which is slightly cheaper for the bottle, but only has 0.03 ounces). And, that bottle will last a long time, since it needs to be used sparingly, and there are so few recipes that use it.
 
Just a little info on paella: when it's made with chicken, seafood, and sausage, it's called paella valenciana. When it's made with just seafood, it's paella marinera.

I loooove a good paella. The trick is to not overcook the seafood while getting the other meats done, and then to get the rice to absorb just enough liquid so it's not soupy.

And yes, saffron is essential to this dish. You can try turmeric or achiote to get the color, but the flavor will be different.

My favorite Spanish restaurant serves valenciana with shrimp, mussels, chicken, and chorizo. Their marinera replaces the chicken and chorizo with lobster and clams.
 
The Late Night Gourmet said:
You can get it in the spice aisle at any Kroger. A bottle costs about $16, but the bottle actually contains a tiny tube of the threads. Get the McCormick brand, which has 0.06 ounces (vs. Spice Island brand, which is slightly cheaper for the bottle, but only has 0.03 ounces). And, that bottle will last a long time, since it needs to be used sparingly, and there are so few recipes that use it.
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Hi. The nearest Kroger to me is roughly 300 miles. However, you can get actual saffron at Walmart or most grocery stores.
Now down here, we also have Mexican saffron. It is way cheaper. :)
 
Mexican saffron is made from safflowers:

Mexican saffron or safflower is unrelated to real saffron, although the two share a similar color. Mexican saffron is native to the Mediterranean and also cultivated in Europe and the United States. It grows with a strong central branch stem, a taproot system and a varying number of branches. It is a thistle-like plant that reaches from 1 to 3 feet high. Each branch of the safflower has one to five orange-yellow flower heads and each flower head has 15 to 20 seeds with an oil content ranging from 30 to 50 percent.
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