by Tom Stobart
Paella
Ingredients for 4-5 people: Rice of average quality, say 3 cups. Peas, 2 handfuls of pods. ¼ lb of mussels in their shells. ¼ lb of large prawns or scampi.¼ lb of lobster or crayfish (you could use freshwater crayfish, mantis shrimps, even small crabs to obtain the necessary flavour).A small squid. Fish can go in – though it is less usual – provided you put it in late enough not to cook to pieces – and bone it. A small chicken. A bit of lamb or even pork. if you have some. 1 or 2 globe artichokes. 1 large onion. 2 tomatoes. 8 cloves of garlic. A small bunch of parsley. A good pinch of saffron (or 1½ packet of fake saffron, which they usually use in Spain these days, real saffron being so expensive). A handful of mushrooms. Salt, pepper and cayenne.½ cup of cooking oil. A small tin of sweet red peppers (pimentos).
Method: Shell the peas. Scrape and clean the mussels and open by heating them in a pan with the lid on for a minute or two. (Throw away any that fail to open.) Remove half the shell but keep the flavourful liquid for adding (strained of any sand) later. Remove the more annoying legs from the crustaceans, or, if it is for an elegant party, it is best to fry the crustaceans in the oil until they are just firm and then shell them. Put the legs and shells with the mussel water, (and fish bones if any), into say 8 cups of water and make a stock to further concentrate the flavour. Take out the guts and ink sac from the squid and cut it in bite-sized pieces. If fish is used (usually for economy), bone it and also cut it into bite-sized bits. Clean and joint the chicken into smallish bits, and do the same for any lamb or pork you intend adding. Carefully and thoroughly slice off the tough parts of the artichoke with a sharp knife and remove the choke. Peel any stalk – that is one of the best parts. Cut into finger-nail-sized pieces and put in water with a good squeeze of lemon to stop blackening. Roughly chop the onion. The rest you can do during the cooking.
The object in making a paella is to add all the different ingredients, timing them in order, so that you finish with all of them cooked to perfection at exactly the same moment.
Put the oil in the paellera and see that the heat covers the bottom of the pan evenly When the oil is hot put in the pieces of chicken and meat to fry, moving them about with a long stick or spoon until they are starting to brown. Then add the pieces of squid and move everything round for a further 5 minutes. Next put in the artichoke bits and the shelled peas, scraping the pan to prevent sticking. After a moment or two, you can add the chopped onion. Fry on, still scraping the bottom of the pan if anything seems to be sticking. Now add the mushrooms in bite-sized pieces and the tomatoes. Fry on for another few minutes, then put in half the garlic cloves, crushed, and a cup of rice for each person. (I have said three cups of rice – which makes this paella do for 4 to 5 persons, but of course you can vary the proportion of rice to goodies according to the circumstances. I am describing a good paella for hungry people.) Turn the rice in the hot fat until it is well coated and becomes translucent. Then pour in sufficient boiling water (or stock, if you are doing an elegant version) to cover all the ingredients. Add a pinch of cayenne pepper and a pinch of cinnamon if you like it. Give the pan a stir. Add salt, the soaked saffron or the half packet of fake saffron colour. Stir again and do not (as I do) tip the whole goddam pan into the fire in your excitement.
After 5 minutes, when the liquid begins to be absorbed, you can push the prawns, lobster, mussels and so on into the surface, preferably into a radiating pattern. This way, the shellfish is not overcooked, as it is in so many versions when the mussels are fried and shrink to leather.
You should, when making a paella, always have a kettle of water boiling and a spatula or flat paddle (a paella for 40 needs an oar). If the paella is getting too dry, you can add a little boiling water, not too much, and with the spatula you can help guard against sticking without disturbing the rice.
Meanwhile take the other 4 cloves of garlic and the parsley. With a little salt, pound them to a paste in a mortar (or liquidize) and pour on a little boiling water (2-3 tablespoons) to make a green liquid. Open the can of red pimentos, drain and cut the pimentos into strips.
Taste the paella. If it is cooked, sprinkle the green liquid all over. Cook a minute longer while you decorate the surface with the strips of red sweet peppers. Garnish with quarters of lemon placed round the edges, carry to table and serve directly from the paellera.
