Seafood paella (paella de marisc)

Serves 6-8 Starters and mains

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Method

Remove the heads from most of the prawns, and add them to the seafood scraps for the stock (leave a few prawns whole to decorate the pan at the end).

To make the fish stock, wash the fish heads to get rid of any blood. Set a large saucepan over a medium heat and pour the olive oil into it. When it’s hot, add the bits of fish and fry for around 5 minutes, squashing them with a wooden spoon to extract the juices. Add the leek leaves, fry for another minute, then pour in the wine.

Stir and allow the alcohol to evaporate for 3 minutes. Add the rest of the vegetables, including the cherry tomatoes, and fill the pan nearly to the top with cold water.

Bring the mixture to the boil, then turn the heat down and let it simmer for at least 45 minutes. Skim any scum off the top. Strain the stock through a fine sieve, squashing some of the soft parts through the sieve with a wooden spoon. Reserve a few cups in a jar in the fridge to serve as an elegant consommé, and put the pan back over a low heat until ready to use.

Place a paella pan (or wide frying pan) over a medium heat. When it’s very hot, sprinkle a generous amount of salt over the base of the pan, then add enough olive oil to cover the surface. When it sizzles, brown the scampi or crayfish and the prawns for 2 minutes on each side, then remove and set aside. Remove most of the scampi and most of the prawns from their shells and discard the shells. Leave a few cooked prawns and a few cooked scampi whole for decoration at the end.

Brown the cuttlefish for around 8 minutes, then remove and put alongside the prawns and scampi. Put the mussels and clams in a pan with a little water, cover and set over high heat.

Cook for around 3 minutes, until they start to open. Remove most of them from their shells and set aside with the prawns and other seafood. Keep a few in their shells for decoration. Discard any that haven't opened along with the empty shells, but strain the liquid the shells have released into the stock.

Add the fennel, onion and peppers to the paella pan and fry for 5 minutes, then add the garlic and fry for 3 minutes more. When the vegetables are soft, push them to the edge of the pan, and add the tomatoes, paprika and chilli to the centre. Mix together and fry for 3 minutes, then stir the other vegetables through them. Add the cuttlefish and cook gently stirring, for a further 3 minutes.

Scatter the rice around the pan and sprinkle the saffron on top. Stir the rice through the sofregit and let it absorb the flavours for around 3 minutes.

Pour in around 1.25 litres of the warm fish stock and mix. Check to see if there’s enough salt for your taste, then cook for 10 minutes over high heat, shaking the pan occasionally and moving it around over the heat source so that the rice cooks evenly.

Add the prawns, scampi, mussels, clams and peas. Push them down into the rice without stirring. Try not to contact the bottom of the pan, because a little crust (called soccarat inCatalonia) will be forming there. Arrange the prawns, scampi, mussels and clams that are still in their shells over the top, then cook for another 5 minutes.

Remove from the heat, cover with a clean tea towel and allow to rest for around 5 minutes before serving with lemon wedges, for squeezing over.

Cook’s note

This recipe details how to make a great seafood stock, but you can shortcut by buying 1.5 litres ready-made fish stock, too.