Recipe: Paella with lobster, mussels, prawns and langoustines

The recipes in Karin Gaasterland’s new cookbook Cuisine Carine are simple yet every one of them is divine, like this paella with various types of crustaceans and shellfish. All you need is a paella pan and some patience, but a pan of fresh paella like this is definitely worth the wait!

Karin: “The great thing about paella is the process. Together – with plenty of patience, a glass of wine and preferably outside, cooking in the pan over an open fire or on a special paella burner – you ‘build’ a dish in the smoke of those wonderful aromas. In this version I’ve incorporated some of my loves: red rice from the Camargue, Soller prawns, oranges and fennel fronds from Mallorca, red gold (saffron) from Morocco, French butter and garlic. Of course, the paella will be just as delicious with fresh, local ingredients from your area.”

How to make the paella

• Cook the rice in salted water with the saffron for half the cooking time indicated on the package. Drain
  and rinse with cold water. Meanwhile, heat the fish stock with the white wine and pastis in a saucepan over low heat.
• Cook the lobsters in salted water with the sugar for 7 minutes. Remove from the cooking liquid and use a large sharp knife to cut the lobster in half lengthwise through the belly. Remove the grey stomach sacs.
• Heat a generous layer of olive oil in the paella pan; the entire bottom should be covered. Fry the prawns and langoustines in it, then remove them from the pan.
• In the same oil, sauté the garlic, chilli pepper, red onion and orange zest. Add the tomato, leek, mussels and flat-leaf parsley and season with salt and pepper. Add the rice, toss to combine and spread it in an even layer across the paella pan.
• Arrange the prawns, langoustines and lobster halves on top. Pour in the hot stock and let everything cook over low heat without stirring. You can put the lid on if desired, but make sure it does not burn. The paella will be ready after about 15 minutes. Taste to check whether the rice is cooked.
• Meanwhile, melt the butter with the roasted garlic, colatura and fennel fronds, and pour over the paella just before serving. Serve with the lemon.

Tip

Soller Prawns are pink-red. They owe their distinctive colour and flavour to the specific flora and fauna in a seabed just outside Port de Sóller in Mallorca, where they live. According to Jamie Oliver, they are the tastiest prawns in the world! You always have leftover paella. Knead it into small croquettes or balls, then coat successively in egg, flour, egg and breadcrumbs. Freeze for later or deep-fry the next day in sunflower oil at 180 °C.

Title: Cuisine Carine
Author: Karin Gaasterland
Price: €33.99
Publisher: Carrera Culinair

Read also:

• 4 Spanish fishing villages you absolutely must visit at least once
• Be warned: “many fishmongers are rogues”
• Sustainable fish: tuna is a no, mussels are okay