The perfect paelIa is neither too dry nor too wet, the rice is not overcooked – rather the contrary – and it should be served and eaten at once. Restaurant paellas are usually assembled from precooked ingredients and oven-heated.
[Rice – French: riz German: Reis Italian: riso Spanish: arroz]
RICE BEAN (Phaseolus calceratus) A small bean of Indian origin, rather similar to the *mung but distinguished from it by prominent white hilum (scar) raised above the surface and crinkled at the edges. The beans may be yellow, brown, maroon and black, or mottled. This bean is particularly grown in Nepal and Assam. The Indian name is sutari or meth (shiltong in Nepal). It is regarded as inferior to mung, but contains more calcium than any other bean.
RICE PAPER is made not of rice but of various plants – the rice paper plant (Tetrapana papyriferum), the nakai (Edgeworthia tomentosa) and the maisin (Wickstroemia canescens). Although rice paper is used in China and Japan for other purposes such as painting, it has a traditional use in cooking to provide edible bases for macaroons and biscuits.
[Rice paper – French: papier de riz German: Reispapier Italian: carta cinese Spanish: papel de paja le arroz]
RICING is forcing starchy and mealy foods, such as potatoes and chestnuts, through a perforated device, from which the food falls in a light mound slightly resembling a heap of rice.
RIGATONI. See pasta.
ROASTING. Meat was originally roasted by turning it in front of a glowing fire. In other words, it was cooked by radiant heat in free air. The meat was either turned on a spit or suspended, and there was a drip pan underneath so that the juices were caught and used for basting. Grilled or broiled meat was cooked on a grid iron over glowing coals. There could be charring, some of the drippings were wasted, and the meat took the smell of fire (and in most cases of burning fat). Meat cooked in an oven was baked meat. Meat baked in an old-fashioned oven was not subjected to intense radiant heat, and since the ovens were not ventilated, the meat was cooked by hot, moist heat. This moister heat means that oven-cooked meat requires very little basting, while truly roasted meat must be basted almost continuously to prevent it drying up.
Roasted joints now have to be divided into two classes – those cooked before an open fire and those cooked in an oven. There are not many kitchens, except in country places, where the old-fashioned open fire and bottle jack are now in use. Nor can we wonder at this, for the disadvantages of this way of cooking are many: the great cost of fuel due to the large fire that is necessary; the discomfort of those in charge, as incessant basting is required; and the loss of weight caused by the melting of the fat and the evaporation of the juices. Yet it must be said that there is no other way of cooking a joint quite equal to roasting it before the fire. Surrounded by air and exposed to the direct heat of the fire, it has a flavour distinctly its own, which can only be described as ‘tasting of the fire’.
Much that is called roast meat today is in fact baked. Anyone who still has a fire, preferably wood, in the grate and a greater love of good food than elegance might like to try a cottage method I learned in Sardinia. Hammer a strong nail or hook into the wall below the mantelpiece and in the centre. Tie a string to a leg of lamb and hang it just in front of the fire. Put a baking tin under it to catch the drips, and to provide a receptacle for the basting fluid which consists of water, salt, garlic. Baste continuously using a bundle of rosemary as a brush. The water in the pan should gradually dry up. Don’t baste at all for the last 10 minutes. Some ingenuity – but not much – is needed to turn the meat so that all sides get the fire.
The electric roasting spits which are now becoming common do a good job of roasting
our modern small joints in the correct manner.
[Roasting – French: rôtir German: braten Italian: arrostire Spanish: asarse]
ROBALO. See snook
ROCAMBOLE. See onion.
ROCK CANDY. See sugar.
ROCKET (Eruca sativa) is a salad plant that is sometimes neglected but is commonly used in Italy It grows wild in much of Europe, but cultivated varieties are less violently flavoured, with larger, tenderer leaves and excellent potential. Rocket has a peculiar, pungent flavour, unmistakably a crucifer – a member of the cabbage family – but very original. It grows easily from seed and is an excellent addition to green salads. A recommended plant.
[Rocket – French: roquette German: Rauke, Raukenkohl, Senfkohl Italian: ruchetta Spanish: oruga]
ROCK LOBSTER. See langouste.
