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WBM september 2012
lthough the Spanish peasantry’s preferred pro-teins
— land snails and eels from Lake Albufera
— are absent from most modern-day paella reci-pes,
the one thing about authentic paellas that
remains unchanged is the fact that it is a rice dish
first. Traditionally, paella is cooked over a wood-burning
fire in a pan, also called a paella, that
can measure up to six feet in diameter. The main ingredients of the traditional paella,
or the Paella de Valenciana, are short grain Spanish rice, saffron, chicken, chorizo,
lobster, shrimp, clams or mussels and a variety of fresh vegetables like onions, scal-lions
and peas. Once the paella is fully cooked, a thin crust of caramelized rice called
the socarrat forms on the bottom of the
pan and is considered to be the most
desirable part of the paella.
For paella lovers or those new to
the dish, chefs like Trinity Hunt of
Mixto — downtown Wilmington’s
contemporary Latin eatery — have
adapted the methods and ingredients of
the Valencian tradition to suit what is
available in their own regional markets
to fashion unique twists on this classic
Spanish dish.
A member of the graduating class of
Johnson and Wales University’s first year
in Charlotte, Hunt took over the Mixto
kitchen as the executive chef a year ago,
after working as a sous chef under Keith
Rhodes at Deluxe. Hunt says it was
while he was in school and working in
Charlotte that he first fell in love with
Spanish cuisine. It was at the Charlotte
restaurant Arpa that he made his first
authentic paella.
In keeping with the original spirit of
the dish, Hunt says what is available
at the local farmers’ markets has a big
influence on the ingredients he uses in
his paellas.
“I hit the farmers’ market on Saturdays to gear my weekly specials to localism,
what people like to eat around here and what is available,” Hunt says. “Paellas are a
lot like a puttanesca. It’s just, ‘what do you have in the kitchen?’”
“Tonight I’m making one with long grain wild rice from South Carolina, paired
with duck, clams and lobster, pulling from the flavors of the Moors, with some fresh
vegetables, peppers, garlic aioli and a romesco sauce in with the rice like a sofrito,”
Hunt says. “Originally it was three versions of paella, but with each version you can
take whatever is prevalent for your area and incorporate that.”
Variations of the recipe lend themselves to the nature of Hunt’s style. Instead of
using the short grain Spanish rice and saffron typically found in most traditional
recipes, Hunt utilizes local long grain rice varieties and turmeric in their place.