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Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Matagorda Paella - coming soon


I'm kicking around the idea of creating a Matagorda Paella.  My Mom and I made more of a traditional paella last Spring, and I think we did pretty good on our first try.  Here is a picture of the results.  It tasted really good, and I have since improved upon the recipe.  In fact, I served it to some initially reluctant friends.  These same friends left few remains by the end of the evening, so I would consider it a success.  With this, I have the basics down at least to my own satisfaction.  I think that I could pull it off.  My idea is to create a paella with a coastal Texas flare, using mostly local ingredients.  Here in Matagorda, we have oysters, clams, mussels, shrimp, crab, and fish.  Perhaps I'll use ingredients such as smoked oysters, blackened redfish, and blue crab.  I'll let y'all know when I give it a go.


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3 comments:

  1. That is one beautiful dish! I'll definitely be checking back to see the Matagorda paella.

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  2. Thanks! I found a couple of pictures from my second go-round, which tasted so good. I was dismayed that I only had pictures from a couple of stages, and nothing of the finished product. It was beautiful, but you can't see it in its full glory from the pictures. I'll post one so you can see at least what it started out looking like.

    I used a wonderful smoked paprika, with saffron, clams, mussels, shrimp, scallops, peppers, olives, peas, and medium grain rice. I made a stock from the liquid after steaming the mussels and boiling the shrimp shells. I made a traditional socarrat, which is a caramelization of the rice at the bottom of the pan that tasted delicious.

    I realize that I have a more eclectic taste than most, and I'm willing to have an open mind when it comes to good food. That comes from having experienced a wide range of foods, and loving the taste of many of them. I can imagine what food might taste like when combined in interesting ways. I don't always get it right the first time, but I always improve each time I try.

    For example, tonight I had an idea for stuffed bell peppers. I used interesting ingredients, such as apple, raisins, walnuts, ground beef, rice, and cheese. I have to tell you that it looked great, and smelled wonderful. But, the taste left a little to be desired. I don't mean that sarcastically - it was actually quite edible. There was only an imbalance of sweet, salt, and pepper. But the textures were just right. Learning from this experience, next time I will use fewer raisins, and chop them up. I will use a little more salt, and roasted poblano peppers with the skin removed instead of fresh bell peppers. I may use pecans instead of wall nuts, and I will put the queso fresco on top, instead of folding it into the beef and rice. I will use a more ripe tomato instead of a fresh tomato and tomato sauce. I'll keep working at it until I get it right. Then I will post it on the blog.

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  3. I can't wait to try!!

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