We re-did the whole paella, once again tweaking the recipe this morning. It’s ready! I only hope that my neighbors love the smell of sautéed onions at 9:30am.
We also started our two day bone broth, made from 2 organic chickens, this morning. It will bubble away in the slow cooker for the next 48hrs. We use this broth for all of our chilis, soups, stews, and rice dishes. It is a nice way to add tons of flavor to any dish. It may look a little funny, but when it is strained and skimmed you have liquid nirvana. It is quite possibly my favorite layer of flavor in this paella.
New news on the paella burner front: It does not need an hour to heat up. You do not have to turn off one burner so that the other is at full blast. And you do not have to babysit the flame for 20 minutes so it doesn’t go out. You do, however, have to screw the tube into the gas tank tightly. So, there’s that.
We also decided to switch up the shrimp and break up the chorizo. Small changes, but both moves make for a better flavor. I don’t care how much you know about cooking or how much you’ve studied flavors and techniques, there is no better tool to create a perfect dish than trial and error. We’ve made lots of paellas in our day, but this is the first time we’ve used the big paella pan on the correct burner. Getting the flame temperatures right to cook the rice, to get the perfect socarrat, and to not over cook anything is turning out to be an art form.
Once the seafood gets added the paella is almost done. A little time adjustment for the new shrimp and the paella was coming along. It was probably about 10am. I might have had a breakfast shrimp.
Alfonso had to head out to work and I had to go to my real job, so we wrapped it up. We are excited about the recipe and I am less nervous the more I plan, so I think I’ll make it. It helps to be able to check things off the preparation list, and when the mail came I checked off 3 things. Saffron, serving dishes, and stickers!
Doesn’t our new logo look good? My sister-in-law did such an excellent job. Thanks again to her and La Buena Impresión. If you are coming to Paella at the Pig, you can snatch one up!
Obviously, when cute serving dishes arrive one must test them out. I had to practice serving, right? They are adorable. I die.
We’ll be dishing out these little cuties at the event!
Well, 3 more days until we see what Charleston thinks of our Spanish food. I feel good about our recipes and we are thrilled to be working with Striped Pig Distillery for the event! Their space is pretty neat looking and I love that we’ll be cooking with the distilling machines (Can you can tell how much I know about making liquor? Haha.) as our backdrop.
Who wants to try some real deal moonshine?
Come for some sips of smooth, local liquor and Spanish bites and leave with a sticker and a smile. Can’t wait to see you all there!
