Mary Berry’s Seafood Paella

Serves 10

Ingredients

• About 1 teaspoon saffron strands
• 1½ pints (900 ml) fish stock
• 6 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 5 cloves garlic, crushed
• 4 oz (100g) squid, cleaned and sliced
• 8 oz (225g) tomatoes, skinned and seeded
• 1 lb (450g) Spanish rice
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 4 oz (100g) scallops, if using queen scallops leave whole, for large scallops slice across in three
• 1 red pepper, thinly sliced
• 4 oz (100g) peeled prawns
• 4 oz (100g) mussels, cooked
• To garnish: 12 whole prawns in shell

Put the saffron strands into a small bowl. Bring to the boil ¼ pint (150ml) of the stock, pour over the saffron and set aside. Heat the oil in a paella pan on the Simmering Plate, add the onion and garlic and cook for 5 minutes, move to the Boiling Plate, add the squid and tomatoes, cook for 2 minutes and add the rice. When the rice and oil are combined add the stock, saffron water and seasoning. Bring to the boil and cover.

Simmering Oven: transfer to the floor of the oven and cook for about 30-40 minutes or until the rice is tender and the liquid absorbed. Return to the Simmering Plate and add the scallops and red pepper. Stir well until the scallops are cooked, this will only take 2-3 minutes, then add the prawns and mussels and heat through. Garnish with the whole prawns and serve.

If you can get uncooked mussels add these after the squid and cook with the rice. For a variation substitute the squid, mussels and shelled prawns with 1lb (450g) raw skinned chicken and 8 oz (225g) thick sliced streaky bacon cut into strips – add these to the oil, onion and garlic and cook for about 8 minutes before adding the rice. Use chicken stock and finish with a red pepper and whole prawns

By Mary Berry.