Creamy Spicy Rice with Crayfish

To survive confinement, Chef Sergio Salvador suggests an ideal recipe you can make these days. The ingredients have been calculated for two people.

CREAMY SPICY RICE WITH CRAYFISH

All the flavour of crayfish in a spicy sauce to make a creamy rice.

FOR THE SPICY CREAM

• 2 cloves of garlic
• 3 pear tomatoes
• 1/2 glass of white wine
• 1/4 glass of brandy
• 1/2 onion
• 1/2 Italian green pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon of ground cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon of sweet paprika
• 1 bay leaf
• 5 peppermint leaves

1- Lightly fry the finely diced onion, garlic and pepper in a little olive oil.

2- Lower the heat and add the ground cayenne pepper, paprika and bay leaf. Toast 30 seconds over low heat.

3- Turn up the heat again and add the crushed peeled tomatoes (scald in boiling water and cool in ice for easy peeling). Cook on medium heat for 20 minutes.

4- Add the brandy and later the white wine. Cook another 10 minutes to evaporate as much alcohol as possible.

5- Add the peppermint and cook two minutes more to destroy most of the enzymes that would oxidate the colour.

6- Add a bit of salt and blend well.

FOR THE ROCK AND SEAFOOD BROTH

1- Choose any type of fish or seafood suitable for broth making. For this recipe, you’ll get the best results by using rock fish like red scorpion fish and seafood like shore crabs or velvet crabs.

2- To make the broth, cook the fish and seafood with or without vegetables and directly in water or after first roasting in the oven for a good toast. The difference will be noticeable in the flavour as you get a more natural fish yet less tasty flavour the first way and a toasted flavour with the second. We recommend the second way (but, again, it all depends on one’s own personal preferences).

3- Remember to cook the fish broth only for 30 minutes. The fish will begin to fall apart after that time which gives the broth an unpleasant ammonia taste.

FOR THE CRAYFISH RICE

• 20 cooked crayfish
• 160 g Bomba rice
• 1 teaspoon of Nora pepper paste
• 450 ml of fish broth (see recipe above)
• 2 tablespoons of spicy cream

1- You don’t fry garlic and onion for this rice as the spicy cream and the broth will give it all the personality needed.

2- Mix 400 ml of the fish broth with the two tablespoons of spicy cream to get the base for cooking the rice.

3- Lightly fry the rice in oil for one minute in a large frying pan and then add the Nora pepper paste. Stir twice and add the fish broth and spicy cream mix.

4- Salt to taste. The broth must be a little salty (but not excessively) as rice is bland and you need a balance.

5- Cook on medium to high heat stirring the rice once in a while.

6- Start peeling the crayfish.

7- Once the rice is finished (it should almost be dry), add the crayfish and all the spicy cream you want. This last step is what will make the rice creamy with a spectacular taste.

A recipe from Chef Sergio Salvador