Welcome to this issue of the Hot Property news letter which we hope you find informative and helpful. If you have any suggestions, comments or questions, which we can address in future issues, you can contact us at info@hotpropertyspain.net 

1: THE BLOKE IN THE CORNER

Anyone that has visited our office in Moraira opposite the Platgetes beach, will have seen the unassuming chap in the far corner, from where this issue and all Hot Property´s previous forty one monthly newsletters have originated.

To date, many diverse subjects have been covered, including the people, the environment and Spanish life in general.  However, there are limits to the subjects that can be covered and, whilst Hot Property will endeavour in the future to cover any topics that have been missed, we intend from now on, to take a more editorial approach to life in Spain, with thoughts and comments that you may not get elsewhere and reflecting our own experiences, thus giving a guiding hand to try and keep the reader on a safe and even path.

Recently, we decided to change telephone service suppliers from Telefonica to Vodafone. The main reason for this basically, was cost, although there were other supposed recommendations, such as, allegedly, improved customer service – something that seems to not easily translate into Spanish.

Sometimes the devil you know works out to be preferable to the one that you don´t and in this case Vodafone Spain would not be a company that we would personally recommend.

In our opinion, dealing with Vodafone would be likened to hitting your head against a brick wall, protected with 6inch spikes tipped with mind numbing poison.

Vodafone have been charging the last five months for a line that they have still not connected.

Trying to cancel the contract is impossible as we have an eighteen month agreement and cancelling the direct dept will involve breach of contract on our part and black listing.

Vodafone are too big to argue with and too ignorant to deal with, so in eighteen months hopefully the contract will be cancelled and then we can say goodbye and good riddance.

Although complaining does not seem to get us anywhere, we will continue to complain every month, as at least it allows you to get it off your chest.

2: PAELLA

Paella is viewed by many as Spain's national dish, but most Spaniards consider it to be a regional Valencian dish, and Valencian’s in turn, regard paella as one of their identifying symbols.Paella originated in its modern form in the mid-19th century near lake Albufera, a lagoon in Valencia, to the South of the city with the same name.

There are three widely known types of paella: Valencian paella, (paella valenciana), seafood paella ( paella de marisco) and mixed paella ( paella mixta), but there are many others as well.
 
Valencian paella consists of white rice, green vegetables, meat, such as (rabbit, chicken, duck) land snails, beans & seasoning.

Seafood paella replaces meat and snails with seafood and omits beans and green vegetables.

Mixed paella is a free-style combination of meat, seafood, vegetables and sometimes beans.

Most paella chefs use Calasparra, or bomba rices for this dish. Other key ingredients include saffron and Olive oil.

The word Paella comes from Catalan, which derives from the Old French word paelle for pan, which in turn comes from the Latin word patella for pan as well. Patella is also akin to the modern French poêle, the Welsh padell, the Italian padella, the Old Spanish padilla  the Polish patelnia and the New Mexican Spanish puela.

Valencians use the word paella for all pans, including the specialized shallow pan used for cooking paellas. However, in most of Spain and throughout Latin America, the term paellera is more commonly used for this pan, though both terms are correct. Paelleras are traditionally round and shallow, made of polished steel with two handles.

A popular but inaccurate belief in the Arab world, is that the word paella derives from the Arabic word for leftovers, baqiyah, because it was customary among Arab sailors to combine leftovers of previous meals which purportedly led to a paella-like creation in Moorish Spain.

Moorish influence

The people of Moorish Spain often made casseroles of rice, fish and spices for family gatherings and religious feasts, thus establishing the custom of eating rice in Spain. This led to rice becoming a staple by the 15th century when Spanish Catholics expelled the Muslims. Afterwards, it became customary for cooks to combine rice with vegetables, beans and dry cod, providing an acceptable meal for Lent, as Fish always predominated with rice along Spain's eastern coast.

On special occasions, 18th century Valencians used paelleras to cook rice in the open air of their orchards near lake Albufera. Marsh Rat was one of the main ingredients of early paellas, along with eel and butter beans. Novelist Vicente Blasco Ibáñez described the Valencian custom of eating marsh rats in Cañas y barro, a realist account about life among the fishermen peasants near lake Albufera.

Living standards rose with the sociological changes of the late 19th century in Spain, giving rise to reunions and outings in the countryside. This led to a change of paella's ingredients as well, these being rabbit, chicken, duck, seafood and sometimes snails. This dish became so popular that in 1840 a local Spanish newspaper first used the phrase paella to refer to the recipe rather than the pan.
 
The most widely used complete ingredient list of this era was as follows: short-grain white rice, chicken, rabbit, snails (optional), duck (optional), butter beans, great northern beans, runner beans, artichoke (a substitute for runner beans in the winter), tomatoes, fresh rosemary, sweet paprika, saffron, garlic (optional), salt, olive oil and water. (Poorer Valencians, however, sometimes used nothing more than snails for meat.) Valencians insist that only these ingredients go into making modern Valencian paella.

