Paella Capricho's and Roganto Chardonnay
by Carlos Garcia-Travesi Bosch and Steve Dryden
Ensenada is famous for it’s abundant seafood, culinary delights and high quality wine. So, it is no surprise that gourmet paella can be found in the region prepared with various seafood items, beef, pork, chicken, fresh vegetables, herbs and other innovative ingredients. In fact, paella is so popular in the area that each year a paella cooking contest is included in the annual wine harvest festival held every August in Valle de Guadalupe. It was the Spanish who in the 1500’s first introduced paella and wine to Mexico thus beginning the transformation and assimilation of two traditional treasures into a land and culture with unique culinary talents and winemaking skills. Mexico gladly accepted these gifts, added some local spice with fresh ingredients, and the rest is history! Even the famous Spanish Tempranillo wine now grown and produced in Baja California is beating Spanish wine at international wine competitions and paella from this area is considered some of the best in the world, mainly due to the abundance and diversity of fresh seafood.
Paella is a traditional Spanish dish originating in Valencia following the introduction of rice in Spain by the Moors. The peasants of Valencia would use the paella pan to cook rice with readily available ingredients from local gardens and farms. Most recipes were developed around the availability of fresh produce, meat, poultry or seafood. Traditionally, paella is really a Sunday dish eaten when the whole family is together and is best cooked outside over an open wood fire. Many varieties of paella now have a home all over Spain, Italy and Mexico, with each region contributing to its own variation. The traditional Paella Valencia often contains chicken, duck, rabbit and snails. Popular variations on the classic preparation include Paella Andalucia often cooked with prawns, mussels, clams, chicken, rabbit, pork and sausage. Paella Marinera, found in the south of Spain, is made with seafood and is similar to paella made in Ensenada.
One of the benefits of making paella is that it can be cooked in large quantities and is perfect for big groups or special occasions. Today, Chef Carlos Garcia-Travesi Bosch of Capricho’s Restaurant in Ensenada is preparing a “deluxe gourmet” paella for Carlos Miranda’s fortieth birthday celebration. Capricho’s is a top destination for gourmet food lovers desiring high quality culinary delights with romantic and enchanting ambiance. Outside on the patio, under the stars, on a cool February evening we set up the paella pan and start the charcoal. Earlier in the day, we ventured down to the fish market and to the local butcher shop to get the freshest possible ingredients for the event. That same morning we prepared a fish broth using halibut and vegetables and precooked the chicken, beef, pork and chorizo sausage.
An exciting factor in preparing paella outside among the guests is that the paella becomes the focus of the event. Guests watch as the Chef prepares the meal over flaming coals while the aroma fills the air with anticipation, stimulates appetites and imaginations. And, there is one more secret ingredient according to Chef Carlos, “making paella is like making love, it takes passion and sincerity to do the best you can. You have to put your soul into it, so when your lips and senses make first contact with my culinary creation you realize this is something special - something from the heart.” That statement goes along with my theory about Mexican wine being like a first date, “you never know what that first contact will be, but your expectations and anticipation are rarely disappointed.”
Recipe for Capricho’s Mixed Spanish Paella
Ensenada, Baja California is blessed with an abundance of fresh seafood, organic produce, herbs and a diverse selection high quality regional Mexican wines. One of the secrets of success for Chef Carlos Travesi’s mixed (mixta) style of Paella Capricho’s is the use of fresh, local ingredients. This recipe is for a large group of thirty people, so you can gauge your portions depending of the size of your group. Another key factor is the use of the traditional stainless steel paella pan from Spain which allows the rice to cook evenly. The pan we used for this recipe is about thirty-six 36 inches in diameter and sits atop a custom made frame that allows charcoal to be raised up towards the bottom of the pan or lowered to reduce heat as needed.
There are three main types of paella, seafood, mixed meat with pork, beef and chicken and a vegetable paella. And, of course there are many variations and creative recipes found around the world, many related to the local availability of key ingredients. Our recipe is mixed with seafood, pork, beef ribs, chicken, chorizo, and some vegetables. Chef Carlos calls his gourmet delight: “surf and turf paella” or Paella Capricho’s.
Ingredients: two kilos of chicken legs, two kilos of beef ribs, one kilo of pork, one kilo of chorizo, three kilos of small clams (in shell), one kilo of shrimp, two kilos of mussels, one kilo of calimari, one pound of green beans, one pound of frozen peas, one pound of fresh bell peppers, one cup of chopped garlic, one cup of chopped onion, four kilos of rice, five grams of saffron, one handful of sea salt, one liter of olive oil, and one half liter of white wine that you plan to match the paella with. Precook beef, pork, chorizo and chicken. Create two liters of fish broth by cooking down halibut (or other white fish) and vegetables with fresh herbs.
Heat pan, add olive oil and when it heats up stir in bell peppers for about twenty minutes, then add garlic, onions and chopped tomatoes for five minutes, add saffron, 1/4 cup of tomato paste, add rice, 1/2 liter of white wine, fish broth, shrimp, chorizo, calimari, beef, pork, chicken, mussels, sea salt, peas, and green beans. Cover top of paella pan with tin foil, reduce heat and cook for an additional forty-five minutes or until rice is tender. Serves thirty people.Cooking time is about two hours.
We served this “deluxe” paella with a reserve Chardonnay from Roganto or Vides y Vinos Californianos S.P.R. de R.L. This elegant and delightful Chardonnay is aged in new French oak for ten months, has a creamy, butter flavor, with hints of apricot and butterscotch in the nose, well balanced with a smooth and soft finish. Roganto Winery of Ensenada is considered by experts to be one of the top wineries in Mexico.
Carlos Garcia -Travesi Bosch is owner and Chef of Capricho’s Restaurant in Ensenada, directly across from the original Hussong’s Cantina. Steve Dryden is a wine, food and travel writer who lives in Valle de Guadalupe. You can contact him at your local Costa Baja Hotel Wine Country Tour.
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