Europe's contribution to the constellation of cuisines familiar to us today is undeniable. French and Italian culinary traditions come immediately to mind. Today however, we turn to a less mainstream but no less remarkable cuisine - Spanish.
The area known today as Spain has a complex ethnic heritage, for it was a highly-contested territory throughout most of its history. Roman, Greek, Carthaginian and Moorish cultures, among others, all influenced Spain's makeup.
During the Age of Exploration, firmly established trade routes with Asia acclimated Spanish sensibilities to once-novel ingredients such as vanilla, honey, chocolate and rare spices such as saffron. Spanish food also commonly incorporates peppers, jamon Serrano (Spain's beloved cured ham), beans and, as you will see, lots of garlic.
Different regions of Spain have different culinary leanings - for example, Valencia makes heavy use of rice and Catalonia loves its seafood and fish. But the entire country shares a hearty love of food and its accompanying joviality. Why else would a typical day traditionally involve two breakfasts, two tapas, a three-course lunch, a couple afternoon teas and a late supper?
Because Spanish cuisine is so richly complex and can not possibly be summarized in a humble 800 words, I will dedicate this article to two "greatest hits" dishes: paella and sopa de ajo, or garlic soup.
Paella hails from Valencia and is essentially a rice dish made with freely chosen meats and vegetables. Many versions have evolved, but enthusiasts will tell us that the seafood variety is most divine.
Paella is typically flavored and dyed a rich yellow with saffron. The word paella most likely came from the Spanish word patella, which refers to a traditional iron pan. It resembles a large silver frying pan, but has two handles instead of one long one.
Peasants once cooked rice in these pans, boiling it along with whatever vegetables were handy - usually tomatoes and green peppers - and also meat if they were lucky.
This practice became so widespread that this "Valencian rice" became named after the pan itself. And the deliciousness of the dish caused the upper classes to enthusiastically adopt and modify it into the classy concoction we are familiar with today.
Sopa de ajo is a comparatively humble dish indeed, made with only a few ingredients, but it is the epitome of Spain's love affair with the piquant garlic bulb.
It is also beautifully warming on a blustery early spring Boston day.
Sopa de ajo is one of the more famous varieties of tapas. Tapas are essentially exquisitely prepared Spanish appetizers or small dishes, but if there are a lot of them, they can constitute a hearty meal (very similar in concept to Chinese dim-sum).
Tapa literally means a cover or a lid, and their origins can be traced back to a purported old tradition of covering one's wine glass with a slice of bread to keep out overly adventurous insects.
If the idea of tapas tickles your tamales, I encourage you to look up some Boston area tapas bars. (Dali in particular is spectacular, but save up - it's not cheap!)
Without further ado, here are two recipes, one for a very delectable paella involving shrimp, chorizo and chicken, and the other for a traditional sopa de ajo. Before long, you will be in Spanish culinary heaven.
Anna's Sopa de Ajo
Ingredients:
*8 cups chicken stock*3 cups crusty bread chopped into 1-inch chunks*1/3 cup olive oil*8 cloves garlic, peeled and minced*salt to taste*1 teaspoon paprika*4 eggs
Directions:
1) Heat the stock in a large saucepan and keep ready.
2) In a frying pan, heat the olive oil, then toss in the bread crumbs and stir until browned. Stir in the paprika and garlic and saut?© a little longer, until the garlic aroma is released.
3) Scrape bread and garlic into the simmering stock, washing out the pan with stock to get every bit of flavor. Simmer uncovered for 15 minutes.
4) When ready to serve, salt to taste, bring to a medium simmer, and break the eggs into the soup at the point you can see bubbles break the surface. Let poach until done, then ladle into soup bowls and serve extra bread on the side.
Paella
Ingredients:
*2 tablespoons olive oil*1 onion, chopped*2 cloves garlic, minced*1 bell pepper, chopped*4 ounces chorizo sausage, cut into pieces*2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into 1/2 inch cubes*3 cups rice*4 cups chicken broth*? teaspoon thyme*1 bay leaf*1 pinch saffron*2 tomatoes, chopped*12 large shrimp, peeled and de-veined*8 slices lemon, for garnish
Directions:
1) First step: chop/mince all the ingredients that need aforementioned treatments.
2) Heat olive oil in large pot over medium heat. Add in onion, garlic and pepper; cook and stir for a few minutes. Add chorizo sausage, diced chicken and rice; cook for two to three minutes.
3) Stir in chicken broth, thyme and saffron. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring to the boil, and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4) Taste the rice, and check to see if it is cooked. If the rice is uncooked, stir in 1/2 cup more stock. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally.
5) Stir in up to two cups additional stock if necessary, 5 cups total. Cook until rice is done. It helps to stir and scrape the bottom of the pot often to make sure the rice doesn't burn and stick.
6) Stir in tomatoes. Cook for two minutes. Arrange shrimp on top, cover pot and cook 3 more minutes, or until shrimp is pink and curled.
7) Serve garnished with lemon wedges. Yum!
Hope you enjoy! If you can find the chance to make these dishes together - the soup makes a ridiculously good accompaniment to the paella. I also suggest a good quality white wine, perhaps chardonnay. To life, health, love, and copious amounts of good cooking!
