It has nothing to do with storage. When you use orange wood to make a fire, the smoke gives to the rice that "special note" when cooking. In fact, when you take out the paella from the fire, you have to let it rest for at least 1 min. before serving. During that minute, it is usually covered with a cloth, cloth that, by the way, has been also exposed to smoke while cooking. In the other hand, Orange wood, apart from giving a certain aroma to the paella, provides a steady and manageable fire despite the difficulty of cooking with firewood.
Hi again! For paella (not for rice, I already explained the difference) it should be twice the amount of water than rice...and "a little more on the way" if necessary. For example, squids release a lot of water when cooked, but not certain meats, so it really depends. Anyway, we never measure rice to the exact point per people. We use one hand of rice per person and always add and extra one at the end for "socarrat" and hungry ones, but it is always around 125-130 grams of rice per person. Those measures are like that to give people the opportunity of having also some salads before. Paella pan has to come empty back to the kitchen. Another trick is, when using the proper pan in size for the amount of people to be served, then you add water up to the screws that hold the pan handles and no more than that!
A forum community dedicated to Professional Chefs. Come join the discussion about recipes, prep, kitchens, styles, tips, tricks, reviews, accessories, schools, and more!
