Omar Allibhoy’s Shellfish Paella Recipe

National Paella Day is just around the corner – 27 March to be precise – and what better way to kick off spring than a family get-together for a paella feast? Right in time for the occasion, Omar Allibhoy AKA The Spanish Chef has provided a classic shellfish paella recipe, and it’s a showstopper. Of course, it’s only right to wash it down with another classic, the sangria, and here are a couple of recipes, with Spanish red wine and a cava blanca version.

Recipe: Omar Allibhoy’s Arroz de Cigalas, Gambas Y Almejas

Ingredients:

• 2 litres Navarrico shellfish stock
• 0.4g Brindisa saffron
• 120ml Nunez de Prado Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 2 dried nora peppers
• 2 tomatoes
• 300g The Wright Brothers squid, cleaned and roughly chopped
• 8 garlic cloves, peeled
• 1tsp Chinata Smoked Paprika
• 440g Calasparra Paella Rice
• 250g clams, cleaned
• 500g The Wright Brothers prawns, heads and shells removed
• 500g The Wright Brothers langoustines
• Salt, to taste

Method:

1. Heat the shellfish stock in a saucepan over a low heat and crumble in the saffron. Keep warm over the lowest setting. 
2. Heat the olive oil in a paella pan and fry the nora peppers over a low heat for 2 minutes. Remove the peppers from the oil and blend to a paste with the tomatoes using a blending or food processor; set aside for later. 
3. Increase the heat to high, add the squid to the pan and sauté for about 7 minutes, or until golden in colour. Season with salt. 
4. Add the garlic, closely followed by the paprika and the tomato and nora pepper paste. Cook for about 2 minutes until the oil starts to separate from the tomato paste. 
5. Add the rice and stir for a couple of minutes, making sure all the rice gets coated with the oil. 
6. Add the hot stock to the pan and give it a good stir to distribute the rice evenly. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Cook over high heat for the first 10 minutes, then over a medium heat for 3 minutes, without stirring.
7. Add the clams, prawns and langoustines, gently folding them through the rice and shaking the pan to flatten the paella.
8. Let it cook for a further 4 minutes, without stirring, then let it rest of the heat for five minutes before serving.

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Recipe: Sangria

Ingredients:

• 2 large oranges, sliced
• 2 pears, sliced
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 1 lemon, cubed
• 200g strawberries, sliced
• 3tbsp caster sugar
• 1tsp cinnamon 
• 750ml Codorníu Tempranillo Organic Red Wine
• 100ml Carlos Brandy de Jerez Solera Gran Reserva
• Sparkling water
• Ice

Method:

1. Chop the fruit, add the sugar and cinnamon, and stir to coat the fruit.
2. Cover and leave in the fridge, minimum for an hour.
3. Fill a large jug with ice. 
4. Add the fruit, wine, brand, and stir. 
5. Top up with the red wine and sparking water and give it a final stir.

Recipe: Sangria Blanca

Ingredients:

• 2 red apples, sliced
• 2 nectarines, chopped
• 100g strawberries, sliced
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 2tbsp caster sugar
• 750ml Codorniu Clasico Brut Organic NV Cava
• 60ml white grape juice or sparkling water
• 30ml Carlos Brandy de Jerez Solera Gran Reserva
• 2tbsp Cointreau
• Mint leaves
• Ice

Method:

1. Juice the lemon and the lime, and combine with the Cointreau, Spanish brandy and sugar. 
2. Slice the apples, nectarines, and strawberries, and add to the jug along with the liquid and ice.
3. Carefully add the Cava and top up with sparkling water or grape juice if you have a sweet tooth.
4. Finish with a bunch of mint leaves.

Paella recipe taken from Paella by Omar Allibhoy (Quadrille, £18), Photography by Facundo Bustamante.