Seafood Paella With Venus Clams, Shrimp, Diver Scallops, Spanish Chorizo, And Fennel Sofrito
This recipe shows you how to easily make seafood paella without overcooking the seafood! The results are perfectly cooked rice and tender seafood. Please use the videos below the recipe for reference and a step by step guide to make this seafood paella recipe!
Equipment
- 8-10" Saute Pan (preferably carbon steel)
Ingredients
Tomato and Fennel Sofrito
- 1/4 Cup Baby Heirloom Tomatoes Or any fresh tomatoes. Cut in half
- 1/4 Cup Fennel Sliced thin
- 4 Each Garlic Cloves Chopped
- 2 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 Teaspoon Paprika Smoked or Sweet
Seafood Paella
- 2 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 Each Spanish Chorizo Casing removed. Then chopped
- 2 Pinches Saffron
- 1/2 Cup Tomato Fennel Sofrito All of it
- 1/2 Cup Bomba Rice
- 1 1/2 Cups Clam Juice Add more if needed
- 3 Each Diver Scallops
- 1/2 Pound Venus Clams Any clam will do
- 6 Each Tiger Shrimp, Peeled Head on is great, but completely peeled is also fine
- 1 Bunch Parsley Chopped
Chive Oil
- 1 Bunch Chives
- 1 Cup Canola Oil Vegetable, grapeseed, safflower oils are fine too
Chipotle Aioli
- 2 Each Garlic Cloves Chopped
- 1 Each Egg Yolk
- 1 Each Chipotle Pepper Finely Chopped
- 1 Splash Lemon Juice
- 1 Cup Canola Oil Vegetable, grapeseed, safflower oils are fine too
- To Taste As needed Salt
- To Taste As Needed Water
Instructions
Tomato and Fennel Sofrito
- 1. Slice your baby tomatoes in half, then thinly slice your fennel and garlic.
- 2. In a saute pan, heat up your oil. Add the tomatoes, fennel, garlic, and paprika and turn down the heat.
- 3. Cook this until there is a rich color and aroma coming from the pan. Stir frequently. This should take around 10 minutes.
- 4. Remove from the pan and set aside.
Chipotle Aioli
- 1. Combine the finely chopped garlic and chipotle peppers together in a bowl.
- 2. Add the egg yolks, lemon juice, salt, and a splash of water. Mix this together. You want it to be somewhat thin, but not watery.
- 3. Beat with a whisk while slowly pouring in the canola oil. This will thicken the more oil you add. Continue to add the oil until it is all gone and emulsified into the aioli. This should create a thick, mayonnaise-like sauce.
- 4. If you like the taste, set aside and reserve. If it seems a bit "off", continue to add oil, lemon juice, water, or salt to adjust the consistency and taste. A little goes a long way with each of these ingredients, so be careful!
Chive Oil
- 1. In a blender, combine the chives and oil.
- 2. Blend on high until the sides of the blender container get warm.
- 3. Turn off the blender and cool down the chive oil.
- **Chef's Tip**
- You can take this oil and make it into a chive aioli by substituting the canola oil in the recipe above! You will want to omit the chipotle so you can create a beautifully vibrant green aioli.
Seafood Paella
- 1. Salt the diver scallops and set aside.
- 2. Add the oil to your saute pan and bring it to a smoke. Remove the pan from the heat and gently add your scallops. Sear until it is golden brown on one side. Flip the scallops and remove from the pan. Set these aside on a plate.
- 3. In the same oil and pan, throw in your Spanish chorizo. Cook this until it is getting nice color, then turn the heat down.
- 4. Add the saffron and sofrito. Cook and stir this mixture so the saffron blooms into the oil. Be careful not to burn.
- 5. Next, dump your rice in and coat it well with the oil. Cook this until the rice kernels turn from solid white to opaque. This is called parching. Smooth out the top of the rice so it is an even layer across the pan.
- 6. Add the clam juice slowly and gently so you do not disrupt the rice. Place a piece of foil over the top and seal it tight. Keep this on medium low heat and check back every 5 minutes.
- 7. When you check the rice and it looks about 75% cooked (you can tell by picking a rice grain up and squishing it. If it is soft almost all the way through, you are ready for this step), Add the clams (mouth side up), shrimp, and scallops (from earlier, seared side up).
- 8. Place the foil lid back on and seal well. When the clams have opened up, you are ready for the final step.
- 9. Remove the foil, and turn the heat on high. There should be a little liquid left pooling in the bottom of the rice. If there is not, add a splash more of the clam juice or water for this part. You will be cooking this on high heat until the residual water evaporates and the bottom of the rice starts to get crisp and toasted. This is key for the socarrat (the delicacy of paella).
- 10. Turn off the heat when the rice begins to toast and set the entire saute pan on dry kitchen towel. You will be eating this out of the pan.
Final Touches
- 1. Spoon mounds of aioli around the paella and on the seafood.
- 2. Generously drizzle the chive oil across the entire paella.
- 3. Sprinkle your chopped parsley and enjoy!
