MyMoon (184 North 10th St.), a captivating restaurant and event venue in North Williamsburg, recently acquired a new chef, Marco Antonio Paz Del Alamo. Before becoming the Executive Chef at MyMoon, he worked at several Michelin-starred restaurants including Marcus Eaves’ L’Autre Pied in London and Martín Berasategui’s Lasarte in Barcelona, and Passion in the Dominican Republic.
In a recent interview with Greenpointers, Chef Marco said, “I wanted the menu at MyMoon to reflect the Spanish identity and philosophy, and also my personality. I tried to maintain classic Spanish dishes, and then add more personal touches. The most important thing to me was to protect the Spanish roots, but I want the menu at MyMoon to have “alma” or soul.”
One of Chef Marco’s signature dishes at MyMoon is the paella, which he calls “a quintessential Spanish dish.” He has shared his paella recipe below.
Find last week’s Community Cookbook recipe here.
Chef Marco Antonio Paz Del Alamo’s Paella
Ingredients
(For 6 people)
- 450 grams (or about 15 ounces) of round grain rice (It ends up being about 70 grams or 2.5 ounces per person.)
- Legs and wings of one chicken
- 4-5 green beans
- 2 artichokes (if in season)
- 200 grams (or about 7 ounces) of tomato puree/chopped tomatoes
- 6 garlic cloves
- Chicken stock
- Saffron, if desired
- Sweet smoked paprika
- Fresh rosemary
- Salt
- Olive oil
Optional: rabbit meat can be added.
Ingredients for the Stock
- 2.5 liters of cold water
- 1 chicken carcass and additional bones
- 1 leek (the green part of the leaves is best)
Directions for the stock
Add bones and the leek into a large pot with cold water and bring to a boil. Cook, skimming periodically, for 40- 50 minutes.
Directions for the paella
1. Cover the surface of a paella pan with olive oil and make sure to level the pan.
2. Salt the meats and fry on high heat.
3. When seared and brown, place the meats at the edge of the paella pan or reserve on a separate plate, especially if using a small pan.
3. Add the snapped green beans and the chopped artichokes with a small pinch of salt and stir-fry for a few minutes.
4. Add the minced garlic and stir-fry for a couple of minutes more.
5. Mix in half of a teaspoon of sweet paprika, and then add the tomato puree and cook together until caramelized.
6. Add the chicken stock to cover all the ingredients and cook for 5 minutes.
7. For the saffron, first put it in aluminum foil close to the fire so that it gets dry and toasted. Next, break the saffron stamen and dissolve it in a small bowl with stock then add it to the paella pan.
8. Infuse fresh rosemary in the stock for a minute and then remove it or place it on the paella once you cover it at the end.
9. If necessary, add more stock to fill to the level of the pan handles.
10. Add salt (stock should be salty) and once boiling, add the rice, pouring from handle to handle. The rice should cover the surface between the handles. Mix until the rice is evenly distributed in the pan and let cook for 18 minutes. (The first 5 minutes cook on high heat, then cook for 13 minutes on reduced to medium heat or lower if the stock seams to be reducing very quickly).
11. Once the stock is absorbed (leave 1 extra minute if necessary), drizzle with olive oil in order to toast the rice at the bottom of the pan. Wait to hear the rice cracking (and be very careful in order to avoid burning the bottom).
12. Remove from the heat, cover with a tea towel and let stand for 5-10 minutes before serving.
Suggestion: squeeze some lemon on top of your rice once on the plate.