A delicious new way to use green tomatoes from those summer gardens. This recipe is also a great way to have a festive summertime dinner party. You hear me?!
Ingredients
- Extra Virgin olive oil
- In The Kitchen With Scotty "Cook's Line" Seasoning
- 1 pound large, fresh scallops
- 1 pound Spanish chorizo sausage, sliced thick
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 3 large cloves garlic, smashed and minced
- 2 cups Arborio rice (or any short grain starchy rice)
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 1 quart chicken stock, unsalted
- 1 tablespoon Spanish saffron threads bunch
- 1 pound green tomatoes, quartered
- 4-5 Campari or small Roma tomatoes, quartered
- 3-4 green onions chopped for garnishing before serving
Preparation
You do not have to have a Paella pan, so a large skillet works for this recipe, too. A paella pan is more fun, though, so take that for what it’s worth. Place your large scallops out on a plate and sprinkle both sides with Cook’s Line Seasoning or your own salt and black pepper. Begin heating the olive oil in your pan until it almost reaches smoking point. Carefully lay down each of the scallops and sear both sides until golden brown, about 1½ minutes on each side. Remove the scallops from the pan and set aside. Add a little more oil if needed, and begin doing the same with your sliced chorizo sausage. This renders out some of that glorious pork fat and spices to the pan, as well as caramelizing the sausage slices. Set those aside.
In a sauce pot begin heating the chicken stock along with the saffron. Then with the flavorful fat still in the pan from the scallops and andouille, begin cooking your diced onion and chopped garlic. Now if you have ever made risotto, the next steps are resembling risotto making.
Add the Arborio rice to the cooked onion and garlic, and begin to gently sauté your rice over medium high heat. You want them cook gently, developing their starchy goodness, and to absorb the flavors of the pan and seasonings. Pour in the dry white wine and begin stirring your rice. Cook until all the wine has been absorbed and the pan is dry.
Next, add all of the hot chicken and saffron stock to the pan. This is where it differs slightly from making risotto. Instead of adding a small amount of stock in and cooking until the stock is absorbed, we’re going to add the stock in all at once. Mix the soupy concoction around a bit then add in the browned chorizo sausage. Snuggle in the quartered green tomatoes and Campari red tomatoes decoratively. Remember, people eat with their eyes first.
Reduce the heat and slowly simmer away on the stove top for 25-30 minutes until a majority of the liquid has been absorbed, and the rice is al dente. Create scalloped sized wells around the paella and insert the seared scallops. Keep cooking gently on the stove top until the edge of the paella is a little crusty, all the liquid is absorbed, and the scallops have heated through. Garnish the top of the pan with the chopped green onions, and serve directly from your paella pan. Enjoy!
