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06/09/1999 Archived Entry: "Penelope Casas' Paellas"

I was very happy to welcome Shirley King back to Food Talk Monday. Shirley, who is a professional chef, cookbook writer ("Fish, The Basics", among others) and cooking teacher, used to be on my radio program the first Monday of every month to answer our fish questions. Then she got a full time job as a chef at a private club and couldn't make it to the studio at lunchtime. Now she's a free woman again, and busier than ever. She's just finished what she calls "a little book" on seafood for William-Sonoma. She's teaching basic skills at the Peter Kump Cooking School this summer. And she's also developing prepared foods for Jack's, a new food market in Washington Depot, Connecticut (Litchfield County), from which she brought me a freshly baked pain au chocolate -- essentially flaky croissant dough filled with bittersweet chocolate. I was impressed. It's hard to find such a high quality French product in a country store. But then Washington Depot is not exactly the boonies. It's the most affluent town of quietly moneyed Litchfield County, often called Hollywood in the Hills because so many celebrities live in certain parts.

To get back to Shirley and fish, the subject of roasting a whole fish came up. It's a cooking method that's very of the moment, if you haven't noticed. Stripped bass are running in East Coast waters like they haven't in many years, but the minimum allowed fish still weighs seven to eight pounds. "So what's the best way to cook it?" asked one of my listeners.

"A big fish. Roast it," said Shirley.

"Clean it up nice -- but don't take off the gills. Wrap the head and tail loosely in foil to protect them and keep them looking nice. Then place the fish on a roasting pan or on a baking sheet, on some sliced onion and with about an eighth of an inch of liquid -- water or white wine. Fill up the cavity with some nice things, like lemon slices and fresh herbs. Pop it in a 400-degree oven for 45 minutes to an hour," Shirley instructed in her particular American-British accent.

"But how will I know when it's done?" the man asked.

"Use an instant read thermometer and put in the shoulder of the fish, the portion right behind the head, not touching a bone. It should read 130 to 140 degrees," said Shirley.

This was the first time I'd heard of taking the temperature of a fish, but, of course, why not. I keep telling my listeners that they must have an instant read thermometer to accurately judge when meat is done. Why not fish? It takes the guesswork out of roasting. Timing never works precisely. To cite just one example of how timing isn't reliable: A roast (a fish, a hunk of meat, whatever) at room temperature will cook for measurably less time than the same roast taken directly from the refrigerator and put in the oven.

If you don't yet own an instant read thermometer, which is not left in the food but inserted quickly to take a measurement, you can purchase one for as little as $10. The Taylor thermometer that is sold through digitalchef.com is the one I have. It's accurate, easy to read without my glasses, and I love the plastic tube case it comes in that you can clip onto your apron. Click on the digitalchef.com logo on this page and you'll find it easily in the kitchenware section.


Penelope Casas' Pebbled Paella

Penelope Casas is certainly America's foremost authority on Spanish food. It has been many years now that she's taken groups on culinary tours through Spain. She has written a guide book to Spain, Discovering Spain: An Uncommon Guide, and four cookbooks on Spanish cooking, including her latest, Paella. (Click on the Amazon.com logo on this page and you can do a search on Penelope Casas and get full descriptions of all her books. For information about her culinary trips, call 800-SPAIN- 20)

On Food Talk Tuesday, Penelope bemoaned the quality of the paellas we get in American restaurants. They are usually made with long grain rice, which is not at all like the rice used in a paella in Spain. Paella rice is very similar to Italian Arborio rice, the rice used for risotto, and, in fact, you can substitute Arborio perfectly for paella rice. That's often a necessity since paella rice, although now finally available in the U.S., is still difficult to find in comparison to Arborio.

Penelope and I got to talk briefly about other Spanish products that are finally becoming available in the U.S., too. Serrano ham, which is a dense, nutty, complex flavored product had a shaky introduction here a year and a half ago. Government inspections or something interrupted its distribution. But I'm beginning to see it at fine specialty food stores again. Estate bottled extra virgin olive oils from Spain are enjoying a vogue. They are golden in color and lighter in flavor than the green and peppery Tuscan oils that have been popular for several years now. And for the moment they are must less expensive. Penelope also pointed out that Spanish smoked paprika, which is such a defining flavor in many Spanish dishes, is now being sold in the U.S., too.

A mail order source she suggests for any Spanish food product is The Spanish Table, 1427 Western Ave., Seattle Washington, 98101. Call for information: (206) 682-2827. (More on this after I've seen the catalog myself.)

Following is one of the 60 incredibly varied paella recipes in "Paella," which also has recipes for first courses and appetizers so you can compose Spanish menus around you main course rice dishes. (I don't understand why Penelope instructs us with different times and temperatures for gas and electric ovens, but I for one always follow instructions -- at least the first time around.)


Bean Pebbled Paella
(Arroz Empedrat)
Serves 6 to 8

A very colorful rice with a pebbled appearance obtained from the abundance of different colored beans that make up this paella. Aside from the touch of cured ham, this is a strictly vegetable paella made especially tasty by the addition of Swiss chard and cumin.

2/3 cup each canned chickpeas, pinto beans, red beans, and black beans (reserve all the can liquid except from the black beans)
About 4 1/2 cups chicken broth, canned or homemade, or vegetable broth
1/4 teaspoon crumbled thread saffron
8 tablespoons olive oil
2 bunches scallions (about 1/2 pound), trimmed and finely chopped
12 cloves garlic, minced
2 red bell peppers, finely chopped
3 cups well-washed, dried and chopped Swiss chard leaves
6 tablespoons (about 6 ounces) diced Spanish Serrano ham or prosciutto, cut from a 1/4-inch thick slice
1 medium tomato, finely chopped
2 tablespoons minced parsley
2 teaspoons sweet paprika (preferably Spanish smoked paprika)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3 cups imported Spanish or Arborio short grain rice
Kosher or sea salt

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees for a gas oven or 450 degrees for electric.

Drain the beans and reserve the liquid from all the cans except the black beans. Rinse the beans. Combine the bean liquid in the pot with enough broth to make 6 cups. Add the saffron and keep hot over the lowest heat.

Heat the oil in a paella pan measuring 17 to 18 inches at its widest point (or in a shallow casserole of a similar size), over two burners if necessary. Saute the scallions, garlic, red peppers, Swiss chard, and ham over medium heat, until the peppers are slightly softened. Add the tomato and parsley, and cook 1 to 2 minutes, then add the paprika and cumin.

Stir in the rice and coat well with the pan mixture. Pour in the hot broth and bring to a boil. Add the beans, taste for salt, and continue to boil, stirring and rotating the pan occasionally, until the rice is no longer soupy but sufficient liquid remains to continue cooking the rice, about 5 minutes.

Transfer to the oven and cook, uncovered, 10 to 12 minutes in a gas oven, 15 to 20 minutes in electric, until the rice is almost al dente. Remove to a warm spot, cover with foil, and let sit 5 to 10 minutes, until the rice is cooked to taste.