I often prepare lighter meals during the first part of November in anticipation of the annual holidays’ heavy meals. So, I added this Fideuá (Spanish noodles with seafood) to my November dinner repertoire this year.
The dictionary of the Spanish Royal Academy defines fideuá as a dish similar to paella but made with pasta noodles instead of rice. Pronounced fi-de-wah in the Catalan dialect, the name is a contraction of the Valencian word fideuada which means a large amount of noodles.
Unlike paella, fideuá is not an ancient dish and there are no competing claims regarding its origin. Spanish culinary sources uniformly attribute its creation to a cook’s endeavor to overcome the gluttony of a fishing vessel’s skipper.
According to the story, Joan Bautista Pascual, a sailor from a small Valencian town, was the young cook on a fishing boat in 1915. He cooked arròs a banda ( translated as rice on the side), a simple dish of rice cooked in fish stock made of leftover unsellable fish remnants daily for the ship’s crew. The problem was that the boat’s captain had an insatiable appetite for rice and at each meal devoured most of the dish, leaving his sailors without their meal portions. To stop the gluttonous skipper, Cook Pascual substituted noodles for rice to make the meal less appetizing for the captain. This change in ingredients was successful and fame of the dish spread to harbor restaurants and eventually to other restaurants in Catalunya.
Widespread popularity transformed fideuà from its humble origin as a hearty meal for poor fishermen at sea to a sophisticated dish now prepared with a variety of seafood, herbs and spices. Fideuà is always prepared with noodles, a sofrito, fish, seafood and fish or shellfish broth.
Fideo
As its name indicates, the base of this dish is short pasta called fideos*, thinner than spaghetti but thicker than angel hair. Instead of boiling the noodles Italian-style, Catalan cooks first toast the fideos, broken in 2-inch pieces, in olive oil like risotto. Gently browning the noodles makes them lighter in texture and enhances their ability to soak up repeated ladles of savory broth and piquant sofrito.
A successful fideuà progressively acquires deeper flavor at several stages of preparation. A rich shellfish broth is essential for making a great fideuà. It can be made quickly with fresh ingredients such as shrimp shells (from the shrimp later added to the dish), a few vegetables, herbs and spices. Of course, a high-quality seafood broth or even clam juice can be purchased instead and either of these alternatives can be further enhanced by poaching shrimp shells and vegetables. It is, however, important to taste commercially prepared broth or stock for saltiness and adjust later salt additions to avoid oversalting.
Cooking the shrimp broth
A further flavor boost is provided by a basic sofrito of onion, garlic, pepper, tomato, and spices. A sofrito is the soul of many Spanish dishes which further enhances fideuà‘s flavor profile, making a significant difference in the final preparation. Although most sofritos are sauteéd before being added to the dish, here the sofrito vegetables, chopped into small pieces to extract maximum flavor, nutrients and aromas, are added to the toasted noodles and cooked slowly over low heat so the vegetable juices can be absorbed by the noodles rather than evaporate.
Finely chopped sofrito ingredients
Fideuá may be plain or fancy: a simple dish of noodles with a seafood-flavored stock as originally prepared by Cook Pascual or with a lavish array of seafood. Assorted seafood such as monkfish, cuttlefish, squid, crayfish, scallops, prawns, shrimp, mussels, or clams work well in whatever combination or quantity available locally or a cook’s budget permits. Because seafood is easily overcooked, initially the seafood is lightly sautéed, then finished in the final few minutes of cooking.
Selected seafood: from left, monkfish, whole shrimp, clam rings and tentacles, littleneck clams and cleaned shrimp
Final baking for a few minutes in a hot oven until the top noodles are crispy and the seafood is just cooked, followed by a five-minute rest after cooking to absorb the remaining broth and fish juices, fully melds the fideuá’s flavors and finishes the dish. It should be just cooked and moist, not soupy.
Even though fideuá is full-flavored and ready to eat after baking, it is usually served with allioli (also called ajo aceite), the final element of its success. The name of this versatile sauce eaten across Spain with fish, meat and vegetables comes from the Catalan words for the two main ingredients all (garlic), i (and), and oli (oil). It is quick, simple and very flavorful. A spoon of this emulsion of olive oil, crushed garlic, salt, pepper and egg yolk, similar to French aioli, adds creaminess and lusciousness to the finished dish.
Allioli ingredients
Ready allioli
This fideuá is a refined dish bursting with flavor. The combination of abundant fresh seafood, nestled in noodles softened in a flavorful broth with a crispy noodle topping, dressed with garlicky allioli and spritz of lemon creates a satisfying savory, yet light, meal. As there is no consensus among Spanish cooks regarding what makes a perfect fideuá, and there are as many recipes as there are cooks, I believe this recipe captures the essence of this fishermen’s dish. It is easy to love its texture and its rich flavor. I am delighted with the final result.
