The paella has a promised museum, an international competition held annually and a file initiated to be declared an Asset of Cultural Interest.
It would be strange if it did not have an official day.
Today, September 20, the World Paella Day is celebrated, which is now in its third edition;
a date promoted by different Valencian organizations to value the best-known dish of its gastronomy, and possibly the most international in Spain.
To the tastings in different cities of the world -London, Milan, Rotterdam or New York-, a contest is added, the World Paella Cup, where eight finalists from different countries compete. And for the second time, the Spanish representative is a woman again: she is Noelia Pascual, called 'the chef of the fire'. Fourth generation of a matriarchal family in charge of the Cachito restaurant, which is already a piece of Elche's history. A house surrendered to culinary tradition and rice crafts. What can go wrong?
"I am very excited, but I have significant pressure," admits the aforementioned. Because if last year the Valencian cook Chabe Soler was the winner of the contest, now the national hopes are placed on this contestant from Elche. "We suppose that the best paellas are made in Spain, but what if another country wins?" The approach is not alien to Emiliano García, Valencia Tourism Councilor, who acknowledges that applications have been received from all over the world (Russia, China, United States). "In the technique of cooking rice, Valencia is an indisputable reference, but the success of paella is found in that it is already a universal dish. Professionals from all over have learned the original technique of the paella masters", he warns.
Cachito is going for a centennial business.
Founded in 1935 as a sale of stews for neighbors and pilgrims, Noelia Pascual's restaurant still preserves that traditional spirit.
She was trained in Cooking in Santa Pola and completed a Master in Hospitality Management, but although she has chosen to modernize business aspects and refine culinary techniques, she has not wanted to touch the classic cookbook.
"The thing is that I like spoon dishes, the ones that remind me of my grandmother, and I'm glad that my taste for them has finally returned," he admits.
So in his menu he includes the
all i pebre
from Alicante, or the tabellacos of Arab origin, and it remains so wide.
"Rooted cuisine", that is how he defines it.
Thus, surrounded by firewood and fire, Noelia works.
NOELIA PASCUAL
A masculinized environment
In a television program she said that she was "a woman of fire", and has already stayed with the nickname. Because as she admits, "I don't know many other girls who spend their lives in the paellero." Her story is particular: she has grown up in a matriarchal family, where men have always played a secondary role. "My mother had the support of my father, but she was the rice cooker, and so was my grandmother and my great-grandmother," he says. Until reaching the current fourth generation, with her sister Lidia in the living room and she in the kitchen. "It is clear that the rice sector is masculinized, but I go to mine. I have once participated in contests where they have looked at me strangely, and it has been one more challenge," he claims. It is part of the Association of Women in Gastronomy (MEG).
Rice feminism is not a trivial subject. In the opinion of councilor Emiliano García, "women have always been the undisputed protagonist in this environment and, as has happened in other areas, now they are simply gaining visibility." Chefs such as María José San Román (Monastrell), Susi Díaz (La Finca), Cristina Figueira (El Xato) or Begoña Rodrigo (La Salita) have contributed to this. Guillermo Navarro points further: "There is not enough prestige in the world of rice in general; neither male nor female. Perhaps because traditionally the centers of gastronomic media power have seen paellas and rice culture as something too popular and folkloric" , opines.
It is time to assert the heritage.
"Preparing wood-fired rice is very hard, especially in summer. It is also very satisfying, because it is an emotional dish. And you only reach the customer's heart if you cook something this special," agrees Noelia Pascual.
Every day he walks around the room to receive
customer
feedback
.
"The other day I almost burst into tears when a man told me that my rice with a crust was like the one his grandmother made. He asked me for a hug and it was a wonderful feeling," says the cook.
This is a paella.
MIKE WATER (LOANED BY TURISMO VALENCIA)
The Valencian paella
Since the rice dishes in the different qualifying phases are free to choose, the one presented by Noelia Pascual in the World Paella Cup will not be entirely
Valencian.
It is likely that you will opt for the most emblematic recipe in your area: the rabbit and serranas paella (mountain snails, abundant in areas with rosemary). And no, he is not self-conscious about talking about "paella de", instead of "arroz con": his personal stance on the terminological debate is shared by a large part of the community. Also from the use of firewood or the thickness of rice. The domestic preparation will have a place in this article without complexes; no sacred, chaste and pure paellas, no matter how much your birthday may be: long live paella understood as a circle of celebration.
