Analysis Of The Paella

This morning an American couple in my regular Cafe haunt had some difficulty getting the waiter to understand what they wanted, which was 'bacon with double eggs, sunny side up', so I helped with the translation. Our tables were right next to one another, so after expressing their gratitude and my 'Don't mention it', we got to chat a little. They said they were surprised how the Spanish could make a foreign dish, like what they had ordered (bacon & egg a foreign dish? I thought it was universal these days) so well, yet the Paella, 'the national dish (national?) they had the night before, was so terrible. With their description, I understood that the Paella was too 'wet', the seafood was too 'hard' (overdone they meant I am sure), and the mixing of meat and vegetable together was 'disgusting'.

I regard the mixing of meat and certain vegetable in the Paella as wonderful, but agreed that few restaurants, very unfortunately, do it properly if not downright terrible and disgusting as they had put it. To start with, why every foreigner regards the Paella as a national dish of Spain is something that had intrigued me for years. Spain has many good regional dishes as well as many adapted international ones. Paella originally came from Valencia but it's popularity had encouraged all other regions to put that on the menu. No more a national dish the sweet & sour pork in China, nor shepherd's pie a national dish of Ireland. True It's certainly the dish almost every visitor orders as soon as they touch the Spanish soil.

It's undoubtedly a tasty dish, well balanced nutritionally and, when done well (different from well done, which would make the seafood like leather), it's just wonderful. The composition is most positive health and nutrition-wise: rice, green beans or peas, king pawns and mussels, optional addition like chicken, rabbit or lean pork ribs; or all of them together (my favourite) This combination offers nearly all that one needs of a well balanced diet, with the right proportions of carbohydrates, protein, vitamins, and certain fibre for roughage and pure virgin olive oil, none of the saturated fat.

It's therefore an energetic and nutritional food, all in one complete dish. Like every other food considered good for health, we have to remember of course the mistake of 'the more the better' self deceiving greed to overeat. The downside is that it's so delicious it's hard indeed not to overindulge.

Tags:paella

Current Mood: Accomplished