<p>I just watched Chef Jose Andres’s [the Washington D.C. chef] PBS show about foods in Spain. Just like the Anthony Bourdain report that I saw weeks ago, I heard again about the wonderful sausage made from the rare black pigs of Mallorca, and about Serrano ham. Where can we get this stuff in the U.S? Does anyone in the metro NYC-NJ know where to find such gastronomic treasure?</p>
<p>I order Spanish food from </p>
<p>[Authentic</a> Spanish Food from Spain at LaTienda.com](<a href=“http://www.tienda.com/]Authentic”>http://www.tienda.com/)</p>
<p>There food has come in a thick styrofoam case with large freezer things inside. They will ship only on certain days so that the food isn’t sitting in a transportation warehouse for a long weekend.</p>
<p>I purchased several cheeses and some ham for my sister at Christmas. My daughter’s favorite hot chocolate mix is the Cola Cao. They also sell the thick hot chocolate that you would eat with churros.</p>
<p>Last month they were offering free shipping on orders over $100 dollars but that special is gone now. You may want to keep checking back or get on their email list.</p>
<p>I see that LaTienda is one of the sponsors of Chef Andres’s show. Thanks much, Twomules.</p>
<p>La Tienda is great. Try the sobrasada - a sausage from Mallorca. Their chorizo is pretty good too and you should definitley order canned piquillo peppers. These add a new dimension to anything you cook. Jamie Oliver has a fabulous pork recipe using them along with fresh peppers and the staple of Spanish cuisine Pimenton. The canned tuna is also worth looking into. It goes great in a rice salad or a cold pasta salad. There are other places on the west coast but since you are east coast La Tienda is the best bet or Dean & Delucca in NY, they carry some of the products. And if you go to Washington DC then go to Jose’s restaurants, Jaleo and Minibar.And if on the west coast the go to Bazaar in Los Angeles.</p>
<p>Slowly gathering the stuff for Paella.
Took me 3 weeks to get the proper size pan at GW.
Planning to get the clams and mussels soon.</p>
<p>The wonderfull thing about paella is that you can put whatever you have in it. The original paella had only snails and rabbit. So just go with whatever you have. Paella is really about the rice and not the other elements.</p>
<p>My husband is Spanish, so I’ve been making Spanish dishes for awhile. The above post about the rice is exactly right - in my husband’s family they don’t use the term “paella” - it’s just called “rice.” All you really have to have is that special short-grained rice (Italian or Spanish) and a good paella pan. Homemade chicken broth is good.</p>
<p>La Tienda has the Bomba rice from Valencia, the home of paella and my grandfather. It is a tricky rice to work with, so just substitute arborio from Italy. And enjoy! Spanish food can be absolutely wonderful. Just remember it is about the ingredients and so just keep it simple.</p>
<p>Has anyone ever substituted the much less expensive achiote (annato) for authentic saffron for paella? Was the result any good?</p>
<p>we bought annato for a dish (Paella ?) seen on Daisy Cooks. A bag of approx 5 oz very inexpensive. Added color but not flavor. Our saffron was old and not sure that it was effective. The meats and other seasonings kinda overpowered the annato and saffron.</p>
<p>I brought a whole box of saffron for $20 a few years back. I have not made even a small dent.</p>
<p>We aren’t fond of the flavor of saffron at our house, so I don’t use it in rice. If you want something interesting in a paella with chicken, sausage, and vegetables, I like to use a little smoked paprika (La Vera brand). I would use maybe 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon of the smoked paprika for 2 cups of rice. You stir it in when you’re sauteeing the onion/roasted red pepper/garlic mixture, which is how I usually start paella. I don’t think I’d use the smoked paprika in a straight seafood paella.</p>
<p>I find only good paella is what you cook at home. When I ordered it from restaurant the rice is precooked and the ingredient just piled on top at last minute. To cook it properly you need live clam or mussels and cook it over the rice at same time so they emptied their juice onto the rice as it cooks. One huge problem I have though is how to keep the rice from getting burned on the bottom, even when I used nonstick pan. You need a wide pan to layout the clams and mussels over sausages and chicken and veggies. But you also need depth to be able to cook the rice throughly. Have not found the right combination. There is such a thing as paella pot ?</p>
<p>Calif_dad:</p>
<p>Finding the correct pan is difficult. It took me 3 weeks +, at four Goodwill/Mission Gospels stores to find the correct pan. Found one that is coated aluminum, with lid, 16"x13"oval, and metal handles. 3 inch curved sides. For baking not for stovetop use.</p>
<p>I purchased a so-called paella pan from Macy’s years ago. Using it once for paella convinced me that it wasn’t suitable for its stated use. Too small and too light. I had a much better time using a cast iron skillet.</p>
<p>I have two paella pans, one for our family (2 cups of rice) and one when we’re serving more people (3 cups of rice). The store mentioned above, La Tienda, carries lots of stainless steel paella pans - see <a href=“http://www.tienda.com/paella/paella_pans.html[/url]”>www.tienda.com/paella/paella_pans.html</a>. One of my pans is non-stick and I brought it home from Spain. It’s very lightweight, so not as good at conducting heat evenly as the heavier pans, but easy to clean.</p>
<p>To keep the rice from burning you just have to keep the temperature nice and low; the rice should simmer but that’s it. This is easier on a gas stove. It’s also best to straddle the pan across two burners and rotate it every now and then so the rice cooks evenly. At the end, I turn off the heat, cover the pan with foil, and let it sit for 5 minutes to finish cooking. I went to a paella demonstration class by Penelope Casas (who wrote Food and Wines of Spain), and I was very surprised to see her finish her paellas in the oven; she did about 15 minutes on top of the stove and then 10-15 minutes in the oven. I’ve tried this and it works okay, though I sometimes need to add more broth when it comes out and I still do the let-it-sit step.</p>
<p>I have two paella pans, one for our family (2 cups of rice) and one when we’re serving more people (3 cups of rice). The store mentioned above, La Tienda, carries lots of stainless steel paella pans - see <a href=“http://www.tienda.com/paella/paella_pans.html[/url]”>www.tienda.com/paella/paella_pans.html</a>. One of my pans is non-stick and I brought it home from Spain. It’s very lightweight, so not as good at conducting heat evenly as the heavier pans, but easy to clean.</p>
<p>To keep the rice from burning you just have to keep the temperature nice and low; the rice should simmer but that’s it. This is easier on a gas stove. It’s also best to straddle the pan across two burners and rotate it every now and then so the rice cooks evenly. At the end, I turn off the heat, cover the pan with foil, and let it sit for 5 minutes to finish cooking. I went to a paella demonstration class by Penelope Casas (who wrote Food and Wines of Spain), and I was very surprised to see her finish her paellas in the oven; she did about 15 minutes on top of the stove and then 10-15 minutes in the oven. I’ve tried this and it works okay, though I sometimes need to add more broth when it comes out and I still do the let-it-sit step.</p>
<p>Sorry for duplicate posting. Both times there was no response when I tried to post - I had to kill the window and thought the post didn’t go through either time. Oops.</p>
<p>Agree: annatto = color, not flavor (and red, not the orange-yellow of saffron). Also agree: paella is whatever you have to put in it. There’s no canonical recipe.</p>
<p>My mom learned to make paella from a neighbor who was from Morocco. I don’t know how traditional it was (she had the pan and the saffron) but paella night was always a great event at our home.</p>