There is a reactionary faction that defends that to use the name and surname - that of the heartfelt "Valencian paella" -, it is mandatory to use ten specific ingredients: rice, chicken, rabbit,
ferraura
,
garrofó
, oil, salt, tomato, water and saffron. Continuing with this cantinela, a decade ago the creation of a Denomination of Origin was proposed, a delusion that did not succeed. "That the cradle of a dish wants to protect it by imposing its most indigenous recipe is not an exclusively Valencian phenomenon. Italians are just as happy with pineapple on pizza, or Japanese with avocado on sushi, as we are with chorizo ", explains Guillermo Navarro, creator of Wikipaella.
His opinion coincides with that of Noelia Pascual: "If it has a balanced grain, it is tasty and it is made in paella, it is paella".
On the other hand, if it is a caked, soupy or tasteless rice, it is not.
"The research, the analysis in the field and all the documentation convinced us that it is not a dish with certain ingredients, but a way to prepare the rice in the container, because 'paella' is a pan in Valencian", explains the scholar .
So the
garrofó
is so indigenous
, like the pepper in La Safor or the artichoke in Castellón;
If rice a banda or cauldron predominates in the coastal regions of Alicante, in the Vinalopó Valley the rabbit and snail paella is typical.
Noelia handling the fire.
NOELIA PASCUAL
"Each area has its proposals based on the pantry of the territory, and of course they are not the same in Denia as in Játiva, but that's the beauty of it," says Pascual. She, who is quite classical in the elaboration process, attaches importance to other matters. Two touchstones: the firewood and the cape. "Except for the sweet ones that we prepare in perol, in Cachito we make all the rice dishes with wood from vine shoots. It's not that it's better or worse, it just takes you to other places. It's a cultural theme, the aroma you get is more romantic and brings back memories. childhood, "he admits.
As for the thickness, its hallmark is the monolayer.
"With a thin layer, we get the grain to have the same cooking throughout the paella. Although I understand that it is not the most normal thing if you cook for many at home", he refines.
Because of course, one thing is to eat a wood-fired paella in a rice temple and quite another, to turn on the ceramic hob on Sundays.
Home rice cooker epic
Can you get a good paella in the kitchen at home? The answer is yes: yes, if you are not a jerk; yes, if you are not a snob. The result will be adapted to your means, but also to your tastes. "The ideal paella to make at home is one that takes into account your possibilities," says Noelia Pascual, backed by a few behind her back. This means that you can play monolayer if you have a large container and you do it for two people, but you will have to surrender to the thickness if it is small and there are many of you. In addition, nobody expects - much less your neighbors - that you light a fire on the terrace: when you chose the induction hob, you put on your engagement ring.
But don't worry, because the most important thing is the bottom line. According to our expert, "when the base is good, it is rare for the rest to fail". You
have to prepare a good sofrito of meat, or in the case of rice with fish, using the best whitebait for
fumet
. "Once we have the base ready, we will take care of the vegetables, the tomato and the saffron," he continues. Then we will arrive at the critical bathroom: "I pour the water and then the rice, although in Alicante it is typical to fry the rice and then submerge. The proportion of firewood would be one liter of broth per 100 grams of rice; or at home, three glasses for one ", he specifies. From there, 18 minutes, the first over high heat and then, with a lot of love. Here is the tutorial.
Now let's say you want to be the Dabiz Muñoz of the patio of lights, because innovating is cool. You do not need to violate the dignity of the dish: here we already explained the list of dispensable ingredients and we offered you different proposals, among which were included the soupy rice and the traveling rice. You can also resort to those that are not considered 'paella', but are Valencian, such as the
arròs al forn
, incomprehensible unknown outside the Valencian Community.
For many, putting the oven is more of a challenge.
"It is very difficult to control the point of the rice, you don't see it until you remove the casserole, and as it is a thicker layer, the grain has different cooking times," he recalls.
What else, what else?
Well, the liturgies to stick your mucus: serve the paella in the center, eat it with a wooden spoon and kill yourself with the rest of the diners for scratching the socarrat at the bottom.
What is rice without fraternity?
And the fraternity without struggle?
There is no paella without emotion
Because in rice, as in everything, what counts - if something counts - are the feelings. For those who breathe, internalize and exude the dish, the circle of power that is generated around a paella is incomparable. It means meeting with friends and Sunday with family. Grains as a symbol of fertility and prosperity. The rice that is thrown at the newlyweds. In the list of the 100 most important dishes of Spanish cuisine, recently published by El Comidista, the Valencian paella was included - of course -. The networks have burned, because talking about this dish always involves adding firewood. But fire for everyone, from New York skyscrapers to Mexican sheds; fire for the purists and the daredevils; fire so that we can continue cooking paellas (wood-fired).