Paella croquettes, smoked paprika aioli and parsley salt from 46 & York.
Paella croquettes, smoked paprika aioli and parsley salt from 46 & York.
Have you enjoyed an icy cold Estrella Damm this summer? If so, you're up with the play because the beer of Barcelona has only just become readily available here in New Zealand. To celebrate, Bite ran a tapas competition and asked the bars and restaurants who serve it to share with us their favourite Estrella tapa match. They narrowed it down a very fine field of finalists and we will share one of their top five each day online, along with a gallery of other contenders.
Have you enjoyed an icy cold Estrella Damm this summer? If so, you're up with the play because the beer of Barcelona has only just become readily available here in New Zealand. To celebrate Bite ran a tapas competition and asked the bars and restaurants who serve it to share with us their favourite Estrella tapa match. We narrowed down a very fine field to 12 finalists, which we tested and tasted. You will find the recipes from all 12 finalists on foodhub.co.nz; the top five, we present to you here. The recipes have all been judged and adapted by the Bite team to suit the home cook so go on, get the Estrella in (it's available at all liquor retailers) and get set to impress.
46 & York
Head chef Scott Hansen offers a number of grazing plates at new Parnell restaurant 46 & York along with some classic favourites (think Mac 'n cheese and Asahi-battered fish and chips) for those not wanting to share. The croquettes below are served with a little parsley- infused salt and will feature on the Treats and Creations menu that gives diners the opportunity to try new dishes and the restaurant the chance to showcase seasonal produce.
Paella croquettes, smoked paprika aioli and parsley salt
To finish croquettes • 50g flour, seasoned with salt and pepper • 1 egg, beaten • 50g breadcrumbs (we like panko crumbs) • Oil for deep frying
1. To make the aioli, whisk egg yolk, garlic, mustard and paprika together. Slowly rain in the canola to form an aioli. Lemon, salt and pepper can be added to balance the flavours (a pinch of castor sugar can be useful too).
2. To make the risotto, bring the stock to a simmer in a pot. Add the saffron to create deep-coloured stock. Depending on the age and quality of the saffron you may need more than ½ tsp.
3. In 45ml olive oil, sweat the shallot and garlic, chorizo and chicken. This should take 3-5 minutes. Remove the meats, leaving behind the coloured and flavoured oil.
4. Add the rice to the oil, turning it over in the oil. Begin to add the warm stock. It is important to stir this often to develop the 'creamy' look, which will later help hold the croquette together and also keep it moist when cooked again later. Add the stock bit by bit, ladle by ladle, until the rice is al dente. You may not need all of the stock. Each pot seems to behave slightly differently.
5. Return the reserved cooked meats, and also the prepared seafood and chopped parsley to the pot. The remaining heat will cook the seafood. Add one last ladle of stock, stir it through and remove from the heat. The mix should resemble a risotto, yet be a little loose because as the rice cools it will continue to absorb the liquid. Set aside to cool.
6. When the mix is cool, form it into balls or croquette shapes, and set aside in the fridge to firm. This step can be done the day before.
1. To finish, run the chilled and set croquettes first through the seasoned flour, then the beaten egg and finally the crumbs. Refrigerate to set again.
2. To cook, deep fry the croquettes for 2-3 minutes in oil set to 175C until golden. Drain on paper towels and serve with the aioli. As a little cheffy touch, we season the croquettes with a little parsley salt and garnish the dish with baby parsley shoots.
The judges say: Estrella Damm was born to match the true flavours of Spain in these croquettes. The crunch of the crumbs taking what is a flavoursome easy-to-make paella that you could enjoy as is, to a crunchy new level.
Check out some of the other Estrella Damm tapas competion competitors
Image 1 of 3: The Dark Horse Bar and Grill: Bourbon-glazed pork belly with chorizo and roasted red pepper sauce. Photo / NZH
Note: Part of the judging process was to choose recipes that were suitable to the home cook. The recipes from our 12 semi-finalists have all been tested and some slightly adapted to suit. See all 12 recipes on foodhub.co.nz