ROCK SALMON or rock eel. See shark
ROE is the ovary (hard roe) or testis (soft roe or milt) of a fish. Roes are very often a delicacy, as for instance are those of herrings. Some expensive products are made with roes, including *caviar, *tarama, *botargo and *smoked cod roe. Milt herring is preserved in a sauce containing the soft roe. However, roes from unknown fish are to be avoided, as a few from Arctic and tropical waters are poisonous (e.g. some sharks and globe fish).
In Britain, roes from cod, haddock, coley and other white fish are boiled in highly salted water, allowed to cool in the water and then eaten as they are or sliced, fried and served hot. The soft roe or milt of herring can be bought separately; it is usually fried and served on toast, and is reputedly an aphrodisiac.
[Roe – French: oeufs de poisson, Iaitance German: Rogen, Fischlaich Italian: uova, latte di pesce Spanish: hueva, lechas]
ROLLMOP. See herring.
ROSE (species of Rosa) is not of great culinary importance, except in the Middle East, where rose water as a flavouring appears in many sweet dishes and rose petals are made into rose-petal jam (which is scented and sickly sweet). All rose petals are edible so long as no poison sprays have been used on them, but they are not always very aromatic. Rose flavoured liqueurs are made, notably in Bulgaria, but most of these concoctions are too sweet for Western palates. However, the list of uses goes all the way from rose vinegar (flavoured by having the petals macerated in it), through crystallized rose petals for decoration, and rose-flavoured candy. to rose-flavoured butter. The method of making the latter is a good example of enfleurage, a process used in the perfume industry for capturing delicate scents. A pat of butter, loosely wrapped in paper is embedded in a pot of fragrant fresh rose petals and kept in a cool place overnight. The butter traps the rose scent just as surely as it would trap the scent of kippers if it were left uncovered near them in the refrigerator. Rose petals are also put into cherry pie, and rose brandy is made by infusing them.
Rose hips, especially those of the wild rose (R. canina) were in the past used to make preserves and even as a cooked fruit. As Gerard says, the ‘fruit when it is ripe maketh the most pleasant meats, and banketting dishes as tarts and such-like.’ A wine can also be made by fermenting rose hips. The hairs surrounding the seeds inside the fruit are very irritating to the gut and should be carefully washed or strained away. Hip jelly is good and so is rose-hip syrup. The latter came into prominence during World War II, when it was realized that hips were a valuable and neglected source of vitamin C. Rosehip syrup is very rich in this, and schoolchildren were officially asked to collect hips so that the syrup could be made.
[Rose – French: rose German: Rose Italian: rosa Spanish: rosa]
ROSE FAMILY. The family Rosaceae, which includes more than 2000 species, is of enormous gastronomic importance. Apart from the *rose itself, which contributes its petals as well as its hips, and the *burnet, of which the leaves are used, the family is notable for its fruit – it is incomparably the most important group in this respect, at least in temperate zones. Some of the fruit are drupes, with a single hard-cased seed (the stone) and a fleshy outer layer, they may be valued for their stones, as in the *almond, or for their flesh as in the *apricot, *peach, *cherry and *plum. Others are pomes with a group of small seeds, as in the *apple, *pear, *quince, *medlar and the smaller but similar fruit of the *rowan. The genus Rubus, which includes the *black berry and *raspberry, has compound fruits made of a cluster of small drupes or druplets. The *strawberry is very different in structure as it is not the outer layer that swells, but the inside or receptacle to which the seeds are attached – hence the position of the seeds studding the outside of the fruit.
ROSELLE. See Jamaica flower.
ROSEMARY. One of the commonest wild plants of dry Mediterranean hillsides, rosemary (Rosmannus officinalis) is very strongly aromatic with a camphor overtone. lt grows well enough as far north as southern Britain, where it was introduced by the Romans. As a culinary herb, it is much used in Italy (less so in other Mediterranean countries), and has in recent years become fashionable for flavouring lamb (an Italian custom), but it can be used with discretion in many dishes. It is sold dried or powdered, but a fresh sprig is best.
[Rosemary – French: romarin German: Rosmarin, Rosmarein Italian: rosmarino, ramerino Spanish: romero, romario]
ROWAN and SORB. The rowan or Mountain ash (Sorbus acuparia) is a common tree all over Europe except in dry. limy soils, and in North America two related species, S. americana and S. scopulina (which has larger fruit), are known as Mountain ash. The red berries begin to be ripe in August, and as a number of garden varieties are grown for decoration, the berries are available both in town and country. Although too tart and bitter to eat, they make a fine jelly – either alone or with an equal quantity of apples, and rowan jelly is a splendid and traditional accompaniment to venison.