Seafood and mixed paella

On the Mediterranean coast, however, Valencians used seafood instead of meat and beans to make seafood paella. Later, Spaniards living outside of Valencia mixed seafood into the original Valencian recipe and mixed paella was born.

During the 20th century, paella's popularity spread past Spain's borders. As other cultures set out to make paella, the dish invariably acquired regional influences. Consequently, paella recipes went from being relatively simple to including a wide variety of seafood, meat, sausage, (the most popular being Spanish, chorizo) vegetables and many different seasonings. However, the most globally popular recipe is seafood paella.

In Spain, mixed paella is very popular. Some restaurants in Spain (and many in the United States) that serve this mixed version, refer to it as Valencian paella; Valencians insist only the original Valencian recipe can bear the name paella valenciana.

Basic cooking methods

According to tradition in Valencia, paella is cooked by men over an open fire, fueled by orange and pine branches along with pine cones. This produces an aromatic smoke which infuses the paella. Also, dinner guests traditionally eat directly out of the paellera.

Valencian paella

This recipe is standardized because Valencians consider it traditional and very much part of their culture. Rice in Valencian paella is never braised in oil, as pilau, though the paella made further southwest of Valencia often is.

Heat oil in a paellera.
Sauté meat after seasoning with salt.
Add green vegetables and sauté until soft.
Add garlic (optional), grated tomatoes, beans and sauté.
Add paprika and sauté.
Add water, saffron (and/or food coloring), snails and rosemary.
Boil to make broth and allow it to reduce by half.
Add rice and simmer until rice is cooked.
Garnish with more fresh rosemary.

Seafood paella

Recipes for this dish vary somewhat, even in Valencia. Below is a recipe by Juanry Segui, a prominent Valencian chef.

Make a seafood broth from shrimp heads, onions, garlic and bay leaves.
Heat oil in a paellera.
Add mussels. Cook until they open and then remove.
Sauté Norway lobster and whole, deep-water rose shrimp. Then remove both the lobster and shrimp.
Add chopped cuttlefish and sauté.
Add shrimp tails and sauté.
Add garlic and sauté.
Add grated tomato and sauté.
Add rice and braise in sofrito. (Within the context of Spanish cuisine, sofrito consists of garlic, onion, and tomatoes cooked in olive oil, and is used as the base for many dishes.
Add paprika and sauté.
Add seafood broth and then saffron (and/or food coloring).
Add salt to taste.
Replace the deep-water rose shrimp, mussels and Norway lobster.
Simmer until rice is cooked.

Mixed paella

There are countless mixed paella recipes. The following method is common to most of these. Seasoning depends greatly on individual preferences and regional influences. However, salt, saffron and garlic are almost always included.

Make a broth from seafood, chicken, onions, garlic, bell peppers and bay leaf.
Heat oil in a paellera
Sear red bell pepper strips and set aside.
Sear crustaceans and set aside.
Sauté meat until golden brown.
Add garlic and sauté until brown.
Add grated tomatoes and sauté.
Add onions and bell peppers. Sauté until vegetables are tender.
Add dry seasonings except for salt.
Add rice.
Braise rice until covered with sofrito. (see above)
Add broth.
Add salt to taste.
Add saffron (and/or food coloring).
Simmer until rice is almost cooked.
Replace crustaceans.
Continue simmering until rice and crustaceans are finished cooking.
Garnish with seared red bell pepper strips.

For all recipes

Paella usually has a layer of toasted rice at the bottom of the pan. This is considered a delicacy in Spain and is essential to a good paella. The toasted rice develops on its own if the paella is cooked over a burner or open fire. If cooked in an oven, however, it will not. To correct this, place the paellera over a high flame while listening to the rice toast at the bottom of the pan. Once the aroma of toasted rice wafts upwards, remove it from the heat. The paella must then sit for about five minutes (most recipes recommend the paella be covered with a towel at this point) to absorb the remaining broth.

Competitions and records

It has become a custom at mass gatherings in the Valencian Community (festivals, political campaigns, protests, etc.) to prepare enormous paellas, sometimes to win mention in the Guinness Book of World Records & Chefs use gargantuan paelleras for these events.

Valencian restaurateur Juan Galbis claims to have made the world's largest paella, with help from a team of workers, on 2 October 2001. This paella fed about 110,000 people according to Galbis' website. Galbis says this paella was even larger than his earlier world-record paella made on 8 March 1992 which fed about 100,000 people. Galbis's record-breaking 1992 paella is listed in Guinness World Records.

Finally, no matter what the dish or the pan is called, or the differently believed origins, or which receipe is used, or in which region or country it is made, simply "enjoy" the result.

This newsletter is intended as a guide and to be informative and helpful in the process of searching for and purchasing a property in Spain. Total accuracy cannot be guaranteed and in all legal, fiscal and other matters a fully qualified professional should be consulted. Reproduction of any part of this newsletter is not permitted without written permission.