Russian style seafood paella

For cooking, we need a pan with deep edges

If you are not skilled with a kitchen knife, it's better to chop the vegetables in advance. Cut the vegetables into large cubes. If you cut them too small, it may turn into mush.

Also, dissolve our spices in a liter of water beforehand. It is advisable to slightly warm the water so that the spices dissolve faster. Those using a ready-made mix should follow the proportions indicated on the packet. For those adding saffron and sweet ground paprika separately, it will be based on eye measurement. About a third of a teaspoon of saffron and 1 tablespoon of paprika. Mix the spices thoroughly in the water.

Pour olive oil into the pan to cover the bottom. Place it over medium-high heat and add garlic and onion. Sauté the onion until it turns white and translucent, about 2 minutes.

Add pepper. Stir. Another 1 minute.

Adding seafood.

Now the fire can be reduced so that the water from the seafood is slightly boiling.

Grate the tomatoes on a grater. It should result in tomato puree. Some may use tomato paste. It's not critical.

Add salt if you are using spices without salt.

Mix thoroughly. This is the last time you'll be mixing, so try to distribute the seafood evenly across the pan, or someone will only get squid while someone else gets only rice.

Now we are adding rice. I used 300 grams for my pan. The main thing to remember is that rice increases in size at least twice when cooked. Also, rice needs water, in a volume twice as much. I took regular round rice. I didn't even rinse it, as I'm not sure that the sailors who made paella did that. And those who cook paella in huge pans outdoors, even less so. I heard that Valencians add rice in a cross pattern. This is how they express protest against the rice itself, which was originally a product of the Arabs they despise. But I have nothing against other nations, so I added the rice evenly across the pan. Exactly evenly, as it cannot be stirred later.

We pour our spices dissolved in water into the pan. It's best to do this very carefully to avoid creating a well in the rice. The water should cover the rice about finger-thick. If you underfill – it's not a big deal, you can always add more water. But if you overfill, nothing good will come of it.

Set the stove knob so that the water is gently boiling. Remember, do not stir the rice. Otherwise, it will stick together and turn into porridge. Cook in this mode for about 20 minutes.

When the rice starts to swell and there is very little water left, you can add shrimp if they are not cooked. This is about 10 minutes after you poured in the water.

In 20 minutes, the water should almost evaporate. You can taste the rice; it should be nearly ready. It's time to garnish our paella. If you're using cooked shrimp, you can add them now, even if they're frozen. It's also time to add mussels or other shellfish, of course, if they're ready to eat. We add frozen green peas and beans.

After 5 minutes, cover with a lid. Remove from heat. Wait for 10 minutes.