Cooking alfresco doesn't have to mean burnt sausages and undercooked burgers, as these delicious dishes provePaella is a lovely dish to cook over an open fire. Gorgeous dark red tomatoes and perfumed saffron, mixed with rice and topped with prawns, all bubble together. Use good rice, such as Bomba, or any rice from Valencia in Spain. Serve with a fine rioja.
SERVES 6-8
◆ 60ml extra-virgin olive oil
◆ 1 dry-cured Spanish chorizo sausage (about 225g), sliced
◆ 4 shallots, finely chopped
◆ 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
◆ 1½ tsp Spanish smoked paprika
◆ 2 tsp hot red pepper flakes/chilli flakes
◆ 6 ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped
◆ 375ml fish stock
◆ 240ml white wine
◆ ½ tsp saffron, soaked in 3 tbsp warm water
◆ 330g paella rice
◆ 20 large prawns, shells intact
◆ 20 mussels
◆ Sea salt and cracked black pepper
◆ Bunch of flat-leaf parsley, chopped, to garnish
◆ Lemon wedges, to serve
1. Heat the grill/barbecue to medium-high. Place a paella pan or frying pan on the grill and add two tablespoons of the olive oil. Add the chorizo to the pan and cook for two to three minutes until the sausage is brown and crispy. Remove from the pan to a plate and set aside.
2. Add the remaining olive oil, shallots and garlic and cook for two minutes until golden, then add the paprika and hot red pepper flakes/chilli flakes and stir to combine. Tip in the tomatoes and, stirring occasionally, cook for about five minutes until they have broken down into a sauce. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Pour the stock, wine and saffron into a pan and place on the grill. Bring to the boil then move to a cooler part of the grill to keep at a simmer.
4. Stir the rice into the tomato mixture and cook for two minutes. Pour the stock mixture over the rice and stir. Bring to the boil then move to a cooler part of the grill and simmer for eight to 10 minutes without stirring.
5. Add the prawns, mussels and chorizo and gently push down into the rice. Cover the pan with foil and cook for another 10-15 minutes until the prawns are cooked through and all the mussels have opened (discard any that have not).
6. Remove the pan from the grill and let the paella rest for about five minutes, then remove the foil. Sprinkle with the chopped parsley and serve with lemon wedges.
◆ Summer Feasting From the Fire: Relaxed Recipes for the BBQ plus Salads, Sides, Drinks & More by Valerie Aikman-Smith is published by Rylands Peter & Small, price £25
This recipe appeared in the August 2024 issue of The Lady magazine.
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