Fideuada

Fideuada/ Catalan squid noodles

The Fideuá is an exquisite , traditional recipe of the Valencian cuisine , whose name means noodle. The base is like an elongated, hollow pasta. The cooking is quite similar to the recipe Paella de Marisco or seafood paella. Like its counterpart dish , paella, which you can make with ingredients such as chicken and vegetables. The Fideuada is generally cooked with seafood.

I generally use only shellfish, often I use the big prawns as the size gives a more powerful flavor . YOu can use smaller prawns but the taste will not be so good. The crayfish, clams, mussels and squid always give the dish a taste of the sea. This is very much a plate from home and it does remind me of the Mediterranean.

This is a variant of the typical fideuada which you can find in many of the fish restaurants a long the Barceloneta beach in Barcelona and in many other coastal villages in Catalunya. the small "noodles are not easy to find in the Uk but if you go to any Spanish delicatessen you are likely to find them. Just ask for fieuada pasta. they will know what you are talking about. You will lick your fingers with this one! serve it will nice home made allioli.

Please note that: As always, if the seafood is fresh the dish will taste better.

INGREDIENTS
400g. clean squid

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, minced

4 ripe tomatoes, grated or 1 tin of chopped tomatoes, blended

4 crayfish

4 red prawns (the bigger the better)

250 grs of clams

1 tbsp of sweet paprika

1 cup of "noodles" per person

Olive oil

1ltr of good quality fish broth

Parsley

Salt

PREPARATION

Clean the Squid very clean.
Grate the tomatoes.
Chop the onion, garlic and pepper.
Put the clams in a lot of salted water, to get rid of as much sand as possible.
We put the pan in the heat with a tbsp of oil. The first thing we do is sautee squid with a pinch of salt. As you will see we it will leave a characteristic brown toasted layer, precisely when they begin to "snap." Put them aside. This is vital.
Pour a little oil and scratch it a little by mixing the leftover bits of the squid. This process is one of the secrets of this dish.
Fry the onion and pepper and when golden add the garlic and leave it a few minutes but be careful not to burn it.
Now we can incorporate the seafood and turn it to cook on both sides. Add the reserved squid. And then add the tomatoes. There are people who first makes the tomato sauce and then put the seafood, but I prefer this way to extract the maximum flavor of seafood. Let the tomatoes cook on a very low heat, until almost caramelized. Add a teaspoon of paprika.
Meanwhile, prepare the noodles . (I will recommend the number 2 noodles, ask in the Deli).
In another pan with a little oil we will coat the noodles with the oil, circling around endlessly to prevent burning.
Occasionally, turn to fish over. As you will see, the tomato has become a thick and delicious sauce, that is when it indicates that we can add the noodles and stir it around a bit.
Turn off the hob and leave it to rest for 1/2 hour
After this, heat the fish broth ( you can put water, but the broth is one of the secrets of this dish). When it is hot add the broth. It is at that moment that we will add the clams, add salt to taste to the pan.
Now it is a matter of letting it cook for about 10-15 minutes over medium heat. Let it simmer, add more salt or more broth if is is looking too dry.
Preheat the oven (grill mode)
Once the noodles are cooked you can turn off the stove and distribute better the seafood.
At home we always give a touch of grilling for browning the first layer, as are all the restaurants. This gives you some crunchy noodles at the top. 5 minutes at 220º degrees will suffice.
Serve in a plate with a crayfish, a prawn and some clams on the noodles. I like mine witha good home made allioli
Serve it with a good glass of white wine.
Enjoy your meal !!!