Paella win, but still missing socarrat (pic)

EggyLoew · May 2015

Turning into a veteran on the Paella. For some reason though, still can't figure out the socarrat. Per wikipedia,

"After cooking paella, there is usually a layer of toasted rice at the bottom of the pan, called socarrat in Spain. This is considered a delicacy among Spaniards 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 tea-towel at this point) to absorb the remaining broth."

So I guess this means cranking it up to 500 degrees and toasting the rice at the end? Let me know if anyone has figured this out. Thanks!

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5017260/uploads/editor/j8/xditpsk0pnvk.jpg

rosco · May 2015

Cook it closer to the coals and do not stir it. That looks fantastik by the way.

Big_Green_Craig · May 2015

Great looking paella!! My family loves paella and we cook it often.

I'm not sure of your setup, but traditional paella is cooked over an open fire. I cook mine as if I were grilling direct. The pan sits on the grilling grate and directly over the coals. I cook at approx 400F dome temp as a fire that is too hot will result in burnt socarrat. The socarrat results are very good cooking at 400F. I always let everyone dig in before me so that I can have extra of the crusty goodness.

On another note, it looks like your pan is carbon steel? I have several sizes of pans, depending on the number of people, in both carbon steel and stainless steel. In my experience, I get better socarrat in the stainless pans. The carbon steel pans seem to burn the bottom rather than make them crusty.

Here's one I did yesterday. I was cooking for 6 adults and 2 children. The pan is 15" SS.

Hope this info helps!

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5017260/uploads/editor/9e/owr4358gz7wv.jpg

henapple · May 2015

Looks amazing

aukerns08 · May 2015

That looks amazing. I'm going to have to get one of those pans and try one myself.

fishlessman · May 2015

i believe its because we as americans put too much in the pan, my great grandmother was from the azores and it was a very thin dish compared to what i see here

TnJed · May 2015

That's awesome!

Egghead_Daron · May 2015

Damn that looks good dude!

Thatgrimguy · May 2015

I have to learn how to do this.

johnkitchens · May 2015

It looks so good. I have never eaten it let alone cook it. I would love to try both.

GATABITES · May 2015

Thatgrimguy said:

I have to learn how to do this.

Me 2. It looks intimidating but Im sure with practice it not too bad.

BRush00 · May 2015

@EggyLoew - lookin great! Is that picture your finished Paella? If so, I'd simply let it run a little longer to develop more of the Socarrat. It looks to me like there's still a little liquid around the edges (and thus probably bottom) of your pan.

I do my Paella as per the Naked Whiz directions, essentially you build your fire - and set up your egg to run around 400. Once you've reached temp and you're ready to cook, close the bottom vent, add your pan, and start cooking.

The Egg lid is open for almost the whole cook, so the airflow from the top of the egg is enough to keep the fire chugging along, without getting overblown.

The lid finally gets closed down after all ingredients are added back into the paella, and all you're trying to do is absorb the remaining liquid.

Using that method, I've never had a trouble with a crispy-socarrat-y bottom... I actually have to keep a pretty close eye/ear on it to ensure i'm not burning anything up.

Paella win, but still missing socarrat (pic)

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