Rowan Jelly
Wash the berries and put them in a pan with enough water to cover them. Simmer gently until the water is red and bitter. Strain the juice through a jelly bag without squeezing (squeezing, which is sometimes recommended, makes a cloudy jelly). For every 600 ml (1 pt) juice add 450 g (1 lb) sugar and boil until it jells. Put in jars. This is sometimes left to mature for 2 years before use.
Rowan berries were also a popular ingredient in country wines, and Samuel Pepys mentions in his diary that he had found ale brewed with rowan berries the best he had ever tasted. Today, with the new vogue for home wine-making, rowan berries are even being dried for use by wine makers and home brewers who are not able to pick their own.
The Sorb apple or Service tree (Sorbus domestica) is a close relative. The sorb is a native of southern Europe, but is naturalized further north and, unlike the rowan, is cultivated for its fruit. which look like small green apples or pears. When unripe, they are exceptionally acid. There are a number of named varieties with either round and pear-shaped fruit which are grown especially in Liguria and Sicily. Good varieties can be eaten as fruit, but they are also used for making a drink, which is not very alcoholic and is similar to cider. They are also dried in the sun and threaded on to strings. In countries further north they are ‘bletted’ like *medlars.
In North America, what are called Service berries (Amelanchier florida) belong to another related genus of the same family. Amelanchier which has some twenty species including june-berry (A canadensis), Swamp sugar pear (A intermedia), shadberry and the Snowy mespilus (A ovalis) of southern Europe. Some of these are cultivated for ornament, and the Service berry has gone wild in Europe. Many of them have excellent fruit, which was once much used in North America by the Indians and is still gathered and made into pies by knowledgeable country people. Another cultivated small, almost berry-like rose family fruit of Europe, is the azerole or Naples medlar (Crataegus azarolus), a native of the Mediterranean and western Asia, which has also been introduced into North America. It is, in almost all respects, just like a large version of hawthorn (C. monogyna), with fruit about the size of a crab apple and yellow, white or red fruit according to the cultivated variety. The flesh is crisp, yellowish, tasty and perfumed, with three or four hard seeds. The Naples medlar is eaten
as a fresh fruit or is made into jam. The hawthorn itself is not much good as a fruit, though harmless. The young buds are often eaten in spring by children as ‘bread and cheese’, and are no doubt healthy or worth a try in salads.
[Rowan – French: sorbier des oiseaux German: Eberesche Italian: frassino di montagna Spanish: serbal]
RUE. This famous old medicinal herb, a member of the same botanical family as oranges and lemons, is rarely found wild in Britain, but is common over most of southern Europe.T here are three species – Common rue (Ruta graveolens). Fringed rue (R. chalepensis), and Mountain rue (R. montana) – with slight flower differences and varying degrees of woodiness. There are also a number of garden varieties. All have the rather nasty rue smell, but wild plants from dry Mediterranean hillsides are particularly strong and repulsive. Rue is sometimes used in very discrete amounts as a culinary herb. It has been recommended for use with eggs and cream cheese, and in vegetable juice cocktails. It is also put as a flavouring into grappa and is the herb you see in the bottles labelled con ruta (with rue). Medicinal effects are varied and stimulating, but it is poisonous in any quantity.
[Rue – French: rue odorante German: Route, Gartenraute, Weinkraut Italian: ruta Spanish: ruda]
RUM is a spirit distilled from the fermented leavings of the cane sugar industry; the molasses, the scum which rises after liming, and other residues. The product varies between white cane spirit – a fire water that does not merit the description ‘rum’ – to the rich, dark, flavourful rums containing large amounts of fruity esters. All the best rum starts as a West Indian product, although it is made in many other places, in fact, anywhere that sugar cane grows. Many of the rums, such as that of Mexico, are light and without character. Others, like that distilled in Madeira, are used to fortify wine. The rums of importance are as follows:
Jamaica produces the most highly flavoured rums, with the exception of those from Martinique, though they are lighter than they were in the last century. Jamaican rums are made to high standards under very strict control and are probably the best to use in sweet dishes.