Fideuá — Spanish Noodles with Seafood, adapted from Penelope Casas’ Delicioso! The Regional Cooking of Spain and other Spanish language recipes
For the allioli:
4 cloves garlic
¾ teaspoon salt
1 large egg yolk
1 tablespoon lemon juice (about ½ lemon)
½ cup (118 ml) vegetable oil
½ cup (118 ml) light olive oil
2 tablespoons warm water
Pepper to taste
For the shrimp stock:
2 tablespoons light olive oil
shells from 1 to 2 pounds of shrimp
1 small onion
1 carrot
1 celery stalk
1 clove garlic
1 sprig parsley
1 bay leaf
¼ teaspoon whole coriander seeds
¼ teaspoon black peppercorns
4 cups (946 ml) water
For the fideua:
8-12 large fresh shrimp in shells, with body shell removed but tail intact
1 pound (454 g) cleaned squid, cut into ½-inch rings, tentacles cut in halves lengthwise
10 ounces (283 g) monkfish, cut into 1-inch (2.5 cm) pieces1 dozen very small littleneck clams or mussels
6 tablespoons olive oil
½ cup (118 ml) dry wine
¼ teaspoon saffron
Kosher or sea salt to taste
2 ripe tomatoes
1 small onion, finely chopped|
1 cup green pepper, finely chopped
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
1 tablespoon sweet paprika
Pinch cayenne
10 ounces (280 g) fideos* in 2-inch lengths
2¾ cups (650 ml) homemade or purchased shrimp or fish stock* or clam juice as substitute
Salt and pepper to taste
Lemon wedges
½ cup (30 g) fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
Preparing allioli: Place egg yolk, garlic, water, and lemon juice in the bottom of an immersion blender cup or narrow jar. Pour oil on top and allow to settle for 15 seconds. Place the head of immersion blender at bottom of the container and switch it on. As mayonnaise forms, slowly tilt and lift the head of the immersion blender, allowing time for the egg and garlic mixture to absorb the oil until emulsified.
Then, as the blender is running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil and process until thick. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.
(For food processor or blender: Combine egg, garlic, lemon juice and water in a food processor or blender. With the machine running, slowly drizzle in the vegetable and the olive oil, scraping down the sides as necessary.)
Preparing seafood: Place clams or mussels in a colander and run under cold water. Discard those with broken shells or any that do not close when tapped. If any of the shells still have barnacles or stringy beards attached, pull them off with a knife and scrub the shells well. Keep in the colander, covered with a cold, damp cloth, until you’re ready to cook.
Peel shrimp shells on the body section only leaving the tails intact. Score down the backs and devein. Keep shrimp chilled until ready to cook. Add shrimp heads and tails to the broth.
Rinse cleaned squid pieces and cut as needed. Cut monkfish into 1 inch (2.5 cm) pieces. Keep seafood chilled.
Preparing shrimp broth: Add the oil, shrimp shells, onion, carrots, celery and garlic to a heavy bottom pot with a tightly fitted lid. Cook over medium heat until the shrimp shells turn pink and vegetables start to soften about 10 to 15 minutes.
Add parsley, bay, coriander, peppercorns and water. Cover the pot, leaving the lid askew, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and strain into a large measuring cup. Discard shrimp shells and vegetables.
When ready to assemble dish, heat broth to boiling, reduce to simmer and keep hot.
Preparing fideuá: Crush saffron strands and add to dry wine. Steep for 10 minutes.
Pre-heat oven to 400˚F (200˚C).
Cut tomatoes in halves crosswise. Squeeze gently to remove seeds and grate with coarse grater down to the skin. Drain off any excess juices. Combine into a sofrito with finely chopped onion and pepper and set aside.
Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large flat frying or paella pan on medium heat. Add shrimp, squid and clams, sprinkle with salt. and sauté for 2 minutes. (Seafood is partially cooked at this point and will be added to the pan for final cooking.) Remove shrimp, squid and clams to a warm plate and set aside. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil and the fideos and, stirring constantly, cook until lightly toasted, but avoid burning.
Reduce heat to low. Add saffron, paprika, cayenne and garlic, stirring for a minute more. Then add sofrito to pan and cook for another 2 minutes, then stir in ½ cup (118 ml) hot broth.
Add squid, monkfish, folding into the noodles. Add ½ cup (118 ml) broth and continue to cook for 2 minutes. Nestle clams hinge side down, into the noodles. Depending on how much liquid the clams release, you may have to add more liquid. Taste noodles for tenderness. Continue to cook slowly, add broth at intervals as it is absorbed occasionally stirring until the noodles are al-dente, about 10 minutes, and most of the broth is absorbed. Adjust seasoning.
Nestle the shrimp in the noodles, add a ladle of broth and bake for 7 minutes. Remove from oven, cover lightly with a kitchen towel or foil and let stand atop stove from 5 to 10 minutes. Garnish with parsley. Serve hot with lemon wedges and allioli on the side.
Serves 4-6
*Fideo are available online and in many Hispanic grocery stores.
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